To Customers and Friends of Ooma:
Ooma made exciting progress during 2009 and enters 2010 with strong momentum. I’m pleased to report that during 2009 Ooma achieved record adoption rates and is now approaching 100,000 subscribers. We ended 2009 with thousands of retail locations and launched the new Ooma Telo and Ooma Telo handset nation-wide. We also proudly announced several new features slated for introduction in the first quarter of 2010, which helps to strongly position Ooma as “the smartphone for your home.” 2009 was indeed an exciting year for Ooma.
I want to give special mention to our newly announced Ooma PureVoice™ technology. In the business world, Internet telephony is widely deployed and works quite well, but in the home it has traditionally suffered from poor or variable voice quality. Ooma PureVoice is a breakthrough solution combining multiple advanced technologies so that even under suboptimal Internet conditions (for example when congestion occurs) you will continue to receive clear, high quality voice. On top of this, when calling Ooma to Ooma with Ooma HD Voice, the voice quality is truly remarkable. Please look for a demo of our superior voice quality which will be coming soon to our website.
While I am thrilled with the accomplishments and momentum during 2009, I also recognize the areas where we need to improve. Number one on our list is still our customer support activity. During 2009 we made several fundamental changes to our customer support activity and while we saw improvement, I am sorry to say we are not yet where we want to be. I would like to express again that we truly care about making our customer support experience consistently strong and we will not stop taking actions and making improvements until we do so.
Here at Ooma our vision is to change the game in telephony by providing you with a new and completely different kind of product – a product that saves you money, provides you with a better voice quality experience and adds features that truly add convenience and productivity to your life. During 2009, the number one reason people told us they purchased an Ooma was due to a positive recommendation from friends or family. We thank all of you for your support and your constructive input which helps us to grow and serve you better. We intend to make 2010 another incredible year of growth and accomplishment.
Sincerely,
Eric Stang, CEO
Today, we’re happy to announce several new features and enhanced services for Ooma Telo that connect the gap between traditional home phone services and smart phone functionality to fit your mobile and digital lifestyle.
New additions to the product and services lineup include Ooma Pure Voice™, High Definition Voice, mobile phone calling with the iPhone or iPod touch, Bluetooth support, Google Voice Extensions and voicemail transcription. These new features offer the most complete home phone solution that extends Ooma’s crystal clear call quality, significant cost savings and ease of use beyond the home and into your mobile and business calling landscape.
All new features will be available in the first half of 2010, and will be on demonstration today through January 10th at Ooma’s booth at CES, Grand Lobby GL-7.
Specific details for each new feature and service are available in the press release.
We’re packing our bags, prepping our demos, and hitting the road for the annual International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Last year, we unveiled the newest addition to the Ooma family: the Ooma Telo and the Ooma Telo Handset. This year, we’ll be announcing new features and services for Telo that will vastly improve voice quality and extend the functionality and integration of landline and mobile devices. There will be more details to come this week, so stay tuned for more CES related news.
For now, what we can tell you are some of the Ooma activities at CES. Inside the enormous Las Vegas Convention Center, Ooma will be located at booth GL-7, in the Grand Lobby outside Central Hall. We will have demos throughout the day presenting the new and existing features of the Ooma Telo and Ooma Telo Handset. Stop by and experience first-hand the exceptional voice quality and reliability of Ooma Telo, while checking out the latest introductions to the Ooma family.
Also at CES, Rich Buchanan, CMO of Ooma, will be participating in Jeff Pulver’s HD Voice Summit, discussing the latest innovations and future of HD voice communications. Rich will be a panelist in the “HD Voice-Deployments Around the World” session alongside other VoIP leaders from Orange/France Telecom and AudioCodes to discuss how North American Internet providers are starting to deploy HD on broadband. The session begins at 1:30 pm on Wednesday, January 6th inside the LVCC North Hall, room N256.
Again, more to come, so check back here for more CES related news. For real-time updates on Ooma’s activities at CES, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or Ooma.com.
Good news, Ooma fans! Ooma Telo has been selected as a semifinalist in the CES 2010 Last Gadget Standing competition. If you love Ooma and want to show your support, please head over to the Last Gadget Standing ballot box and place your vote for the Ooma Telo! Voting is easy and only takes a minute – polls close at midnight on Friday, January 8, 2010.
Thanks for your continues support of Ooma. Help spread the work and let’s make Telo the “people’s winner” for 2010!
Looking for last minute holiday gift ideas? Be sure to tune into Dr. Phil’s holiday show today, Thursday, December 10. (check local listings for times).
Dr. Phil will highlight the funniest and most embarrassing family holiday memories caught on tape and Robin McGraw will share the importance of giving in her new book, “Christmas in My Home and Heart”. Most importantly, the Ooma Telo will be featured as one of the new gift ideas and special giveaways! Just because you aren’t in the audience doesn’t mean you don’t get a holiday deal…
Ooma is also giving back this holiday season and sharing its special holiday promotion price. Ooma will be offering the Ooma Telo and handset bundle for $229.99 plus free shipping. This is only offered for a limited time – now through December 17 – so be sure to grab the hottest new home phone system before it’s too late. More details on the offer can be found here.
Friends, family, Ooma users! We need your help! It’s that time again when gadgets and gizmos flock to CES – the largest consumer electronics show in the world. We’ll be there showcasing the Ooma Telo, Ooma Telo Handset and other exciting new features. While we do have a large booth and probably the best home phone system out there, CES attendees tend to get distracted by the other consumer electronics, and need a little reminder to stop by our booth. That’s why we entered the “Visit Me at CES” 2010 Exhibitor Video contest.
We created a short and very funny video that explains why CES attendees should visit our booth. Out of all the videos entered, five winners will be selected through voting by the general public – you! Winners receive a month’s worth of free exposure on CESweb.org.
Here is where you come in: we are asking you to vote for our video! Voting period starts today and goes through Friday, December 4th. You can quickly register online and cast up to one vote per entry per day.
To vote, click on this link, and then:
1. Look for the “phone talk show host” thumbnail on the right side.
2. Click on the “LOVE IT” link to vote for the video.
Once you vote, you can hit the “Share” tab and select sharing your vote on Twitter or Facebook. Be sure to include “I voted for Ooma for the Visit me at CES video contest!” to let others know that you’ve voted for Ooma.
We appreciate the enthusiasm and support from our customers, and we hope that you feel the same way about Ooma. Get out there and vote! Thank you!
Rich Buchanan
CMO
Ooma, Inc.
Hi Ooma Users,
We’ve received a lot of terrific input from you over the last several weeks. Some good. Some, well, let’s say “not so good”. In this post I want to address the hot topic of voice mail. When laying out features that non-Premier customers would receive, we examined whether or not to include voicemail. The vast majority of phone systems sold over the last 3 years included an answering machine built into the base station. It seemed logical that we could remove the online voice mail option since most phone systems used in homes today included an answering machine.
Wrong.
An overwhelming percentage of the feedback was negative about removing voice mail. We do listen to our customers, so Ooma voicemail is going back into the product effective immediately (applies to all purchases made since the feature set changed 10/1/09 too). Ooma Hub, Ooma Hub/Scout, and Ooma Telo customers will have the built in web based voice mail with local, remote, or web based access just like before. For details on the complete feature set of the Ooma Hub and Ooma Telo please visit these links.
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us; the good, the bad, and the ugly. This is how we make our service better, by maintaining an open dialog, and responding to as many of you as we possibly can. It’s with your help that we’ll continue to improve Ooma and change the face of telecommunications across the U.S.
Best regards,
Rich Buchanan
CMO
Ooma
Let me start with my apologies. It’s obvious that we weren’t clear enough about the changes we are implementing at Ooma and what the impact may be on you. So I’m going to try and break down each case for you and what the relevant changes are that may impact you.
Ooma Hub/Scout Combination Products (Includes all Costco.com purchases)
- Current Ooma Core Users
a. No changes to your current feature set including voice mail.
b. No annual regulatory recovery fee will be charged.
- Current Ooma Premier Users
a. No changes to your current feature set.
b. No annual regulatory recovery fee will be charged.
c. If you are paying monthly for Premier, your monthly price will change to $9.99 from $12.99.
d. If you wish to buy an additional year of Premier at $99.99, you have until 12/31/09.
- Current Ooma Premier Trial Users
a. No changes to your current feature set.
b. No annual regulatory recovery fee will be charged.
c. If you want to purchase an annual Ooma Premier subscription, you can do so until 12/31/09 at $99.99, after that the price will go up by $20 to $119.99.
- New or Unactivated Ooma Hub/Scout Combinations
a. No changes to your promised feature set, includes voicemail and a 60 day Premier Trial.
b. If you want to purchase an annual Ooma Premier subscription, you can do so until 12/31/09 at $99.99, after that the price will go up by $20 to $119.99
c. No regulatory recovery fee will be charged
Ooma Hub Only Product at Costco Stores
- Current Ooma Core Users
a. No changes to your current feature set including voice mail.
- Current Ooma Premier Users
a. No changes to your current feature set.
- Current Ooma Premier Trial Users
a. No changes to your current feature set.
b. The regulatory recovery fee applies per the original terms and conditions.
- New or Unactivated Hub Only Prodcut
a. Basic voice mail is now included in Ooma Core.
b. Enhanced voice mail is available as a standalone option for $49.99 per year if you don’t want to purchase all the Premier features. Enhanced voicemail includes:
- One touch access to voicemail, call screening
- Remote access to messages through any web browser or telephone
- Voicemail notifications to your mobile phone
- Voicemail mp3 audio file attachment sent to your email
- Send-to-Voicemail
- Do Not Disturb
c. If you want to purchase an annual Ooma Premier subscription, you can do so at $99.99.
d. The annual regulatory recovery fee applies per the original terms and conditions
Ooma Telo Product
- Newly Purchased Telo’s
a. Includes US domestic calling, a free phone number, call waiting, caller ID and 911 service. Basic voice mail now included in the base service of the unit.
b. Telo’s come with a free 60 day trial of Ooma Premier, which costs $9.99/mo or $119.99/yr.
c. Enhanced voicemail is available as a standalone option for $49.99/yr if you don’t want to purchase all the Premier features. Enhanced voicemail includes:
- One-touch access to voicemail, Call screening
- Remote access to messages through any web browser or telephone
- Voicemail notifications to your mobile phone
- Voicemail mp3 audio file attachments sent to your email
- Send-to-Voicemail
- Do Not Disturb
d. Telo’s come with an annual regulatory recovery fee of $11.75 beginning the second year of service.
- Previous Ooma Hub Owners
a. Previous Ooma hub owners (Core or Premier), can move their accounts, phone numbers, and features to the new Telo service including voicemail, and will not be subject to the annual regulatory recovery fee.
b. The used Ooma Hub may be resold but will require a $59.99 reactivation fee to assign a new number and owner. When activated, the new account will be subject to the $11.75 annual regulatory recovery fee.
Some of you have asked what the regulatory recovery fee is for, so let me explain why we have implemented it. If you have ever looked at your mobile or landline phone bill, you regularly see fees and taxes applied that are typically 15-20% of the monthly bill. In other words, these fees can be quite significant. Here at Ooma we, like every other phone service provider in the US, have to charge a fee to cover taxes, regulatory recovery fees, and other costs related to our providing phone service to your local service address but to our knowledge our charge is significantly lower than what others typically charge. We’ve tried to maintain this cost as low as possible and it is less than $1 per month. While this is not a huge cost to provide you phone service, we realize we did not ask any of our current customers to bear this fee at the time they initiated service, so we’re not asking out current subscriber base to pay this regulatory recovery fee.
Thank you,
Rich Buchanan
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