Local tech startup connects OFWs with their families

Millions of Filipinos are constantly on the lookout for inexpensive ways to communicate with their loved ones working abroad. Fortunately, a local company is stepping up to meet this growing demand.

Florante Cruz, president and CEO of startup Ocean 8 Multimedia group, said that with one in ten Filipinos working abroad, making the world a smaller place was the least he could do for his country.

Cruz, who was once one of the top engineers at Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), is behind the new product called USB/IP, short for universal serial bus/Internet protocol.

USB/IP works by connecting a small electronic device to a computer’s USB port. Once this is done, and assuming that the computer is connected to the Internet, a person can use that computer to call their loved ones anywhere in the world.

The device can be used in two ways. One way is for a USB/IP user to call another USB/IP user. These calls are for free.

The other way is to use the USB/IP to call landlines or mobile phone numbers almost anywhere around the world for a fee much smaller than what local phone firms charge for international calls.

This might sound familiar to many Filipinos who now use “Magic Jack,” which allows users to make calls to any phone in the United States for free.

Cruz points out that USB/IP’s biggest advantage over Magic Jack is that the latter is illegal in the Philippines since the product is not registered with the government, particularly the National Telecommunications Commission.

Another advantage is, while Magic Jack only works for calls to the United States, USB/IP lets you make free or cheap calls to anywhere in the world.

Another bonus for USB/IP is a feature that allows for free video conferencing. While sites like Yahoo! And Skype have their own video features, Cruz claims that USB/IP’s superior data compression technology, streaming live videos becomes smooth, unlike those provided by other services.

“There are other products out there that we compete with, but this is the most complete solution,” Cruz said.

He said a similar service is also now available for mobile phones called MobIP. This can be used to make free voice calls using smart phones connected to the Internet. MobIP can even be downloaded on App Store for iPhone users.

USB/IP devices go for P4,500 each, while MobIP subscriptions, meanwhile, will set a user back by P850. Both fees however are one-time fees, Cruz said. - Paolo Montecillo, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Posted date: April 25, 2010