Internet Phone Calls Step Out from the Shadow

By STEFANIA VISCUSI
TMCnet Assistant Editor for Channels

Unless you're living in some dark place underneath a rock, you've probably heard about internet phone calls. One of the biggest innovations brought about by Internet Protocol technology is the communications capability known as an internet phone call.

Utilizing the internet to send voice packets over the data network provides benefits that were once unknown to users, but are now increasing at rapid pace. With an internet phone call, the internet connection becomes the "phone line."

While many early predictions on VoIP and internet phone calls were skeptical about quality and reliability issues, answers to those worries have allowed adoption rates to soar beyond what was even anticipated.

Internet phone calls are an innovative, quality and cost effective way to conduct communications that eliminates the need for costly dedicated landlines to connect callers and offers a host of special features and capabilities that make communications more productive and appealing. These added features include the ability to choose an area code, have 3-way calls, forward, return, and transfer a call, voicemail, caller ID and caller ID block, as well as many other available features.

In the enterprise space and even for home users, internet phone calls have become a standard way of communicating with contacts at a distance.

iLocus a market research company found that during 2006, 1079 billion VoIP minutes of internet phone call time was utilized. Measuring 37.5 million Voice Over Broad Band (VoBB) subscribers worldwide (16.5 million were new in that year alone.)

Research from ABI on residential IP telephony finds that by 2012 there will be 267 million residential VoIP subscribers worldwide. The firm measured 38 million last year alone.

TalkLah is one company offering internet phone call services that are free with PC to PC or PC to Phone VoIP calls via any IP phone or by downloading their free softphone. TalkLah offers a number of Internet phone call services and calling plans for both businesses and residential users.

No longer lurking in the shadows as a technology that could possibly be unequal to traditional services, internet phone calls have emerged from the shadows and are shedding light on a cost sensible and innovative way to communicate.

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Stefania Viscusi is an established writer and avid reader. To see more of her articles, please visit Stefania Viscusi’s columnist page