Voice over Internet Protocol – or VoIP – is the transport of
telephone calls over an internet connection. For a company that
already pays for a broadband connection, long distance calls can
become free of charge, albeit that VoIP handsets tend to be much
more expensive than standard handsets.
The technology has the added attraction of being tax free, given
that internet access taxes are presently forbidden in the US,
although cash-strapped US states, concerned at losing revenue
previously provided by highly taxed telephone calls, are hoping to
change this.
According to the new report, more than 260 million new business
IP telephony lines will be installed worldwide in the next four
years, with revenue increasing from almost $1 billion this year to
$5.5 billion in 2008. Costs for the VoIP user will fall as the
technology proliferates, says the Radicati Group.
The study also predicts that VoIP uptake will be greatest in
large corporations, which are likely to bolt on the new systems to
existing land-line and internet networks. Smaller corporations are
more likely to upgrade to a pure VoIP system, says the report.
