Technologie :
Smartphones
The OTT services
What is a free call ?

OTT stands for over-the-top . It is also referred to as «value added».

OTT refers to the service you use over the network services of your service provider.

Example: WhatsApp is an OTT service.

The service provider, whose network services are being utilized for the OTT service, has no control, no rights, no responsibilities a nd no claim on that OTT service.

Example:

If we have Rogers , for instance, as a service internet provider, we can use the VoIP service WhatsApp over the internet freely and despite Rogers, because the application WhatsApp is free. The case is the same when using Skype or Viber, or any free application.

OTT deals also with Internet TV, also known as IPTV, which is the legal distribution of videos and television content over the Internet.

These video OTT services are obtained free online, from Youtube for instance and from other sites where more sustained and constant streaming video content are offered.


What is a free call?

A free call is a phone call for which we don’t pay anything.

Calls that are not free are those that are made to landline and mobile phones. We see clearly written their related costs on the bill. Crystal clear !

If we have services that offer calls for really free, It is thanks to VoIP, which uses the Internet to channel voice calls, that we pay for nothing.

However, free calls are not free . A eal free call is a call offered by a phone service provider (either a PSTN, GSM or VoIP phone service) for no charge.

There are charges. They are what we are billed for associated costs: the Internet connectivity. We have to pay a fee for the access network. And we are, anyway limited, by the amount of GB subsribed on the provider's contract. Not crystal clear!

• GSM stands for Groupe Spécial Mobile. It is a mobile phone 's tecnology. It is considered a 2G (second generation) protocol.