British businesses plan VoIP roll-out

VoIP has been growing in popularity among small British businesses and some 70 per cent of these firms are planning to make use of the call system by 2009, according to a survey.

Currently, under a third of small firms are getting the benefits of VoIP, such as mobile or remote working and reduced call costs.

However, a recent study by Coleman Parkes suggests more than a third of these businesses will make the switch in the next two years.

This makes up part of a general trend among businesses towards greater mobile functionality, with more firms making use of sales force applications or sharing company files on their mobile devices, according to the research commissioned by Mformation Technologies.

"Mobile devices are becoming even more 'smart' with the capability to do anything from using VoIP, to business applications such as calendars and push email," said Matt Bancroft, chief marketing officer for Mformation.

The study found around two thirds of small firm bosses use mobile devices, with more than half of companies expecting that figure to increase.

But the research also showed that bosses feel their company could still benefit from improved productivity if they made better use of their mobile devices.