Messenger Update Adds PC-to-Phone Ability

An update to Windows Messenger will allow users to place voice calls over the Internet from their PCs to regular telephones, opening a new partnering opportunity to companies that offer Voice-over-IP (VoIP) services and have equipment to support Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) signaling. The update is also necessary for new Windows XP computers to be able to use the instant messaging service in Exchange 2000.

VoIP Providers Can Participate

Microsoft’s previous instant messaging client (MSN Messenger) already offers PC-to-phone capabilities from VoIP provider Net2Phone. However, because Windows Messenger uses a different protocol, SIP, for discovering users and establishing sessions, Net2Phone and other providers had to update their equipment to offer VoIP service to Windows Messenger users. This is a task that many VoIP providers were already undertaking: SIP is rapidly emerging as an industry standard, and the necessary hardware and software is available from Cisco, Nortel, 3Com, Indigo Software, and several other companies. (Microsoft plans to enter the market with a SIP proxy server called Real-Time Communication Server some time in 2002.)