Teleo was a peer-to-peer Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network founded by Wendell Brown, Andy Moeck and Craig Taro Gold in January 2004. The San-Francisco-based company's VoIP system enabled desktop and laptop PC users to send and receive phone calls over the Internet. Users could speak to other Teleo users for free, call traditional telephone numbers for a fee, and receive calls from traditional phones.Angel investor Chris Morgando was brought on as an advisor to Teleo in March 2004, and Peter Sisson was added as chief executive officer in June 2004. Teleo was acquired by Microsoft in August 2005,and became part of Microsoft's MSN group.
Teleo provided internet telephony applications that bridged the gap between computer desktops, land line phones, and cell phones. Teleo's software allowed users to place and receive phone calls from Microsoft Outlook, Internet Explorer, and other applications.Teleo users could place free PC-to-PC calls to other Teleo users worldwide; calls from regular telephones were also free. Calls to regular telephones were "pay as you go," at a 2-cent-per-minute rate worldwide. Users could avoid fees by encouraging friends and business associates to install Teleo.Teleo was an early competitor to Skype.
