Backdoor dialing… just the sound of it makes you want to check around to make sure no one is looking when you load the page…

It’s an interesting concept, you basically tap into the telephone network and place calls to numbers supported by the network. I was trying to find a simple label to hang on this to better describe it… seems like hosted VoIP but all VoIP has a degree of hosting so maybe this is best described as something between Skype and VoIP.

I can see how this service would be appealing to non-U.S. callers who are dialing into U.S. numbers supported by the service, but beyond that I am a little skeptical. There just isn’t a big enough economic incentive for me to go through the extra steps of using this, but then again if it meant I could downgrade my mobile plan and save $20-30 a month, well that does add up over the course of a year.

I loaded the app and clearly there is a lot more going on here than simply making voice calls, which may shed some light on their business model, but it’s late and I am not motivated to dig into it. I’ll try it out and write a follow up post.

Looking around the Gizmo5 Labs website did peak my curiosity, their VoIP API got my attention.

Approximately 11% of US telephones, including mobile numbers and land lines from carriers such as Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, etc., are connected via VoIP. Working with telecom partners we are now making it possible to dial these numbers without going through the traditional phone system.

This means you can call certain mobile and land line numbers from any computer connected to the net and talk for free. Because these calls are bypassing the traditional phone network entirely there is no per minute fee or other charge for the caller regardless of where they call from.

[From Gizmo5 - Backdoor dialing]