ProDial guarantees VOIP

THE boss of one of the nation’s largest internet service providers has welcomed a new telecommunications system from Perth aimed at reducing costs for small to medium enterprises, despite warning that smaller businesses may not adopt the new system.

ProDial is a Western Australian telecommunications provider, which last week launched a new voice over internet protocol telecommunications system, targeting the small to medium enterprise sector, that could save businesses up to 60 per cent on the cost of calls.

Chief executive of private equity firm GKB Global Grant Bennett is part owner, chairman and chief financial officer for ProDial.

Mr Bennett, who is also the son of Angela Bennett and grandson of mining magnate Peter Wright, invested in the development of the VOIP technology through his private equity firm after initially hearing about the Israeli-born technology in 2001.

“The Harvard Business Review said in 2006 that every business and residential property in the world that has broadband connection will one day be using VOIP,” Mr Bennett said.

iiNet chief executive, Michael Malone was supportive of the new technology despite the provider also offering similar services for residential and business customers and the nation’s slow uptake of the technology to date.

“If ProDial’s aim here is to make it easy for small business to save money, then more power to them,” Mr Malone said.

“There’s a big potential market out there of businesses not presently taking advantage of the lower costs that are available via VOIP.”

In 2007, Mr Bennett said he was presented with an opportunity to provide financial assistance to the existing ProDial product owners.

“They were having some financial troubles so I’ve come in and purchased 51 per cent of the company and then via a convertible note I financed the roll out of it,” he said.

VOIP systems for residential and commercial use are not new however what differentiates ProDial from its competitors is a guarantee that high quality voice calls will always be possible regardless of broadband connection or power outages.

“We put a ProDial 100 per cent redundant gateway switch in which means it would then go out through the 3G network,” Mr Bennett said.

“Our switch, which has high availability and carrier grade, will recognise your broadband connection is out and will send calls through the GSM gateway.”

While Mr Bennett said the call quality and connection will not be interrupted as the switch from broadband to wireless pathways would occur within 350 milliseconds, Mr Malone said his extensive experience was to blame for iiNet not offering a similar guarantee.

“I’ve been in the telco industry for too long, nothing is ever going to stay up forever,” he said.