We have been saying for sometime that telecom operators urgently needed to think beyond their core voice business. Mobile, beyond voice, is what we wrote about incessantly in the past two years. Here’s more reason:
Google entered a new business beyond Internet search on Wednesday with a service within Gmail to make phone calls over the Web to landlines or cellphones.
The service will thrust Google into direct competition with Skype, the Internet telephone company, and with telecommunications providers. It could also make Google a more ubiquitous part of people’s social interactions by uniting the service for phone calls with e-mail, text messages and video chats.
“It’s one place where you can get in touch with the people that you care about, and how that happens from a network perspective is less important,” said Charles S. Golvin, a telecommunications analyst at Forrester Research.
Gmail has offered voice and video chat for two years, but both parties must be at their computers. Google said the new service would work well for people in a spot with poor cellphone reception or for those making a quick call from their desk.
5 Comments
LYG
Success would be depend on the revenue model used, since the termination rates of the local operators would still valid.
Rohan Samarajiva
Interesting. As long as people continue to receive calls on handsets that are connected to networks that they subscribe to for voice services, yes, the telcos can live off termination revenues.
But why would people want to use one instrument and mode for originating calls and another for receiving? After a short transition, they will do both origination and termination off gmail. The telco will now get only payment for the broadband connection. Voice will have to be seen as a bundled service that come with it.
This is why telcos must come up with revenue sharing schemes for applications providers. That could be what saves them.
Rohan Samarajiva
http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/26/google-shakes-it-up-again-with-free-phone-calls/?src=me&ref=general
Expert Consultation on the CHIPS Digital Economy Assessment for Sri Lanka
On 17 July 2026, GovTech Sri Lanka and the Ministry of Digital Economy (MoDE), together with LIRNEasia, organized an Expert Consultation on the CHIPS Digital Economy Assessment for Sri Lanka. The session was conducted with funding support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Digital Transformation, AI, and Platform Work: Implications for Labour Markets and Social Protection
The rapid technological advancement and Artificial intelligence (AI) have become synonymous with conversations about the future of work. Headlines often focus on which jobs are at risk and how quickly technology will replace workers.
Play Learn Vote: Training Community Leaders to Build Resilience Against Election Misinformation
LIRNEasia developed Play Learn Vote, an interactive educational game designed to strengthen democratic participation while building resilience against election-related misinformation. The game introduces players to Sri Lanka’s electoral process through realistic scenarios that promote critical thinking, informed decision-making, and responsible civic participation.
Links
User Login
Themes
Social
Twitter
Facebook
RSS Feed
Contact
9A 1/1, Balcombe Place
Colombo 08
Sri Lanka
+94 (0)11 267 1160
+94 (0)11 267 5212
info [at] lirneasia [dot] net
Copyright © 2026 LIRNEasia
a regional ICT policy and regulation think tank active across the Asia Pacific