Described by Google's senior product manager as a "service that can help organize chaotic communication channels," Google Voice provides users with a single phone number capable of directing calls from six phones at once.Information Week: Google Voice Rises To Replace GrandCentral (March 12, 2009)
- On Monday April 12 , 2010 Google expanded Google Voice's do not disturb functionality to include the availability of automated shutoff. Users of Google Voice can now specify how long the do not disturb feature is activated for.
- History
Initially made available to current GrandCentral userson March 12, 2009, Google Voice is an improvement upon the online voicemail and call management system GrandCentral, which the company acquired in 2007.Official Google Blog: Here Comes Google Voice (March 11, 2009)
According to the Google Voice team, invites to those who requested invitation started going out on the 25th of June, 2009.
Features
Google Voice is a new and improved version of GrandCentral, the start-up company it acquired in 2007. While the new service keeps most of GrandCentral's existing features, it also improves upon them by allowing users to send messages from their online inbox, receive text messages sent to their Google Voice number via a cell phone and search through an archive of text messages that have been sent or received. New features also include the ability to make international calls at a much cheaper rate, as well as obtain easy access to Google's directory assistance.Official Google Blog: Here Comes Google Voice (March 11, 2009)Information Week: Google Voice Rises To Replace GrandCentral (March 12, 2009)
Some of the highlighted features remain from GrandCentral include the single number that connects up to six phones, a main voicemail that is accessable via the internet, the ability to screen calls by listening to people as they leave a voicemail and the WebCall button, which allows users to make calls directly from their address books online. Information Week: Google Voice Rises To Replace GrandCentral (March 12, 2009)
Upgradability
On Thursday December 10, Google Voice 's Sr. Product Manager Vincent Paquet and Google Voice's senior software engineer Ilya Frank released two major announcements.
- 1. Current voicemail only subscribers now have the ability to upgrade to the full service and pick a new number. http://googlevoiceblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/upgrade-to-google-number.html
- 2. The ability for users to donate voicemails to google software engineers in order to help improve transcription quality. http://googlevoiceblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/help-improve-transcription-quality.html
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Although the service is free, people have been purchasing people's existing accounts for up $650 on eBayTechCrunch: GrandCentral To Finally Launch As Google Voice...(March 11, 2009)
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Service lets users make cheaper international callsOfficial Google Blog: Here Comes Google Voice (March 11, 2009)
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Allows incoming calls to be routed to six different phones using a single phone numberInformation Week: Google Voice Rises To Replace GrandCentral (March 12, 2009)
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Features Grand Centrals WebCall Button, allowing a call to be initiated from your online address bookInformation Week: Google Voice Rises To Replace GrandCentral (March 12, 2009)
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Because it is a free service, some analysts believe Google Voice's internet features could be a financial threat to exsisting companiesThe New York Times: Google’s Free Phone Manager Could Threaten a Variety of Services (March 12, 2009)
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Designed to help users manage their voice communicationsOfficial Google Blog: Here Comes Google Voice (March 11, 2009)
