Best Buy launches new VoIP services for businesses

by Brian White

Telecom companies are in trouble these days as more and more customer dump landlines for cellphones and use Voice-over-IP (VoIP) products instead of those expensive home telephone services. Did you ever think retailers would be competing with telecom companies for customers?

Best Buy, Inc.'s (NYSE: BBY) Best Buy for Business subsidiary has you covered on that topic, as the division of the nation's largest consumer electronics company is introducing its "EasyVoice" VoIP service for businesses. Best Buy's new service offering is being marketed on a "cost per employee" basis, starting at $19.95 per employee. This appears to be the largest-yet launch of a service that was born out of the Speakeasy purchase earlier in the year.

Will Best Buy be able to service companies at the required quality of service level that businesses demand? If telecom issues erupt with consumers, the world generally doesn't stop spinning. But, with companies, telecom problems cause revenue flow interruptions and customer service nightmares. As Best Buy begins to compete with established telecommunications companies with its new telephone service, it needs to keep that high in its mind. That, or customers will turn tail to companies like AT&T, Inc. (NYSE: T) just as fast as they went to Best Buy for phone service.