VoIP 'could still change telecoms'

Speculation that VoIP is not the game-changing technology that it was hailed to be is premature, according to one expert.

Victor Keegan, a writer for the Guardian, explained that some pundits have claimed that VoIP is dying out as a medium - "strangled by regulation and the determination of telcos to resist a highly disruptive technology".

However, he believes that VoIP still has the potential to be "disruptive" and change the face of the market, mainly because of the potential for free phone calls it offers.

He listed a number of reasons as to why VoIP could still redefine telecoms.

"First, disruptive technologies take time to displace existing ones," he said.

"Second, the prospect of a prolonged recession will make people think of cheaper ways of phoning, particularly abroad."

VoIP has been moving increasingly into the mainstream, with industry watchdog Ofcom ruling last year that all VoIP providers must allow their users to make 999 emergency calls.