Persimmon Telecommunications announces T1 Awards

Persimmon Telecommunications, via it's T1Guy.Net website, is a proud participant in the "Shop For T1" DS1 and DS3 program. Note the following awards. The "Shop For T1" DS3 and T1 group:

• Has attained "Platinum Agency status" with ACC Business/AT&T, meaning we are one of their top 1% agencies.
• Was the Top Agent in 2006 for Broadwing.
• Was the highest performing agency in terms of number of circuits sold in the last half of 2006 for Nuvox.
• Was the Top Agent in 2005 for Xspedius.
• Sold the most single T1's in 2005 for Netifice.
• Was the "Most Valued Partner" with New Edge for 2004 through 2006 as one of their Top 20 agencies.
• Sold the highest number of point-to-point T1's in 2005 for Network Innovations.

And our success is continuing!

Packet8 VoIP Service Now Set Up For Fax Lines

You can now have a Packet8 VoIP Fax line for $9.99 per month after a one-time $29.99 activation fee. This VoIP plan gives you 300 minutes of send time to any USA, Puerto Rican or Canadian phone numbers (except for 900 numbers). International calls are charged for calls to other countries. In a month in which you use more than 300 send minutes, you pay 3.5 cents per minute for the overage. Unlimited incoming faxes are included. At no charge except for a $12.95 Shipping Charge, you receive a phone adapter for each fax line. For more info on VoIP options, see VoIP De-Mystified. The Residential Freedom Link on that page will take you to the Packet8 fax info.

"VoIP for Dummies" Presentation to be given Friday, November 17

Joe Budelis will speak on "VoIP for Dummies" at BCUG -- Brookdale Computer Users Group -- on Friday, November 17. Many think that VoIP is the future of voice phone service. Joe will discuss what VoIP offers and what it can do for you. He will give us some history of VoIP along with pros and cons relating to some current implementations. At the very least, you will learn what to look for before you decide to go with a VoIP service.

Have DSL, T1 and DS3 Prices reached Bottom?

In recent history, DSL, T1 and DS3 pricing has been generally decreasing. Have we reached the bottom? There are indications that this is the case. Some carriers have raised their DSL and T1 pricing over the last month. Others have started to offer value added features rather than lowering prices further. For more info, read Has the Downward Trend in Broadband Pricing Reversed?.

New Web Site: T1Guy.Net

Although I've had T1Guy.com for some time, I only recently added T1Guy.Net to my collection of web sites designed to help businesses find the best T1 or T3 service to fit their requirements.

Low T1 Prices still Available throughout the USA

Although the $299 promotion mentioned in an earlier post has left us with June, most locations in the USA are eligible for data T1 service at monthly charges ranging from $391 to $750. The rates below $400 are only available in certain metropolitan areas. Tenants in buildings that are Lit may be eligible for even lower rates. To find the rates available in any specific location, enter your info in the T1 Pricing Tool.

T1, DS3 and DSL Competition at an All Time High

T1, DS3 and DSL prices have reached an all time low. In a number of Metropolitan areas, T1 Internet Access from quality providers is available for as low as $299 per month on a limited promotion. Similarly, IP DS-3 (45 Mbps) promo port pricing is as low as $2299 per month. Residential 768 Kbps ADSL is available for as low as $17.99 per month. Some Industry watchers believe that we will not see much more of a drop in pricing for broadband Internet access. Already, some providers are beginning to stop decreasing prices and enticing customers to their product by adding extras like additional static IP addresses, antivirus protection, etc. To find out the best Internet access options for your location, just input your info at the T1, DS3 and DSL Pricing page.

Network Neutrality is at Risk

I scanned the Save The Internet site and am quite concerned. I'm sure if the large Telecom companies have their way Network Neutrality will be gone. That will affect all of us. Persimmon Telecommunications is successful because most customers find our web sites via searches on Google or one of the other popular search engines. Even though some of the services that we sell are directly from the large Telecom companies, I suspect they would not allow web sites like that of Persimmon Telecommunications to have any priority. Certainly, I expect they would not give us priority if we continue selling services from their competitors.

One great advantage of the web as it is today is that anyone with an idea or concept can discuss it on the web and, if a lot of people find the idea or concept, of interest, it will be given more attention on the web. If the large Telecom companies have their way, the ideas, concepts, products and services that you will be able to readily read about on the web will be from those who can pay the most. It'll be something like the ads that you see during the SuperBowl. Sure the products might be great products, but you are only going to hear about the products there that have huge financial backing. Of course, any product or service that is sold with a large advertising budget is sold with the price inflated to pay for that advertising budget.

I joined the coalition and plan to support it by contacting congressman, etc. What about you?

The US Treasury Department has retroactively repealed the Excise Tax on Long Distance Calls

Today, the US Treasury Department retroactively repealed the 3% Excise Tax on Long Distance calls that was established in 1898 as a "luxury" tax to finance the Spanish-American war. On 2006 tax returns due next year, consumers and businesses will be able to apply for refunds of the Long Distance Excise tax collected from them over the past three years. For more information on this tax repeal, see Treasury Department Repeals Excise Tax on Long-Distance Calls and Phone Tax Laid to Rest at Age 108. You may have to register at the New York Times site to read the latter but registration is free. This change results in a savings on Long Distance calls made from landline phones, VoIP phones and Cell Phones.

Domains With Us Domain Name Register now accepting PayPal

It's just been announced that, in addition to credit cards, the Domain Name Register, Domains With Us, now accepts payment via PayPal. Prices for an annual Domain Name registration are $9.75 per year with a discount for domain names that are moved here from another registrar. Domains With Us Domain Name Registration includes optional URL redirection, URL framing and complete DNS management.

VoIP For Dummies - How to Compare VoIP Plans

Joe Budelis, the president of Persimmon Telecommunications, is scheduled to present VoIP For Dummies - How to Choose the best VoIP Plan Saturday and Sunday the 22nd and 23rd at the Trenton Computer Festival. The TCF site has additional details.

ShopForT1 Milestone

It's great to see that ShopForT1 passed two milestones this last quarter: It delivered the 300,000th T1 Price Quote and it reported over $300,000 in new contracts. That's $300,000 per month in additional contracts.

VoIP (Voice Over IP) Demystified Presentation Tuesday, April 4, 2006

On Tuesday, April 4, 2006, I'm giving a presentation at the Princeton Public Library entitled VoIP (Voice Over IP) Demystified. This presentation will, in effect, be a discussion of my updated web page VoIP for Dummies. All are invited.

T1 and T3 Sales at a new High: Channel Partners Conference

As an Independent Agent and Consultant for ShopForT1, I'm glad to report some ShopForT1 highlights announced at the Channel Partners conference in Las Vegas at the beginning of this month. ShopForT1 received the the following awards:

* ACC Business – Platinum Partner Award (Top 1%)
* Broadwing – Most New Customers Sold 2005
* New Edge – Most Valuable Partner Council 2004, 2005
* Netifice - Top producing Master Agency - Single site data T1's 2004, 2005
* Megapath – Top 5 Agent 2005
* PowerNet Global – Top 5 Agent 2005
* Network Innovations - Top Agent 2004, 2005
* UCN – Stellar Sales Performer 2005 (Top 5 2005)
* Xspedius - Fastest Growing Agent in 2004, 2005


Having reached the $1 Million monthly recurring revenue mark within less than 3 years of beginning operations, we are looking forward to a great 2006. Visit my shopforT1 site at http://T1Guy.com.

VoIP For Dummies Small Business Development Workshop

For those near Trenton, NJ who wish to learn more practical information about Voice over IP, I'm running a VoIP For Dummies Small Business Development Workshop on March 8. Details are given at http://www.tcnj.edu/.

Free Cell Phone for Existing Cingular & AT&T Cellular Customers

We have always had great cell phone deals for those signing up for the first time with any cellular carrier. Now, we offer great cell phone deals for those who are at least 10 months into a 1-year contract or 22 months into a 2-year contract. These free or greatly discounted cell phones are currently available for Cingular and AT&T cellular customers. Go to Shop For Cell Phones, choose Cognigen Cellular, choose Cingular from the left hand list of Options, and then click in the bottom left orange box that says "Current Cingular Wireless & AT&T Wireless Customers >>Click Here". Offerings change from time to time. As I write this, our price for the RAZR on a contract extension is the same price as a new activation with Cingular. Plus we are including the bluetooth accessory. This is quite a deal.

VoIP Connections - How do you connect a VoIP Phone

I put up a new web page to help all understand how Voice over IP phone systems are hooked up. Under my VoIP for Dummies series, see How to Connect VoIP Phones. This writeup will help you understand what is involved in a VoIP setup.

More on this Spectacular VoIP Offering

I just signed up at the turn of the year when my previous 1-year VoIP contract ended. I'm excited to go to this new extremely cost effective VoIP service. My associates who already switched to it report great service. Incidentally, I neglected to mention in the earlier posting that, in addition to free calls to the USA and Canada, calls to Puerto Rico are also included in the unlimited plan.