14 DAY TRIAL // Google is getting ready to make its Google Voice service available for more people around the world, and is currently planning partnerships with carriers to put things in motion.
At the moment, the Internet giant has the Google Voice service available as part of a special partnership for Sprint customers, but it might soon extend the offering to users on more wireless networks in the country.
Through the said partnership, users are able to turn their Sprint numbers into Google Voice numbers, thus taking advantage of a wider range of features.
Through Google Voice, users benefit from access to visual voicemail and can read new messages either on the phone or online. Moreover, the service enables them to take advantage of personalized greetings and cheaper international calls, and more.
Sprint users can port their numbers to Google Voice for free (others would have to pay $20 for that). Moreover, the process is simpler for them when performed online.
The availability of Google Voice integration from other wireless carriers will clearly boost the service’s growth.
Google has already confirmed talks with other carriers on the matter, but did not offer specific info on these companies, nor on what was discussed.
"We are having discussions with other carriers about this," Vincent Paquet, group product manager for Google Voice, told CNET in an interview.
"Sprint integration has worked really well. We have, since Day One, had a steady stream of people signing up for it,” he continued.
Google's Paquet has also said that people who have Google Voice accounts tend to use it as their primary number. This brings value to both Sprint and Google Voice brands, the Internet giant believes.
Google and Sprint announced their partnership in April last year, and it would not come as a surprise if Google unveiled a new carrier partnership in the next several weeks.