Corporate Profile
History
The company was incorporated in 1997 and developed ‘eSMS’, regarded as the world’s first global gateway between SMS and the Internet. Whilst not involved in SMS any longer the ‘eSMS’ name is used across a multitude of SMS related products. We became involved in VoIP in 2003 as a tool to streamline call-centre operations in a group company. Quickly spotting the opportunity, our wholesale telecommunications services were born and have been actively developed over the ensuing 6 years.
IP Network
To guarantee service quality, we operate our own IP network. This renders us independent of any ISP (as we are essentially an ISP). In addition, we are able to choose the best providers for any given route. For our global connectivity we currently use TiNet, Cogent, and multiple tier-2 providers. Via our membership of LONAP we also peer with approximately 80 other networks, from household names such as the BBC, through Google, Microsoft et al to major ISPs and ITSPs. As a result traffic between our networks flows directly rather than over the open Internet – avoiding congestion and ensuring quality for our customers. We are predominantly based in Telehouse East in London, which is arguably one of the best connected and resourced carrier-hotels on the planet. We operate a further data centres in Manchester and Edinburgh. We continue to actively expand our network’s reach and capacity ahead of demand.
Voice network
Our voice network is entirely ‘next generation’, running over our own IP network. We interconnect with multiple tier-1 and -2 carriers giving us global reach and the pick of the best routes. Quality is our main requirement from a route, with all purchased routes quality graded and performance monitored. Price is secondary to quality when determining a route for a customer call.
We also have primary allocations of UK number ranges from OFCOM, calls being delivered on to our network over our BT interconnect and direct interconnects with other networks.
Customers
For regulatory reasons we only provide services to customers who certify their status as Communications Providers. Beyond this we qualify customers by technical competence rather than size. Our goal is to be our customers’ telephony toolkit and reliable secret weapon and prefer to deal with customers who have the experience to capitalise on what we offer. As such, our customers range from tier-1 carriers, through innovative enterprises to start-up ITSPs. It is also very important to us that our customers add value to the ultimate consumer and accordingly avoid ‘the channel’.
Suppliers
We only deal with reputable, established carriers where the origin of their service is verifiable. We do not deal with resellers, brokers, or those selling questionable routes. In every case the supplier is directly connected to our network, even for VoIP interconnects, ensuring TDM quality for our customers.
Financial position
Simwood is debt free, profitable and cash-flow generative enabling ongoing investment in capacity and network expansion. The company remains 98% owned by management.
