VoIP graduates to Cambridge

Decision-makers at one of the world's leading educational institutions, Cambridge University, have shown their smarts by opting for VoIP telephony services.

In a multi-million pound deal, some 20,000 VoIP handsets will be issued to students so they can collaborate more easily using free calls, instant messaging, voice emails and streaming video.

And it is not only the central Cambridge campus which is to benefit from the scheme, as some 200 sites around the UK are to be connected to the same system over the 18-month long rollout.

Commenting on the project, the university's director of computing services, Ian Lewis, said: "As one of the world's leading universities, Cambridge is keen to attract and retain the very best students and researchers.

"Part of that involves providing thoroughly modern facilities that reflect our forward-looking relationship with technology."

For once, Cambridge university is not a pioneer, as its decision to sign up to VoIP follows in the footsteps of other British institutions including the universities of Northumbria, Dundee and Edinburgh.