Ipkall
IPKall is a public switched telephone network to voice over IP call forwarding service. Users may register with the service to obtain a phone number chosen from several Washington State area codes and have all calls to that number forwarded to their Session Initiation Protocol or Inter-Asterisk eXchange uniform resource identifier, including an Asterisk server. The telephone company that provides IPKall numbers is International Telcom.
IPKall's popularity stems from the fact that it is probably the only remaining, widely accessible US-based VoIP service offering free-of-charge PSTN numbers.
Business model
The IPKall business model appears to be based on its ability to charge termination rates for calls reaching its subscribers, estimated at about $.01/min,[1] as the service is free for end users. The wholesale price for major interexchange carriers to terminate calls to independent telcos in rural Washington (state) and similar locations (such as northern Minnesota and Iowa) is often several cents a minute higher than typical US48 rates; this money is effectively a subsidy to the destination local rural exchange.
Direct customer support is not provided.