Mobile VoIP set to jump in business popularity

Employees are already used to being able to access company files, email and intranet systems when away from the office, but mobile VoIP will soon approach the same usage level, it has been suggested.

Research by web analyst firm mFormation found that 90 per cent of companies allow mobile access for workers to systems including company email, while just 27 per cent of firms currently use mobile VoIP.

However, large-scale uptake of the internet voice communications system was predicted by mFormation, with a leap to 70 per cent of companies using the service by 2009.

Other results of the research group's study found that 81 per cent of companies which implement mobile working improvements reported seeing a boost to productivity, with over a quarter of firms saying they had seen work-rates increase by more than 20 per cent.

Businesses using mobile VoIP systems require just as secure a system as their work data server and so small businesses are advised to use hosted private branch exchanges to protect their business, rather than risk making use of internet-based applications aimed at casual users.