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These days, having an innovative product line or service isn't enough to provider apart from its competitors. Unless, of course, the product approaches an existing need in an entirely new way. If it also scores brownie points for environmental friendliness, even better.

Late last month, I spoke to a company that's doing both, by eliminating costly and wasteful calling cards and replacing them with a paperless system.

At Jaymie Scotto & Associates' recent telecom networking event in Manhattan last month, I sat down with Carlton Barlow, VP of information technologies for New York-based QT Globe, a subsidiary of MEDcom Communications, a wholesale telecom service provider.

QT Globe launched five years ago, about the time MEDcom execs came up with the idea to compete with Vonage (News - Alert) on its voice-based application, and create a subscription service that would allow users to sign up "and we would complete their calls for them," Barlow recalled.

That's when QT set up shop working with Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 carriers to manage call voice and data traffic. QT found a niche with developing nations that lack supporting infrastructure, such as the Ivory Coast, which are often interested in working with QT to set up a cellular network with POPs that link into their existing system.

As the company evolved into a provider of wholesale international VoIP telecommunications services, it expanded its offerings and now has in place a new approach to prepaid calling-card-based services.

 For international travelers and people who make frequent international calls, the QT-TALK prepaid calling card allows customers to obtain a country-specific phone number so that friends, relatives, and business associates overseas can reach them through a local telephone number.

 "With the traditional calling card companies, you dial access number and enter pin," Barlow told me at the event.  "But with QT, you call the access number," a permanent code that can be used anytime to make access calls over QT's network.

 Because actual cards aren't used, reloading is virtual and users don't have to worry about losing a tangible card.

 "It saves trees, it saves the environment, and the rates are much lower because we don't have the middleman," Barlow said. "We don't have to use calling cards."