Yahoo! Messenger and Linksys Join Forces to Offer New Cordless Phone With Low-Cost Internet Voice Calling

New Dual-Mode Cordless Phone Provides a Convenient and Fun Way to Make and Take Internet-based Calls and Traditional Phone Calls Anywhere in the Home

Yahoo! Messenger, a leading instant messaging service globally, and Linksys(R), a Division of Cisco Systems, Inc., the recognized leading provider of voice, wireless and networking hardware for the consumer and small business user, today announced the availability of a new dual-mode cordless phone. The Linksys Dual-Mode Cordless Phone for Yahoo! Messenger with Voice (CIT310) gives consumers the flexibility to make and take low-cost Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls using Yahoo! Messenger with Voice(a) as well as place and receive phone calls using their traditional landline/PSTN connection.

The dual-mode cordless phone provides Yahoo! Messenger users with a convenient and fun alternative to make free Internet-based calls to friends and family on their Yahoo! Messenger Contact List. People subscribing to Yahoo! Phone Out can use the cordless phone to make an Internet-based call to any traditional or mobile phone at very low rates. With the use of the USB base station, the phone gives people the freedom to take their Yahoo! Messenger with Voice calls away from the PC and into other rooms, just as they do with mobile or cordless phones. People have the flexibility to instantly switch over from VoIP to a traditional landline phone service with the touch of a button.

"The CIT310 is our first product to couple the Yahoo! Messenger with Voice experience and access to Internet services like Yahoo! Local Search," said Tarun Loomba, senior director of product marketing for the Linksys Consumer Business Organization. "We share the same vision with Yahoo! of not just improving the experience of internet phone calling, but also offering a valuable combination of internet-enabled features and services that customers will use and really want."

Additionally, people can search for local business information directly from their phone using Yahoo! Local Search. For example, by programming the phone with a local zip code, people are able to search for a local restaurant (or any other local business) and effortlessly call the restaurant with one click. People also have access to weather forecasts through a weather search setting.

"Yahoo! Messenger and Linksys are giving consumers the flexibility to make and receive free Internet calls from the same phone they use for their home line," said Jeff Bonforte, senior director of Real Time Communications, Yahoo! Inc. "The CIT310 cordless phone is also embedded with the industry-leading Yahoo! Local Search service, to provide consumers with an easy way to find local restaurants and businesses and quickly make a call with one touch."

The Linksys Dual-Band Cordless Phone for Yahoo! Messenger with Voice includes a handset with color display, and a USB base station that plugs into a computer's USB port and a port for a traditional landline/PSTN connection. Initial customers purchasing the Linksys Dual-Mode Cordless Phone will receive 100 free minutes to make Yahoo! Phone Out calls to any traditional or mobile phone. The dual-mode cordless phone also includes a number of convenient features:

 

-- Supports Yahoo! Messenger with Voice's Internet-based calling
 services

    -- Free PC-to-PC calling

    -- Phone Out: PC-to-Phone calling

    -- Phone In: Phone-to-PC calling

-- Supports traditional landline/PSTN calls using a local phone line

-- Color Display

-- Yahoo! Messenger Contact List display and search

-- Yahoo! Local Search based on city zip codes

-- Weather search (get 2 days of weather info on the display, based on
 the zip code entered in the phone)

-- Yahoo! Messenger Status Message (available, online, busy, etc.)

-- Yahoo! Address Book access

-- Call waiting for both incoming VoIP and PSTN calls

-- Intercom Call between handsets

-- Caller ID for both VoIP and PSTN calls

-- Last Number Redial

-- Polyphonic ring tones, and Melodies

-- Single base station supports up to six additional DECT based phones
 for PSTN calls

-- Headset jack for connecting a headset

-- Multi-language support (English, French, Spanish)

-- A full charge on the battery enables up to 100 hours of standby
 time and up to 10 hours of talk time

Pricing and Availability

The Linksys Dual-Mode Cordless Phone for Yahoo! Messenger with Voice (CIT310) is immediately available through Amazon.com and will be available through other leading online retailers later this month. The Estimated Street Price is $99.99.

About Yahoo! Messenger:

As one of the most popular instant messaging services on the Internet, Yahoo! Messenger (http://messenger.yahoo.com) makes it easier than ever for people to express themselves, interact and manage relationships with friends and family. Yahoo! Messenger has a unique and proven history of innovation in instant messaging as the first to offer Webcam functionality, the first to introduce an interactive and shared experience with IMVironments(R), and the first to introduce animated emoticons. Yahoo! Messenger continues to lead the marketplace by integrating with leading Yahoo! services including games, music, photos and search, and providing the greatest choice for consumers to stay connected to one another through text IM, PC-based calling, e-mail, video and mobile text messaging.

About Linksys

Founded in 1988, Linksys, a Division of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is the recognized leader in Voice, Wireless and Ethernet networking hardware for consumer, SOHO and small business users. Linksys is dedicated to making networking easy and affordable for its customers, offering innovative, award-winning products that seamlessly integrate with a variety of devices and applications. Linksys also provides award-winning product support to its customers. For more information, visit http://www.linksys.com.

 

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