SunRocket's demise, cautionary tale for VoIP users

As of August 5, SunRocket, the Vienna, Virginia based VoIP company ceased operations and discontinued service to its estimated 206,000 customers. While it was at one time the second largest stand-alone VoIP company after Vonage, SunRocket could not compete with cable companies like Comcast and Time Warner that are now servicing two-thirds of all residential VoIP customers. Unfortunately, it appears that their service might not be all that some SunRocket users are losing.

According to report, the company handling the liquidation of SunRocket's assets, Sherwood Partners, has sold SunRocket's customer list to Vonage. Vonage has a website dedicated to offering former SunRocket customers a promotional package to switch to Vonage. Numerous former SunRocket customers noted that shortly after SunRocket announced its collapse, they began receiving offers from Vonage at their private SunRocket e-mail accounts, which suggests that SunRocket did sell the lists.

For consumers, the end of SunRocket should serve as a cautionary tale. When subscribing to a third-party VoIP provider, be sure to consider the company's long-term viability, especially if you are porting a long-held phone number to its service. Even industry stalwarts like Vonage may be in trouble Verizon's lawsuit against them causes the company to sink.