For those who missed Google Voice beta, Ribbit Mobile opens in beta

Some of us missed the boat and never got in the Google Voice beta test group. With all the controversy the service stirred up among the media, the public, telecommunications companies, and the FCC, there's a distinct possibility that Google Voice as we know it could end up in regulatory limbo after being politicized and thrown into the "net neutrality" conflict.

Today, a beta of an alternative has opened up: Ribbit Mobile from Ribbit, an independent British Telecom subsidiary often billed as "Silicon Valley's first telephone company."

In short, Ribbit Mobile is a cloud-based communications hub. Using that simple description, it becomes very easy to compare Ribbit Mobile to Google Voice because they both address the "many numbers, one identity" problem. That is, they both try to give people with multiple phone numbers an option to have all those lines equally accessible at all times. For example, you can answer calls coming into your work phone on your mobile phone like you can with Google Voice, but Ribbit goes a step further and lets you also answer incoming calls through a desktop VoIP client like MSN or Skype. The value here is that you can route your mobile number through VoIP and save airtime, or ensure a connection despite a poor or unavailable signal.

The platform is also integrated with Web services, letting Ribbit offer what it calls "Caller ID 2.0." This feature pulls up a caller's LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Flickr data when you're speaking to them. It's like an instant background check, which Ribbit likened to a personal CRM (customer relationship management) platform. Though it seems almost intrusive, it does only grab publicly disclosed information.

Ribbit Mobile also has a strong speech-to-text transcription element. It can transcribe voice mail into text and then send it as an SMS or e-mail, or it can be used as an immediate dictation service to take down text memos through your mobile device.

Because Ribbit Mobile is built on an open platform, developers can harness Ribbit's APIs to come up with new apps, widgets, and ways to work the platform's architecture. Unlike many developer programs, Ribbit pays developers based on how much their apps are actually used. The most used apps earn the most money for developers, not just the most downloaded or most installed.

This beta program gives users access to all of Ribbit Mobile's functionality, also known as the "Pro" package, which will eventually be unveiled as a $30 monthly subscription service with two lower tiers, including one for free.