VoIP subscription growth "continues to soar"

The number of residential voice over internet protocol (VoIP) subscribers in western Europe reached 21.7 million by the middle of 2007, a rise of 6.1 million in six months, according to reports.

Channel News says that the new survey by industry analyst TeleGeography estimated that around 28.9 million people would have signed up to VoIP services by the end of last year.

However, VoIP adoption rates were found to vary widely between nations. In France, 34 per cent of all households now subscribe to a VoIP service, compared to 11 per cent in neighbouring Germany.

France Telecom is the biggest supplier of consumer VoIP in Europe, the report says, although the market is highly diverse and fragmented, with a wide range of providers and business models.

According to the UK's communications regulator Ofcom, 20 per cent of Britons were using VoIP at the end of 2006, up six per cent from the year before.

Overall, around 60 per cent of UK adults are aware of VoIP services in the country.