VoIP forces mobile firms into action

VoIP could spell the end of the battle between mobile phone companies to outdo one another in terms of free minutes and texts by making unmetered, flat-rate charging a possibility.

Mobile phone operators are steeling themselves for such a prospect by introducing their own unlimited deals in an effort to lock in their customers before VoIP goes mainstream.

Network operator Orange has this month released its own unlimited tariff deal, previously only available through its own dealers, via independent retailers.

Vodafone is allowing unlimited calls between limited groups of people on its Vodafone Family service, while the other networks are offering bigger and better un-metered internet deals.

If current trends continue in this direction, conventional mobile telephony could soon be a thing of the past, as wi-fi VoIP technology makes its presence felt more and more.

That is all good news for customers, who are getting the financial benefits of VoIP early.

The question is; will they hang around with their current providers when the technological benefits become available too?