BT's (News - Alert) Ribbit development platform has gone "live," allowing developers beyond the early participants to use the Ribbit platform to design, test, deploy and manage voice and communication features used by Web and other applications.

 

BT calls Ribbit (News - Alert) "programmable telephony" and brings the capabilities of a large global carrier to all Web developers. Ribbit allows calls to be initiated and answered on multiple devices and run across multiple communication protocols, networks, and device types, and more importantly to be created by developers who need no special knowledge about programming native voice and communications apps.

 

Ribbit allows incoming calls can be answered through a browser, Flash widget, or VoIP client. Outgoing calls can be answered on the Web, a regular phone, or right through a desktop widget.

 

Currently, the Ribbit API is optimized for Flash and Flex developers because of the pervasiveness of the technology. Flash is resident on 98 percent of the world’s computers, so Ribbit communication applications written in Flash will run without the need of a client download.

 

When developers create useful applications on the Ribbit platform, they will be free to market them in accordance to their value in their market. Developers will pay Ribbit in accordance of the value provided to them and their users.

 

To date, well over 600 developers are already involved, creating new applications at a rate of better than one a week, BT says.

 

Call center solutions, order and operator management systems, social networking mash-ups, productivity and communication tool integrations, unified messaging as well as phone and Web widgets have been created.

 

Programmable telephony means an end to static services and limited telco-defined communication offerings, BT argues. Carriers, for example, can easily "plug" Ribbit into their networks and gain access to the 7,500 Ribbit developers and the next-generation applications they are creating.

 

Ribbit is a stand-alone subsidiary of BT, and is encouraged to make partnerships and relationships with global integrators of all types.

 

Ribbit currently is sponsoring a contest with prizes for development of new apps using the platform, in areas such as  media, advertising and entertainment; social networking, business apps, carrier or ISP integration as well as machine-to-machine apps.

 

Developers pay for Ribbit capabilities based on usage. Developers can estimate their anticipated use, put in a credit card, and "automatically" purchase the communication features they expect to use.

 

“I've been using the Ribbit API for several weeks, creating call widgets in a matter of hours," says Heitor Bembom, a Creative Consultant.

 

One-click calling is likely to be a popular way applications are adapted to use Ribbit.