The IT Nerd

First some housekeeping. Yesterday, I ran a story about the fact that Iristel head honcho Samer Bishay claimed that a telco named Primus was going into creditor protection, and that would help users of netTALK who have been without phone service since last Friday. I spent most of today trying to find out if this was true or not and the fact is, there is nothing that supports the claim that Bishay made yesterday. So unless someone comes to me with hard evidence that says otherwise, I’m filing this one under “busted.”

However, it seems that Mr. Bishay won’t stop Tweeting. Here’s his latest one:

Some good news expected soon for @netTALK customers. Hang in there.

— Samer Bishay (@SBishayIRIS) January 20, 2016

So, I’ll ask the question that 75,000 Canadians are likely asking. What does that mean? I haven’t got a clue. But because I am…. well…. no longer going to take his word on it, I called him on it via Twitter:

@SBishayIRIS @netTALK You said Primus was in creditor protection, but offered no proof. Today you tweet this. Why should we believe you now?

— The IT Nerd (@The_IT_Nerd) January 20, 2016

If he responds, I will let you know. But the fact is that Mr. Bishay isn’t exactly helping the situation with his ill advised Tweets. He may find that by working towards a solution he can be of greater help to the 75,000 people in Canada who have no phone service.

UPDATE: Readers have pointed me towards documentation that confirms what Bishay was saying about Primus being in creditor protection.

@The_IT_Nerd @SBishayIRIS @netTALK https://t.co/IYnJR8sB3j

— David G. Stevenson (@dgstevenson1) January 20, 2016

And:

@The_IT_Nerd about Primus' filing: https://t.co/b21IjMyVRn

— Mathieu Desmarais ツ (@matdesmarais) January 20, 2016

And even netTALK pointed this out to me:

@dgstevenson1 @The_IT_Nerd @SBishayIRIS @iristel Primus has been purchased by a large, global telecom conglomerate

— NT CONNECT (@ntconnect_) January 20, 2016

So… Let me answer this question:

@netTALK @The_IT_Nerd @SBishayIRIS @iristel Precisely what does that do for netTALK’s Canadian customers?

— David G. Stevenson (@dgstevenson1) January 20, 2016

Let me go back to what I said on this yesterday:

Primus is a Canadian telco that’s a couple of steps down the food chain from telcos like Rogers and Bell. They offer home and residential business phone and Internet services. But they are also a CLEC which stands for competitive local exchange carrier. In other words they can offer the service that Iristel offered to netTALK as I explained in this article. Specifically, connecting Canadian phone numbers to netTALK’s back end hardware. The word on the street is that netTALK was going to move all the Canadian numbers that they have to these guys and continue operations. Except that when they tried, Iristel wouldn’t release them. Now this Tweet implies that Primus has entered creditor protection. That would mean that netTALK would have nowhere to go and have one foot in the grave when it comes to their Canadian operations. It may also give Iristel leverage to get paid.

So we will see how this plays out given this event.

On a related note, I am man enough to say that Mr. Bishay was right on this specific issue. But his style of Tweeting doesn’t make it easy to take him seriously. Perhaps he might want to adjust that accordingly.

UPDATE #2: The Globe And Mail has more on the Primus situation.

When this dispute between netTALK and Iristel first broke, one of the things that netTALK said was that they would offer up a new number to customers for free and they could keep it if they liked it. I was tipped off a few minutes ago via Twitter that this process is problematic:

@nettalk @The_IT_Nerd @iristel Nettalk still tell lies to canadians customers. Cannot choose another number. pic.twitter.com/84WUHQjtkz

— Martin Cousineau (@couzmart) January 20, 2016

After that Tweet came in, others followed:

https://twitter.com/aherdofllamas/status/689853238733099014

https://twitter.com/aherdofllamas/status/689854418771185664

To find out what the deal is, I sent netTALK this Tweet:

@aherdofllamas @couzmart @iristel @mbishara Perhaps @netTALK could comment on the issues that people have while getting a new number?

— The IT Nerd (@The_IT_Nerd) January 20, 2016

If I hear anything from them, I’ll update this story. But as it stands right now, this appears to be a #fail of epic proportions.

UPDATE: netTALK sent me this Tweet:

@The_IT_Nerd We have added 5,000 numbers and will be adding more through out the day

— NT CONNECT (@ntconnect_) January 20, 2016

I would be interested in hearing from people who are trying to generate new numbers if you are still having trouble. Please e-mail me, leave a comment, or Tweet me.

In the last couple of minutes, a very interesting Tweet appeared that caught my attention:

https://twitter.com/conexiant/status/689817325210435584

So… Who are these guys? Conexiant Telecom is based in Denver Colorado and they provide a rather long list of services. Including the ability to port numbers and the like. I can only assume that they’re going to try and help netTALK get Canadian customers back online by leveraging those services. But in the interest of getting the full story, I responded to their Tweet:

.@conexiant @netTALK Good day. Would you be willing to give me a statement as to how you hope to resolve this situation? Thanks.

— The IT Nerd (@The_IT_Nerd) January 20, 2016

If I hear anything, I will update this post. Stay tuned.

UPDATE: I did some further digging on Conexiant. JGG@conexiant.net is most likely Gregory Giagnocavo. I found his LinkedIn profile and he describes himself as a serial entrepreneur and in a twist that will interest Canadians, he went to school at the University of Western Ontario. I am continuing to dig, but so far I am finding nothing that jumps out at me.

UPDATE #2: This Tweet just appeared from netTALK’s Twitter account:

@conexiant Thank you. We are working on resolving this issue.

— NT CONNECT (@ntconnect_) January 20, 2016

I’m not sure how to read that. I guess we’ll have to stay tuned to find out.

UPDATE #3: I just had a conversation with Gregory Giagnocavo of Conexiant. He has no comment at this time. So we’ll have to see how this plays out.

House Of Cards has nothing on the story of netTALK vs. Iristel. The latest twist in this story came via a Tweet from Samer Bishay who runs the show at Iristel, but used to be at netTALK (which you can see the story behind that here). Here’s the Tweet in question:

To all @netTALK Canadian customers, you will thank me when this is all said and done. Primus filed for protection today. Just be patient.

— Samer Bishay (@SBishayIRIS) January 19, 2016

I’m pretty sure you’re wondering what in blue blazes does that mean. No problem. Here’s what you need to know.

Primus is a Canadian telco that’s a couple of steps down the food chain from telcos like Rogers and Bell. They offer home and residential business phone and Internet services. But they are also a CLEC which stands for competitive local exchange carrier. In other words they can offer the service that Iristel offered to netTALK as I explained in this article. Specifically, connecting Canadian phone numbers to netTALK’s back end hardware. The word on the street is that netTALK was going to move all the Canadian numbers that they have to these guys and continue operations. Except that when they tried, Iristel wouldn’t release them. Now this Tweet implies that Primus has entered creditor protection. That would mean that netTALK would have nowhere to go and have one foot in the grave when it comes to their Canadian operations. It may also give Iristel leverage to get paid.

There’s only one problem with all of this. I can find no evidence that Primus has filed for creditor protection. I’m not saying that it is not true. Only that I have no proof of this one way or the other. So, why did I post this when I can’t confirm or deny this? Simple, a person who is at the center of this whole debacle has made a statement that can quality as a bit of a bombshell. Some people may take it as fact and it’s my job to wrap some context around this while getting to what the actual facts are. To that end, I am reaching out to Primus to see if I can get some answers in this regard.

More as it comes.

UPDATE: This turned out to be fact. See here for details.

Another plot twist to the netTALK vs Iristel dispute comes in the form of this release from Iristel which I have reprinted in full below:

MARKHAM, Ont. January 19, 2016 – Iristel President and CEO Samer Bishay continues working with the regulator, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, to determine a solution with regard to the phone numbers of netTalk customers in Canada.

“We want to do what’s right for the Canadian consumer,” Mr. Bishay says, adding he hopes the numbers will be back to consumers within days, not weeks. “When netTalk was disconnected by another Canadian carrier in 2014 for non-payment – and Iristel stepped in to help netTalk customers – that disconnect lasted 10 days. We do not want it to last that long. But the CRTC must ensure, for the consumers’ sake that once the numbers are returned they do not run into this trouble again with netTalk refusing to pay for service.”

Iristel makes this guarantee: ALL CONSUMERS WILL GET THEIR PHONE NUMBERS BACK and be able to port them with a reputable Canadian service provider once a CRTC-sanctioned solution is achieved. In other words, if you sign up with a different Canadian service provider now, you’ll receive a new telephone number which you will be able to switch back to your long-held number currently held in reserve. We apologize for the inconvenience.

We know this has been difficult for everyone, but please bear in mind that Florida-based reseller netTalk has refused to pay Iristel for almost two years while using our CRTC-licenced telecommunications infrastructure for its customers. And netTalk did this despite collecting money from Canadian consumers.

Under CRTC rules, as carrier of record, Iristel cannot reach out and contact netTalk customers directly, unless they contact Iristel. This has added to the confusion because netTalk has repeatedly messaged its customers with distortions and untruths about this current situation.

“I’ve been asked many times if I was leery about netTalk two years ago when we stepped in to help with their non-payment disconnect by another carrier back then,” Mr. Bishay says. “And my answer is that I wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt and help their Canadian customers. Hindsight is 20-20 and had I known then what I know now, we would not have stepped in.”

Iristel cannot continue to allow netTalk to collect money from Canadian consumers and not pay its suppliers. And without a CRTC-sanctioned solution, netTalk could try to continue to abuse Canadian consumers and other suppliers. netTalk has run up fees of nearly $2 million to Iristel and such business practices must stop.

We are truly sorry for this inconvenience to netTalk customers and assure them that Iristel is not trying to put them in the middle. However, they have already paid netTalk for telephone service, yet netTalk has not paid the proper Canadian companies for customers to stay connected. netTalk’s behavior when it comes to paying its vendors was discussed publicly by employees in the past on forums:http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r29027673-General-NetTALK-Forum.

This meshes with what I got from my exclusive interview with Maged Bishara who is the Vice President of Operations at Iristel. I’ll be watching to make sure that this “guarantee” gets delivered.

UPDATE: Theo Markou reached out to me via Twitter to say that his Uncle has been able to transfer his netTALK phone number to another VoIP provider. But it sounded like a painful process:

https://twitter.com/mediacapitalist/status/689621635788337152

https://twitter.com/mediacapitalist/status/689622320265203712

If you’ve tried to port your netTALK phone number to another VoIP provider, please let me know how it goes.

Hot off the heels of getting an exclusive interview with Maged Bishara who is the VP of Operations, I turned my attention to getting some sort of interview or statement with netTALK. Yesterday, I posted a Tweet to netTALK:

@The_IT_Nerd Yes, someone will be contacting you shortly

— NT CONNECT (@ntconnect_) January 18, 2016

Today I got a statement from netTALK. I have reprinted it in full below:

Dear IT Nerd

We at netTALK are aware of all of the stories you have written so far
regarding netTALK and Iristel.

We also understand that you would like to hear from us.

Rest assured that we are working on the problem and hope to have it
resolved very soon. This situation is not something we’ve taken lightly.

It is our hope and intention that all Canadian customers will not lose
their existing phone numbers

It is just going to take us a bit of time to sort this out so please be
patient.

We will send you a statement on our progress on this in the next 24-48
hours.

In the meantime, Canadian Customers will be offered an additional number
and six months of free service . When they receive an email from us in the
next 24-48 hours, all they have to do is click on the link to renew for
free. And If our customers like the new number they receive they can
keep it or they can choose a new one from the CONNECT portal
<http://sendy.nettalk.com/l/5pbh763Lde7IYLcbX763fxKODA/bgLBGsBOJyyuRDJIqCqZVw/fK763z2YeJcVKAn8HwhQ1rPA >,
Again, we want to reiterate that we are working on the problem and hope to have everything resolved soon.

Now I did have some very specific questions for them. They were:

• Can you answer the accusations that Iristel has made that you owe them money and that is the genesis of this situation?
• Can you comment on your SEC filings which indicate that you may not be a going concern for much longer? The reason for this question is that it directly influences whether customers should stick with you as a VoIP provider.
• Finally, can you comment on the fact that the CRTC has been trying to get you to join the CCTS without success since 2013 which violates Canadian law?

Here are the answers that I got, starting with the first question:

The money they say we owe is primarily because they refused to port
out the numbers in October, 2014, when we repeatedly requested it. They
planned all along to use those numbers as leverage, only hurting Canadian
consumers.

Next up is the question about the SEC filings:

On the “going concern” issue, that is an accounting classification that signifies that assets and revenues are not completely sufficient to satisfy all liabilities. It is typical for early-stage public companies, who are still fund raising, to have this notation, and many that have gone on to be extremely profitable started with such a notation.

Finally, there’s the CRTC question:

Our counsel speaking to CRTC <SIC>

There’s one other thing that I’d like to point out. In the statement that netTALK has provided me, they said this:

In the meantime, Canadian Customers will be offered an additional number
and six months of free service .

Here’s the problem. When netTALK started Tweeting to customers, they said this:

@The_IT_Nerd @iristel We apologize that Iristel continues 2 use u as a pawn in its dispute with netTALK. You'll be able 2 get new# & FREE yr

— NT CONNECT (@ntconnect_) January 18, 2016

So the Tweet says 1 year free. But their statement says six months. Clearly their PR person doesn’t talk to the person who has the password to their Twitter account. Perhaps the two of them should have a conversation so that they’re singing from the same song sheet as the optics of this are craptastic for them.

I will continue to monitor the situation and I will post any updates that come to my attention as this is a very serious issue that affects many Canadians.

Since the story netTALK versus Iristel began for me on Sunday night, I’ve been looking to get to the truth. Or at least as much of that as I could. To that end, I was very fortunate to get in touch with Maged Bishara who is the Vice President of Operations at Iristel to get his side of this story as this is a story that has a whole lot of moving parts to it.

The first thing that Mr. Bishara wanted to express to me is that he completely understands the anger that is out there. He gets that he’s affected the lives of 75,000 Canadians by disconnecting them from netTALK and he understands why people are upset. But he was left with little choice as he’s owed $2,000,000 by netTALK and he cannot provide a service under those conditions. He also points out that this started two years ago, and that netTALK has done this before. The former point matches the information that I have researched and I have found evidence of the latter point. He also disputes netTALK’s claim that they tried to work with him to port the numbers over before the deadline that he had set with netTALK. Bishara contends that if they did want to port the numbers across to another provider before their deadline, he would have done it.

Mr. Bishara also mentioned that he is working closely with the CRTC to resolve this (it’s also worth noting that according to him that netTALK is not at the table with the CRTC and Iristel). The reason for him going this route to resolve this issue is that he is not allowed to speak to netTALK customers directly as Iristel are acting as a CLEC for netTALk. CLEC stands for competitive local exchange carrier. The non-nerd explanation is that they interface Canadian numbers with the netTALK service. If you want a more nerdy answer, check out this Wikipedia article. Because of this he has to get assistance from the CRTC to make this happen. When they get direction from the CRTC, they will allow the numbers to be ported to any carrier that the customer desires. In other words, netTALK customer’s phone numbers are safe and will be able to be moved to another provider. However, to nobody’s surprise netTALK will not be one of those carriers. Bishara recommends that consumers choose their carrier carefully to avoid this situation. What’s the timeline for this? It could happen at anytime and when it does, I will get something online to let you know.

I want to thank Mr. Bishara for taking the time to speak to me, and also I would like to thank Bob Brehl for setting this up. My next task is to write a story on netTALK’s side of the story. I will have that online later today.

I am so glad that I didn’t have anything planned for today as the saga of netTALK’s Canadian customers not having phone service due to their phone numbers being held “hostage” by Iristel continues to evolve. netTALK has seemed to have fired the latest salvo in this dispute by sending the e-mail below to all their users a few minutes ago:

Dear netTALK Canada Customer,

As promised, we want to provide you with regular updates regarding the issues with your incoming phone service, as previously noted in several communications.

Following an outpouring of criticism of Iristel from you, which we greatly appreciate, Iristel finally relented early yesterday and agreed to reactivate your numbers rather than holding them hostage in their dispute with us. However, since agreeing, Iristel thus far have failed to reactivate the numbers. We continue to attempt to force their hand as quickly as possible, but we ask once again for your support in communicating to them your ongoing frustration with their tactics.

As previously noted, we cannot express enough our frustration with and apologies for the interruption in your service, and greatly appreciate your continued loyalty and trust. We look forward to resuming full service very soon.

Sincerely,
The netTALK Team

Hmmm….. From where I sit, all sides are getting criticism, but the lion’s share appears to be aimed at netTALK. But that may just be how I perceive things based on my observations of Social Media. Be that as it may, it’s interesting that they claim that they had a deal with Iristel, and then Iristel backed out of it. Since there’s two sides to every story, I’ve reached out to Iristel for a comment. When I get one, I will update this story.

UPDATE: I just heard back from Iristel and here’s all you need to know:

Iristel is working with the CRTC for a solution and made no such statement to netTALK. 

I am in the process of arranging an interview with a representative from Iristel. Expect an update soon.

The ongoing saga of netTALK and how their Canadian customers have lost their phone numbers along with the ability to receive incoming calls is starting to resemble an episode of House Of Cards. I’ve continued to look around to see if there’s any further dimensions to this story, and I’ve found two things.

The first comes from the fact that the CRTC who is responsible for regulating telecommunications in Canada asked netTALK to join the CCTS which is the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services as they are a group that mediates disputes between telcos and the public back in 2013. They are also the group that I recommended that users affected by this fiasco complain to. But that apparently never happened. So the CRTC sent a very nasty letter to them threatening “enforcement action.” Here’s part of the letter for you to read:

This letter is to inform you that it appears to the Commission that NetTalk.com, Inc. (NetTalk) is not a participating service provider of the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services Inc. (CCTS) as required by the Commission.

As described further below, NetTalk is required to respond to the Commission by 22 November 2013. Failure to respond could result in enforcement action against NetTalk.

Further digging has indicated that on the CCTS website, netTALK is currently listed as a “Non-Compliant Provider” that has been referred to the CRTC for enforcement action. Now joining the CCTS is not an option, it’s a legal requirement. Thus, this brings to the forefront two points.

• It appears that netTALK has been breaking Canadian law for some time.
• Whatever “enforcement action” that was threatened by the CRTC in 2013 appears not to have happened. At least there’s no evidence that I can find that it has happened. I will keep looking though. Thus one has to wonder what the CRTC was doing between 2013 and now, and if they could have stopped the pain that netTALK’s Canadian users are going through at present. It also makes me wonder what the CRTC can do for users who don’t have phone service from netTALK today seeing that the metaphorical horse has already left the barn.

In light of the latter, I have sent out this Tweet to the CRTC:

.@CRTCeng It seems that you have threatened @nettalk with an "enforcement action" because they didn't join the @CCTS_CPRST . Why no action?

— The IT Nerd (@The_IT_Nerd) January 19, 2016

If I get a response, I’ll let you know.

The other thing that I came across today is the Twitter account of Samer Bishay. You might recall that he used to be the president of netTALK and is now apparently running the show at Iristel. He was also mentioned in the SEC documents that I posted yesterday. I took a look at what he has to say and…. see for yourself:

You have no idea how much trouble you are in @netTALK . I'm CANADIAN and I'll make sure Canadians get their #'s back but not with @netTALK

— Samer Bishay (@SBishayIRIS) January 19, 2016

Wow. That’s really professional. I’m not sure what message he was trying to send, but it doesn’t exactly cast him in the most positive light.

Expect more updates to be posted as this is a story that seems to evolve quickly.