SKYPE IS CHEAPER AND FAR MORE RELIABLE THAN VONAGE AND THE REST
Voice over Internet Protocol is a way of making free phone calls over the internet that has been around for some time, but new developments in the technology used to connect callers look set to change the way we communicate. VoIP allows you to make calls over a data network such as the internet. VoIP converts the signal from your telephone into one that is capable of travelling over the internet, then converts it back at the other end so you can speak for free to anyone with a VoIP phone number.
When the online entrepreneurs behind the music file-sharing service Kazaa launched Skype - the best known VoIP service - in 2003, it threatened to do away with traditional landlines. Anyone with broadband internet and a microphone could download their free software and speak to other Skype users for free, and to landline numbers for almost nothing. The service quickly caught on and today has more than 171 million registered users.
But for many, the service proved frustrating. Picture the scene: you fancy a chat with your sister in Sydney. First you switch on your computer, then you open the Skype console and check if she's online. You click on her and hit dial. But she's gone to make a cup of tea. You try again a few minutes later. This time she picks up and you grapple with your unwieldy headset. But there's a delay and conversation runs aground so you think, "forget it", pick up your house phone and get her straight away. It's costing loads, but finally you're talking.
Those were the bad old days when, as early adopter Michael Love, 53, puts it, some calls abroad were great quality, but others were "like shouting in a bucket". So what's changed? A new generation of phones has hit the market and the big guns of the telecoms industry have embraced and invested in technology they feared would put them out of business.
"We don't see VoIP as a threat but as a huge opportunity and a major differentiation of our service," says Adam Liversage of BT. "BT has over one million VoIP customers in the UK using our Home Hub and PC phones. With the move to providing TV, mobile phone, internet and landline services in bundles, we believe all services will go over broadband."
And it's not about only calling acquaintances with VoIP handsets - many service providers now offer cheap calls using VoIP technology to normal landlines and mobile phones. But not everyone is convinced VoIP is poised to take over from traditional mobile phone lines. Ben Wood, a director at the UK based telecoms research firm CCS Insight is underwhelmed. "I don't think there is a mass UK market for VoIP yet," he says. "It's appealing and sexy, but in reality mobile users in the UK have huge bundles of free minutes. They could make the switch but then they have to register, find a hotspot, work out how to connect and somehow transfer their address book. Is it really worth it?"
However, he thinks VoIP will appeal to professionals. "For business users it's immensely attractive. I'm talking to you from Dubai and if I was making the call it would be costing me a fortune. But my hotel has WiFi hotspots. If I could use those as I travel, I could save thousands." But whether you use VoIP for business or pleasure, if your colleagues, family and friends have VoIP, talk isn't just cheap, it's free. Which is definitely worth chatting about.
When the online entrepreneurs behind the music file-sharing service Kazaa launched Skype - the best known VoIP service - in 2003, it threatened to do away with traditional landlines. Anyone with broadband internet and a microphone could download their free software and speak to other Skype users for free, and to landline numbers for almost nothing. The service quickly caught on and today has more than 171 million registered users.
But for many, the service proved frustrating. Picture the scene: you fancy a chat with your sister in Sydney. First you switch on your computer, then you open the Skype console and check if she's online. You click on her and hit dial. But she's gone to make a cup of tea. You try again a few minutes later. This time she picks up and you grapple with your unwieldy headset. But there's a delay and conversation runs aground so you think, "forget it", pick up your house phone and get her straight away. It's costing loads, but finally you're talking.
Those were the bad old days when, as early adopter Michael Love, 53, puts it, some calls abroad were great quality, but others were "like shouting in a bucket". So what's changed? A new generation of phones has hit the market and the big guns of the telecoms industry have embraced and invested in technology they feared would put them out of business.
"We don't see VoIP as a threat but as a huge opportunity and a major differentiation of our service," says Adam Liversage of BT. "BT has over one million VoIP customers in the UK using our Home Hub and PC phones. With the move to providing TV, mobile phone, internet and landline services in bundles, we believe all services will go over broadband."
And it's not about only calling acquaintances with VoIP handsets - many service providers now offer cheap calls using VoIP technology to normal landlines and mobile phones. But not everyone is convinced VoIP is poised to take over from traditional mobile phone lines. Ben Wood, a director at the UK based telecoms research firm CCS Insight is underwhelmed. "I don't think there is a mass UK market for VoIP yet," he says. "It's appealing and sexy, but in reality mobile users in the UK have huge bundles of free minutes. They could make the switch but then they have to register, find a hotspot, work out how to connect and somehow transfer their address book. Is it really worth it?"
However, he thinks VoIP will appeal to professionals. "For business users it's immensely attractive. I'm talking to you from Dubai and if I was making the call it would be costing me a fortune. But my hotel has WiFi hotspots. If I could use those as I travel, I could save thousands." But whether you use VoIP for business or pleasure, if your colleagues, family and friends have VoIP, talk isn't just cheap, it's free. Which is definitely worth chatting about.
posted by Foch at 12:50 AM
