Google Voice now (kinda) works with your number

Google on Monday will begin giving users a new way to use their existing mobile phone number with parts of its Google Voice service.

No, it's not a full number port, which the company still says is coming and will eventually allow things like call screening, conference calling, or listening into a call before picking up--all with your existing number. Instead, Google is taking advantage of conditional call forwarding to let users send unanswered calls to Google's voice-mail service in place of the one provided by a user's carrier.

Once sent to Google, those voice messages are transcribed, then made available for playback and review online, or as an SMS message. Users can also take advantage of Google Voice's customized greeting service to give callers a different voice-mail greeting depending on what number they're calling from.

Google Voice users can now choose to use their own number, or take one of Google's.

(Credit: Google/CNET)

In order to use the new service, a one-time setup is required, which has both new and existing Google Voice users walk through a wizard that asks for their mobile number and what carrier they're on. It then offers up the special numeric code they have to dial to enable conditional forwarding from their handset to Google Voice.

For users who have a Google Voice number in the same account as their existing mobile phone number, it will be business as usual; Google Voice's voice-mail section will denote which number it was from. Google Voice's senior product manager, Vincent Paquet, explained to me that this system has been designed so users don't have to make any tough choices about which number they want to use. It will also allow users to sign up to Google Voice without having to register a new number.

Smartphone users with visual voice-mail services (such as the iPhone) may find that these extra features aren't enough to warrant making the switch. However, users with older handsets are likely to find Google's offer enticing since it enables them to manage voice-mails both from their phone and on the Web.

The deal is made even sweeter by the fact that all major U.S. carriers are on board, Paquet says. This may come as a surprise to some, considering that just last month, Google, Apple, and AT&T clashed quite publicly over the rejection of Google's Voice application from Apple's App Store in July. But with this new service, Google is merely playing by each carrier's rules, using a feature that's long been available as a way for users to pass on calls they cannot take. There's also some serious potential for carriers to generate extra income in SMS fees for transcribed voice-mail messages that users would have otherwise spent just a minute or so listening to from their phones.

Google Voice remains in private beta, although earlier this month Google began putting invites into the in-boxes of its users, allowing them to invite their friends.

[dnscaching]

Warrantless searches, anyone?

[dnscaching]

Warrantless searches, anyone?

[weekilter]

Conditional forwarding is only available as far as I know on GSM operators which would mainly be AT&T and T-Mobile in the US.

[websterphreaky]

What the h3ll is this moron Blogger talking about??? I have been using this "will eventually allow things like call screening, conference calling, or listening into a call before picking up--all with your existing number." since i got my Google Voice number a MONTH AGO!!
[CNET editor's note: Personal attack deleted.]

[BIGELLOW]

You need to re-read that sentence. Pay special attention to the "all with your EXISTING number" part. In other words, if someone has a home phone number that they have had for 15 years... instead of picking a new "Google Number" and telling friends and family about their new number, they will eventually have the option to "port" their existing phone number into the Google Voice system. So, instead of getting a new number, their existing number will just work.

I presume this would mean, however, that if someone wants their home phone to continue to work as a ring-to line after porting their home number, they would have to change to another new number on their home line for Google Voice to ring to... unless Google becomes a local phone carrier.

[Josh.Lowensohn]

Yeah, please RTA before using our comment system.

[Anonymous Hero]

websterphreaky: learn how to read, you ******. The author is talking about unrolling those features for people who choose NOT to use a new Google number.

By the way, I just tried the new features, and Google voicemail did not work with my Sprint number. Suckage!

So what happens if I 'port' my AT&T number to Google, and then drop the service from AT&T. If I don't have any service with AT&T, does the number stay active with Google Voice? If ppl call it could I then have it forwarded to a new number, the way Google Voice numbers work now?

[pdditty]

You will always need to have a cell # with AT&T.

[bwilch]

Actually if you port your AT&T number to Google, that will cancel your AT&T contract. Just the same as if you were to port your AT&T number to Verizon or anyone else. If you were looking to do this (once the porting became available) you would want to wait till you were out of contract, port your number, then establish service with a new AT&T number.

[gulliver1]

You may want to check a service like ParkMyPhone to port your number and forward your calls to Google Voice. The address is http://parkmyphone.com

[fondy]

I originally signed up for GV because I live on the edge of a national forest and apparently T-Mobile's coverage ends about a mile short of my driveway. My cell has the ability to forward calls but I would routinely forget to enable the feature before leaving work, or I'd forget to switch forwarding off once I got back to civilization.

GV has worked okay for what I need it for, the only problem being that when I call or text someone, they still see my cell or home number instead of my GV number - which sort of defeats the purpose of giving them my GV number in the first place.

I just wish cell providers gave you some way to check text messages via the web or to forward them to email. This would somewhat reduce my need for GV.

[guidosarducci]

Competitive threat to carriers! Josh, you write, "all major U.S. carriers are on board" but have you checked with them to learn what they think of this? No answer forward has long been an available feature with the default programmed to send unanswered calls to the carrier's voicemail system. Google is simply showing users through it's wizard how to send those calls to GVoice. Spinvox uses a similar method to capture voicemail traffic.

Carriers make money when people use minutes and data. Check a voicemail, bang there's a minute or two. Return the call, bang more minutes. Carriers HATE GVoice because it takes users off their voicemail system and gives them an alternative way to make the highest profit margin calls (international). Yes it might drive some additional SMS traffic but ownership of the user experience is where you make money. I think you'll see this as a first volley by Google to take traffic from wireless carriers and continue to push telecom providers into being dumb pipes.

Give ATT, VZW and TMo a call Josh and ask them their opinion of this service. Your readers would love to hear the response. No doubt it will be sprinkled with words like "open" and "user choice" but inside I'm confident they are fuming.