Submitted by Mike Grenville on Mon, 27 Feb 2006 12:33

A new VoIP-based SMS initiated conference call platform from Cellusys aims to bring mobile group calling to consumers.

Launched at 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Cconference is designed to enable groups such as friends, families, sports teams etc to easily talk together.

The person setting up the conference call simply sends an SMS message with the mobile numbers of those people to be included on the call to a shortcode. The Cconference server then sets up the conference call immediately. Users can accept or reject the request for the call by SMS and also set up SMS reminders before the call.

"The user-friendliness of this system means that people of all ages and social groups can understand and benefit from this unique application" Dawood Ghalaieny, CEO of Cellusys.

There are some other interesting features of the service. As well recording the actual call, a copy can be immediately sent by email. More unusual is the option to add chart music in the background during the call.

There are several combinations of billing options. Operators can choose to bill by premium rate SMS to set up the call, use standard airtime minutes, or charge different prices to on and off net calls.

The product is based on two of Cellusys’s products – CMAP (an interactive messaging application platform) and Cvoice (a VoIP based speech portal) –

The service is not stand alone and is sold and marketed through mobile operators. “Cconference can help operators to grow and retain communities of users,” explained Ghalaieny. “Teenagers, for example, are a particularly lucrative customer group. They always want the latest phone with the coolest technology and they want to be able to chat and share the latest news with all their friends wherever they are. The ability to offer a fun and interactive group calling platform will also enable operators to differentiate themselves and grow voice revenue.”

Cellusys is initially targetting operators in the Middle East and Africa.