Voice over IP – Saving money

I was on a support call with a customer in Australia for over forty-five minutes. Guess how much that cost me. If I told you less than a dollar, would you believe it? Well, it is true indeed.

I called my friend in England the other day. We talked for half an hour and it didn’t cost either of us a penny. Free and crystal clear, I used my computer. Nothing fancy, just a simple sound card, speakers and microphone is all I needed.

If you haven’t heard of Voice over IP yet, you definitely will soon. There are several different methods for the digital phone protocol craze that could change the way you make calls and save you a bundle.

What is VOIP?

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is the concept for managing the delivery of voice information in digital format over the Internet instead of conventional voice telephone lines. In its simplest form, VoIP turns any computer into a phone.

While there are complex and expensive ways to do this on a business level, there are also simple and nearly free ways to use VoIP on a personal level. All that is required is a broadband Internet connection of some sort. Now, I’m not here to endorse any organization that sells VoIP equipment or services, but to let you know that there are some that offer very good packages with equipment, Internet phones, headsets, and all the trappings of standard business phone systems. There are also software-based systems that work like everyday chat systems and only require computer speakers and a microphone.

Why would I want this?

One of the main advantages of VoIP and Internet telephony is that it avoids the tolls charged by ordinary telephone services that use the standard public switched telephone network. Of course Pac Bell and ATT don’t like the sounds of that, unless they figure out how to jump on the bandwagon and capitalize on this somewhat new form of technology.

Actually, VoIP has been around for a while, however now it is starting to pick up speed as an alternative means of communication. And the main reason is that it will save you money.

Another money-saving fact about VoIP is that since VoIP uses your broadband Internet connection for delivery, customers do not pay federal USF and FCC line charges and pay lower federal excise taxes.

WiFi and VoIP

Now we’re getting serious! Where does this go? Can it really compete with the cell phone? Well, right now wireless technology has some security risks and configuration difficulties to overcome before it becomes a major player in the game. But at the local, business level, we are not very far away.

What is the end result?

If you’re tired of high phone bills, maybe there’s a solution for you to help you budget this year. You don’t need to transform your entire phone system to use the benefits of VoIP. Start small and learn your potential.

A rule for the road:

Keep up with technology or technology will pass you by; and ignorance will cost you more than you will know.