Elephant Talk Communications Corp. was launched fourteen years ago as a result of a merger between Staruni Corporation and Elephant Talk Limited. Staruni Corporation (also known as Altius Corporation, Inc.), through 1997, was positioned as a web developer and Internet Service Provider after the company acquired Starnet Universe Internet Inc. Elephant Talk Limited started operating in 1994 in the international long distance services provider space focused on international call termination into China. Twelve years later, in 2006, Elephant Talk Communications Corp. decided to retire its strategy of focusing on international calls into China altogether.
Staruni Corporation began trading under the stock symbol SRUN in 2000. Replaced by symbol “ETLK” after the merger with Elephant Talk Limited, the symbol changed to “ETAK” when the stock split in 2008.
In the first in a series of acquisitions beginning in 2007, the company acquired Switzerland’s Benoit Telecom and in so doing solidified its position in the European telecommunications market, in particular, the Premium Rate Services and Toll Free Services space and to lesser extent in the Carrier (Pre) Select Services market. Leveraging its human capital, IT resources and acquired software, ETAK obtained the experience, expertise and software vital to highly efficient and robust telecom and multi-media systems, telecom regulations and European markets.
In the spring of 2010, ETAK acquired ValidSoft, an acquisition in line with its strategy to develop and market customized mobile solutions. ValidSoft’s strong suit is in the area of authentication and transaction verification capabilities which allow companies to efficiently implement solutions that protect against current forms of credit and debit card fraud and identity theft. The acquisition combines ValidSoft’s proprietary software with ETAK’s telecom platform to create the best electronic fraud prevention solution available.
Today, Elephant Talk delivers global telecommunication companies a comprehensive suite of services which allows them to offer mobile and landline telecom services as part of their overall business offering portfolio. Integration of their own applications with the telecommunication services provided by Elephant Talk’s Mobile Virtual Network Enabling (MVNE) platform is achieved using market standard Web Services.
In addition to basic voice, data and text services, the company offers an assortment of adaptable products such as premium messaging services, promotions and loyalty programs, subscriptions, location and other value-added services. These services include but are not limited to remote health care, mobile internet ID security, credit card fraud prevention, voice biometrics, mobile banking and remittances/payments in addition to many other emerging customized mobile services. Elephant Talk’s uniquely differentiated application suite of network embedded services and supporting patents are based upon what the company sees as the four main ingredients required for maintaining service value; individualized location, the relevant customer profile, real-time secure connectivity, and Elephant Talk’s platform which is an integral piece to making all of these services work in concert with one another.
Access security and authentication is supported by the company’s security software company, ValidSoft, which was acquired by Elephant Talk in 2010. ValidSoft’s game-changing telecom-based technology is cited as being the only integrated product set that provides card-based and an electronic fraud prevention solution. Regardless, ETAK sees its customer base needing real-time proximity-based card fraud detection, Out-of-Band Man-in-the-Browser protection for internet or mobile based transactions and Voice Verification for Telephone Banking. ValidSoft’s feature set offers what many see as a leading telecommunications-based authentication solution.
Elephant Talk Communications Corp. is a worldwide service provider of mobile, proprietary Software Defined Network Architecture – a platform for the telecommunications industry and cyber security solutions. The company is credited with boosting Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs), Enablers (MVNEs) and Aggregators (MVNAs) with a variety of versatile applications, state of the art industry expertise and high quality customer service without the need for an initial, cost-prohibitive investment. Elephant Talk partners with many of the world’s leading MNOs and technology companies such as T-Mobile, Vodafone, Affirmed Networks, HP and Zain.
For more information on the company, visit http://www.elephanttalk.com
