AT&T To Shut CallVantage Internet Phone Service

PETER SVENSSON

NEW YORK (AP) — AT&T Inc. is shutting down its CallVantage Internet-based phone service, according to letters received by subscribers this week.

The announcement is another nail in the coffin for Internet phone service of the kind that was pioneered in the early years of the decade by companies like Vonage Holdings Corp.

Vonage and CallVantage customers have a small adapter that allows them to place calls by connecting a phone to a high-speed Internet line. They pay monthly fees of $20 to $30 for unlimited domestic calling.

The approach held appeal for those wanting to save money, but problems with sound quality and reliability hampered the technology. Wireless service and cable phone service have instead emerged as the main competitors to traditional landlines.

The shutdown of CallVantage was not unexpected. AT&T stopped signing up new subscribers last summer. In January, Verizon Communications Inc. said it would shut down its corresponding service, VoiceWing, at the end of March.

In the letter dated April 17, AT&T didn't give a specific date for the shutdown, but said subscribers may want to find another service provider.