Wengo

Key takeaways

Wengo belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Wengo to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Wengo from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Wengo was at the beginning of 2004 a subsidiary of French telecom service provider Neuf Cegetel. As of February 2012, Wengo employs 80 people in the Paris headquarters, and is a subsidiary of Vivendi. Wengo is now repositioned as an online personal and consulting services marketplace.

Voice over IP

Wengo was founded in September 2004, launching its service at the beginning of 2005 based on what is now known as the "WengoPhone, classic edition". In September 2005, Wengo opened its visiophony service at the same time as Skype on a cross platform (Windows, Linux and Mac OS X). In 2006, Wengo integrated the Gaim project into its software, allowing its users to communicate via Instant Messaging with other users on the MSN, Yahoo! or Google Talk networks. Wengo and Skype started offering free PSTN calls in 2006, which accelerated the commoditization of telephony calls. In June 2006, Wengo offered a two-month unlimited calling plan to several destinations including Belgium, Guadeloupe, India, Martinique, Poland and Vietnam. The offer was posted on many websites, including FatWallet, and attracted many new customers. Wengo later suspended many of these accounts, in the company's interests, after many people began abusing the unlimited calling system.

WengoPhone

Originally, Wengo was supporting the development of WengoPhone. WengoPhone was a free and open source (GPL) VoIP, SMS and chat) softphone through which it offered PC to PSTN phone calls. This software used the free and open SIP protocol, it was developed under the name WengoPhone by the OpenWengo project. Their Firefox browser extension was the first browser-based VoIP client for OS X. The VoIP service was presented on the French market as an attempt to compete with Skype, Yahoo and other virtual network service providers. The economic model of this activity, however, was not sustainable. Wengo decided that WengoPhone was outside its core business, and in February 2008 transferred the project to a partner called MBDSYS — another French startup. WengoPhone and the OpenWengo community have since rebranded themselves as QuteCom.

Social marketplace In June 2006, Wengo launched a social marketplace that gives its users the opportunity to create toll-free telephone number and paying services so that they can sell their expertise over the phone. This marketplace is the core business of Wengo (no more VoIP activities).

History

2011 November: Wengo experts also answer paid questions (in addition to phone advice) July: Launch of the iPhone app available on the Apple App Store (in French only) May: The cumulative number of calls via Wengo exceeds one million calls since the beginning in 2007 (source: call counter in real time) February: doctors are available by phone via Wengo Health. 2010 September: 1500 Wengo experts now have a blog available from their expert page. June: in partnership with Acadomia, Wengo provides Online Tutoring, Acadomia Online January: Opening to content generated by users with the launch of a forum Legal. 2009 Spain and opening Portugal. The sales volume for 2009 is 8 million euros according to the press release of 06/10/2004. In partnership with Universal Music, Wengo launched a music advisory service called MyMusic-Pro. 2008 Wengo claimed a force of 1,500 experts, including 850 experts assets generating an average income of € 500 per month. The sales volume is announced 2 million euros with 50,000 calls. In February 2008, Wengo was able to secure a significant investment of €6 million. The VoIP activity was transferred to a partner called MBDSYS. 2007 Launch of the new site Wengo.fr offering expert advice by phone in the categories Legal, Education, Welfare, Psychology, Business, Finance, Psychics, Leisure, Shopping, Computers. This service was launched in March 2007 by the team that created the WengoPhone. In July 2007, Neuf Cegetel's Board of Directors approved the write off of Wengo's debt for €11 million and, at the same time, agreed that investors should be able to participate in Wengo's capital by means of a reserved increase in capital that could be made by a cash contribution of €12 million. 2006 The software is available Wengophone and a version based on open wengo developed under the name qutecom. In December 2006, Wengo launched wengovisio, a Flash-driven VoIP client that enables website owners to be called by their readers directly on their website, without any software installation.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Wengo

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Wengo claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Wengo before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Wengo ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Wengo

In research: Wengo appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Wengo in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Wengo is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Free VoIP software, Free instant messaging clients, Instant messaging clients for Linux, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Wengo outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Wengo in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Wengo means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Wengo out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Wengo in simple terms?

Wengo was at the beginning of 2004 a subsidiary of French telecom service provider Neuf Cegetel. As of February 2012, Wengo employs 80 people in the Paris headquarters, and is a subsidiary of Vivendi.

Why does Wengo matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Wengo?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Wengo.