Posted by Cloud Net on Wed, Jul 07, 2010 @ 12:46 PM
Cloud Net recently announced the launch of its backup phone system in a box and despite the recent cancellation of the strike ballot has seen sales and website activity rise consistently ever since.
The Communication Workers Union (CWU) announced that it had stopped balloting workers for industrial action amid fears that the vote could be declared void due to legal technicalities. The CWU has, however, announced that it will start preparing for another industrial action ballot, without delay.
Charles Chance, Managing Director of Cloud Net commented, “Communications play a vital role in any business and even though strike action has been avoided this time, companies have woken up and realized the threats identified over the past few weeks are very real and could easily resurface. It is for this reason that conscientious business owners are seeking to put measures in place now, to minimize the impact on their bottom line should we see a repeat action.”
Cloud Net is offering BT subscribers a special package at £47.50 per handset + VAT set up cost, including a free phone, set up to any telephone number, a powerful internet based switchboard, and the ability to cancel the contract immediately with no termination fees. Cloud Net will only bill rental charges (£8.50 per month) and call costs from the date a user starts to use the system.
This means if negotiations between BT and the CWU are unsuccessful and another strike goes ahead, small companies will have a complete back up plan in a box waiting to go, preconfigured, for a low cost with no commitment.
“Unlike companies that resell BT services, Cloud Net’s network is not reliant on BT engineers to fix it. Their network is based on Voice over IP which utilizes the internet to carry phone calls.
As long as there is a broadband connection, Cloud Net phones will continue to work, wherever they are. If one connection goes down, users can take their phones and plug them into an alternative broadband line and work there for the day. This means that users will still have use of their usual office phone numbers and all the switchboard features they are used to, including the ability to transfer calls within the business," explains David Hill, Chairman of Cloud Net.
For more information please visit
www.cloudnetuk.com or telephone 01922 21 33 33.
Posted by Cloud Net on Mon, Jun 21, 2010 @ 03:11 AM
Cloud Net offering back up VoIP package for businesses using BT21 June 2010. Cloud Net has today announced a business phone package aimed to ensure that small businesses have working phone systems if a BT strike goes ahead. In the case of a strike, business owners whose lines develop a fault could be left with no telephone lines or broadband.
Cloud Net is offering a back up phone system which can be activated in case of a fault developing on a BT line.
Cloud Net is offering BT subscribers a special package at £47.50 per handset + VAT set up cost, including a free phone, and set up to any telephone number, a powerful internet based switchboard, and the ability to cancel the contract immediately with no termination fees. Cloud Net will only bill rental charges (£8.50 per month) and call costs from the date a BT user starts to use the system.
This means if BT strikes small companies will have a complete back up plan in a box waiting to go, preconfigured, for a low cost with no commitment.
Cloud Net can either transfer existing BT numbers to Cloud Net or the user can set up a divert from BT and when the strike is over, switch back to BT should they wish to.
David Hill, Chairman of Cloud Net explains, "Industry accepted estimates demonstrate that on average a customer experiences a serious fault every 18 months which means that the network will degrade at the rate of about 8% a month. That is after month one 92% will still function and 84% after two if no fixes are implemented. We believe that small businesses should be thinking of contingency plans to ensure that they have a back up phone system if the strike does take place. If they leave it too late, they made end up scrambling around for a phone system which is not reliant on BT."
BT employees have until 5 July to decide whether they will go on strike for the first time in 23 years. The strike which can start as early as 12 July may have catastrophic results for BT users, whether consumers or businesses.
Unless a consumer or small business uses companies like Cloud Net, Virgin or Cable and Wireless, they could face being without phone or broadband during a strike.
Small businesses
BT provides phone services to many small businesses and most other providers use their lines for the final connections. Hardly any small businesses use Virgin and Cable and Wireless will only supply large companies so the total network for consumers and small businesses not using Virgin or Cable and Wireless could be affected.
No engineers will come out to fix broadband or phone lines in the case of a strike, so BT customers could be left without a service as long as the strike continues. The thought of no phone or internet is unthinkable for many households and could be the ruin of many businesses.
Can the internet break BT's monopoly?
Unlike companies that resell BT services, the Cloud Net network is not reliant on BT engineers to fix it. Their network is based on Voice over IP which uses the internet to make phone calls.
As long as there is a broadband connection, Cloud Net phones still work. If one connection goes down, then users can take their phones and plug them into an alternative broadband line, for example an additional line in their office. Alternatively users can take the phones home and plug it into their home broadband service and work there for the day. This means that users will still have use of their usual office phone numbers and all the switchboard features they are used to, including the ability to transfer calls within the business."
BT pensions in the balance could further anger unions
July 12 is a critical day for BT. BT will have its day in court over the government's position with regard to BT's pension fund. Which ever way the judgement goes it will inflame the union's attitude
In addition, BT's discussions with contractors such as Carillion to take over engineering work and BT's intended use of middle management to carry out repairs will hardly pacify the union.
Cloud Net
David Hill, Chairman of Cloud Net says that his company can offer a robust alternative to BT so that companies can avoid being reliant on the telecoms giant and its thousands of unhappy workers.
Cloud Net can provide a greater degree of resilience than telecoms giants as its telephone systems are based on the internet.
If users want to benefit from Cloud Net, then there is no guarantee that BT will allow the porting of numbers away during the strike - so now is the time to act.
Cloud Net will still be able to configure systems in the period of a strike but may not be able to transfer numbers - so new users would have to use new telephone numbers which would not be ideal.
There are other options from Cloud Net as well to help small businesses survive the BT strike. Cloud Net will divert any call to any phone, anywhere with no divert fee and also provides a live answering service to field any incoming calls.
"The great thing is that you can keep all of this flexibility and resilience comes at very little cost. If you want a standby power supply in case the mains cuts out, it costs a fortune. If you want a standby phone system in case of strikes, there is no capital cost from Cloud Net and a very low monthly subscription," says Charles Chance, MD of Cloud Net.
For further information, please visit, www.cloudnetuk.com, call 01922 21 33 33 or email solutions@cloudnetuk.com
-ENDS-
About Cloud Net
Cloud Net supplies business phone systems to SMEs and start ups with the advantage of no capital expenditure necessary to run a professional PBX and dramatically lower running costs. Cloud Net has developed a dedicated small business VoIP network providing free calls within the network. The company has a happy and growing customer base. Cloud Net is privately financed and started trading in March 2009.
Cloud Net call charges
Landline UK
Tariff (up to 4 phones) 1.2p per minute
Standard Tariff (Between 5-20 phones) 1.0p per minute
Standard Tariff (Over 21+ phones) 0.9p per minute
Mobile UK
Tariff (up to 4 phones) 9.5p per minute
Standard Tariff (Between 5-20 phones) 9.2p per minute
Standard Tariff (Over 21+ phones) 9.0p per minute
Contact for media information
For more information, to review Cloud Net services or for case studies, please contact Ranbir Sahota of Vitis PR, on 0121 242 8048, ranbir@vitispr.com
Posted by Cloud Net on Wed, Jun 16, 2010 @ 03:24 AM
With Ian Livingstone BT chief executive of awarding himself a massive bonus whilst asking BT engineers to take a lower than inflation pay deal it is looking even more likely that the result of the strike ballot called by the Communications Workers Union will be in favour of downing tools in August. BT has a monopoly in the "last mile" of telephone lines and so a strike will leave all "normal" users of the telephone network including the internet at risk whether they subscribe via BT or not.
Any industrial action would mean that reported faults on phone lines and broadband services would take a lot longer to fix, and could leave small businesses and households without phone and internet services for a long period.
Customers of BT get a serious fault on average every 18 months. This means that there is an 8% chance in the first month of the strike that customers will have a fault which may not be fixed. BT is planning to deploy middle management to help solve any problems. It is unlikely that middle management will take on the commitment of the engineer featured in the latest edition of the BT magazine pictured below.
David Hill, Chairman of Cloud Net says that his company can offer small businesses a robust alternative to BT so that companies can avoid being reliant on the telecoms giant and its thousands of unhappy workers.
"We all know how important telephone systems are to a business. When there is a fault or a problem then you need a solution and fast. Now that engineers are preparing to strike you may not get a repair service as fast as you'd like (if at all)!"
"Add to the equation, that mobile networks are maintained by a single company - Ericsson - whose engineers are distinctly disgruntled at the proposed redundancies and suddenly "traditional" communications companies don't seem the most reliable."
So what are the small business owners' choices? Cloud Net can provide a greater degree of resilience than telecoms giants as its telephone systems are based on the internet.
The essence of the internet is its robustness. Initially it was designed to withstand a nuclear blast by having multiple routing options so if one part goes down, others pick up the load.
Consider what could happen if there is a fault on a BT ISDN line, which many small businesses use, all company phones die and there are few options to reconnect quickly if no engineers are available.
Cloud Net's phone system uses the internet and allows users to make and take calls anywhere there is a broadband connection. If one connection goes down, then users can take their phones and plug them into an alternative broadband line, for example an additional line in their office. Alternatively users can take the phones home and plug it into their home broadband service and work there for the day. This means that users will still have use their usual office phone numbers and all the switchboard features they are used to, including the ability to transfer calls within the business.
If users want to benefit from Cloud Net, then there is no guarantee that BT will allow the porting of numbers away during the strike - so now is the time to act.
Cloud Net will still be able to configure systems in the period of a strike but may not be able to transfer numbers - so new users would have to use new telephone numbers which would not be ideal.
There are other options from Cloud Net as well to help small businesses survive the BT strike. Cloud Net will divert any call to any phone anywhere with no divert fee and also provides a live answering service to field any incoming calls.
"The great thing is that you can keep all of this flexibility and resilience comes at very little cost. If you want a standby power supply in case the mains cuts out, it costs a fortune. If you want a standby phone system in case of strikes, there is no capital cost from Cloud Net and a very low monthly subscription," says Charles Chance, MD of Cloud Net.
For further information, please visit, www.cloudnetuk.com, call 01922 21 33 33 or email solutions@cloudnetuk.com
-ENDS-
About Cloud Net
Cloud Net supplies business phone systems to SMEs and start ups with the advantage of no capital expenditure necessary to run a professional PBX and dramatically lower running costs. Cloud Net has developed a dedicated small business VoIP network providing free calls within the network. The company has a happy and growing customer base. Cloud Net is privately financed and started trading in March 2009.
Cloud Net call charges
Landline UK
Tariff (up to 4 phones) 1.2p per minute
Standard Tariff (Between 5-20 phones) 1.0p per minute
Standard Tariff (Over 21+ phones) 0.9p per minute
Mobile UK
Tariff (up to 4 phones) 9.5p per minute
Standard Tariff (Between 5-20 phones) 9.2p per minute
Standard Tariff (Over 21+ phones) 9.0p per minute
Contact for media information
For more information, to review Cloud Net services or for case studies, please contact Ranbir Sahota or Sara Pennant of Vitis Tech PR agency, on 0121 242 8048, ranbir@vitispr.com or sara@vitispr.com
Posted by Cloud Net on Wed, Jun 09, 2010 @ 03:07 AM
8 June 2010. With BT looking even more likely to have its first strike in over quarter of a century following a dispute over pay increases, thousands of businesses and homes could be left without phones or internet during the strike which could take place in August 2010.
Any industrial action would mean that reported faults on phone lines and broadband services would take a lot longer to fix, and could leave small businesses and households without phone and internet services for a longer period than would normally be expected.
Communications Worker members are "angry" after huge pay-outs to executives including £1.2million for group chief Ian Livingston.
David Hill, Chairman of Cloud Net believes that his company can offer small businesses a robust alternative to BT so that companies can avoid being reliant on the telecoms giant and its thousands of unhappy workers.
"We all know how important telephone systems are to a business. When there is a fault or a problem then you need a solution and fast. Now that engineers are preparing to strike you may not get a repair service as fast as you'd like (if at all)!"
"Add to the equation, that mobile networks are maintained by a single company - Ericsson - whose engineers are distinctly disgruntled at the proposed redundancies and suddenly "traditional" communications companies don't seem the most reliable."
So what are the small business owners' choices? Cloud Net believes that it can provide a greater degree of resilience than telecoms giants as its telephone systems are based on the internet.
The essence of the internet is its robustness. Initially it was designed to withstand a nuclear blast by having multiple routing options so if one part goes down, others pick up the load.
Consider what could happen if there is a fault on a BT ISDN line, which many small businesses use, all company phones die and there are few options to reconnect quickly if no engineers are available.
Cloud Net's phone system uses the internet and allows users to make and take calls anywhere there is a broadband connection. If one connection goes down, then users can take their phones and plug them into an alternative broadband line, for example an additional line in their office. Alternatively users can take the phones home and plug it into their home broadband service and work there for the day. This means that users will still have use their usual office phone numbers and all the switchboard features they are used to, including the ability to transfer calls within the business.
If users want to benefit from Cloud Net, then there is no guarantee that BT will allow the porting of numbers away during the strike - so now is the time to act.
Cloud Net will still be able to configure systems in the period of a strike but may not be able to transfer numbers - so new users would have to use new telephone numbers which would not be ideal.
There are other options from Cloud Net as well to help small businesses survive the BT strike. Cloud Net will divert any call to any phone anywhere with no divert fee and also provides a live answering service to field any incoming calls.
"The great thing is that you can keep all of this flexibility and resilience comes at very little cost. If you want a standby power supply in case the mains cuts out, it costs a fortune. If you want a standby phone system in case of strikes, there is no capital cost from Cloud Net and a very low monthly subscription," says Charles Chance, MD of Cloud Net.
For further information, please visit, www.cloudnetuk.com, call 01922 21 33 33 or email solutions@cloudnetuk.com
-ENDS-
About Cloud Net
Cloud Net supplies business phone systems to SMEs and start ups with the advantage of no capital expenditure necessary to run a professional PBX and dramatically lower running costs. Cloud Net has developed a dedicated small business VoIP network providing free calls within the network. The company has a happy and growing customer base. Cloud Net is privately financed and started trading in March 2009.
Cloud Net call charges
Landline UK
Tariff (up to 4 phones) 1.2p per minute
Standard Tariff (Between 5-20 phones) 1.0p per minute
Standard Tariff (Over 21+ phones) 0.9p per minute
Mobile UK
Tariff (up to 4 phones) 9.5p per minute
Standard Tariff (Between 5-20 phones) 9.2p per minute
Standard Tariff (Over 21+ phones) 9.0p per minute
Contact for media information
For more information, to review Cloud Net services or for case studies, please contact Ranbir Sahota or Sara Pennant of Vitis Tech PR agency, on 0121 242 8048, ranbir@vitispr.com or sara@vitispr.com