Oct. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Google Inc. will introduce a simpler version of Google Voice today that lets mobile-phone users keep their current number, removing a barrier to acceptance of the service.
The original version of Google Voice required users to get a new phone number to act as a single point of contact for multiple devices, said Craig Walker, group product manager. The new version only works with one mobile-phone line and doesn’t offer as many features.
“It’s a big deal,” Walker said in an interview. The service “addresses the segment of the market that doesn’t want to get a new number, only uses one number already -- and they can now get the benefits of Google Voice without having to give out a new number.”
Google, owner of the world’s most popular Internet search engine, introduced the phone service earlier this year, seeking to expand its user base with new offerings and move closer to its goal of organizing all of the world’s information. Like many of its other services, including e-mail, finance and maps, the service is free to users.
The company, based in Mountain View, California, developed Google Voice by adapting software it acquired with its 2007 purchase of GrandCentral Communications. Users get access to the service by signing up on Google’s Web Site and waiting for the company to add them.
Transcribes Messages
The new, stripped-down version of Google Voice, which would replace the existing voice-mail service on a mobile phone, automatically transcribes the audio messages into text, making them quicker and easier to check and search. The transcribed messages can be forwarded to an e-mail account. The service also lets users make personalized greetings for different callers and includes low-cost international calling.
The mobile-only option won’t offer features such as the ability to block calls, record conversations or add multiple users to one conversation.
Existing Google Voice customers will have the option of using the simpler version for mobile phones -- if they’d like to have the messages forwarded to their online accounts.
Google rose 52 cents to $554.21 yesterday on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The shares had increased 80 percent this year through yesterday.
News Source :- http://www.bloomberg.com
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