VoIP Gets A $20 Million Boost

Telecom giant Deutsche Telekom is aligning itself with the future by putting $20 million into VoIP startup Jajah.

The online telecommunications industry just keeps on growing. As proof that it’s on the increase, Internet telephony company Jajah has just received a $20 million investment from the giant Deutsche Telekom, the largest telecommunications company in Europe, and owner of T-Mobile, through its T-Online Venture Fund.   Jajah was founded in 2005 with the intention of using the Internet for free or cheap calling on both landlines and cell phones, and has already received funding from Intel and venture capitalists Sequoia Capital.   Skype might be leaders in the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) field, but Jajah is giving it a strong run for its money, having acquired two million subscribers in its first year alone. While Skype has focused on the landline market, Jajah and other startups have muscled into the mobile market, often challenging existing providers.   According to Deutsche Telekom’s Andreas Kindt, Jajah makes a natural partner for the giant.   “The communication landscape is rapidly evolving. This investment aligns perfectly with our strategy.By investing in companies like Jajah, we will be able to continue to bring users around the world the innovative solutions they are looking for.”   At the moment the VoIP market is still very much in its infancy, no matter what Skype, Vonage and the others would have you believe, and that’s particularly true in the mobile market, although most established operators have viewed it as a threat.   However, last week T-Mobile rolled out the Wing, a new smartphone which can be used for VoIP if a user can access a wireless network, and Deutsche Telekom states it expects to offer Jajah calling services to its customers in the near future. Deutsche Telekom has recently experienced great problems in its landline business, with a 58% fall in three month profits.