A new study has found the number of households and businesses choosing voice over internet protocol (VoIP) technology in the US is shadowing European adoption trends and is expected to rise in 2008, according to reports.

The study by IBISWorld ranks VoIP as the number one industry expected to do well in 2008, forecasting annual growth of 24.3 per cent for the sector.

Much of this growth will be driven by rising subscriptions, with 16.6 million people expected to sign up to a VoIP service this year. This represents a 21.2 per cent rise in subscribers from 2007.

The number of businesses choosing VoIP technology for their telephony will also rise - by 44.5 per cent to 2,190 establishments nationwide.

IBISWorld senior analyst George von Horn said by 2012, revenue from the VoIP market is expected to grow 90.2 per cent to top $4.88 billion (£2.46 billion).

A recent article by TMCnet said Europe, the Middle East and Africa have the highest levels of VoIP flow, accounting for 42.5 per cent of worldwide traffic.