Companies enjoy cheaper calls with VoIP

As the economy continues to slow, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is proving popular as a way for businesses to save money, a leading expert claim.

According to a report on TTGLive, the cost of installing a VoIP telephony network compared to a legacy system is now significantly more attractive.

Peter Healey, chief executive of the Vertical Group, told the website that VoIP effectively works by "chopping" voice into packets and transferring these "chunks" over a data network.

"Say you've got five staff. With VoIP you only need one broadband connection; all five telephones can be routed from there," he explained.

"With a traditional system, you'd need to pay for a line each at a cost of maybe £14 per line, per month. These costs obviously grow the bigger the agency gets."

Meanwhile, technology expert Brendan Read recently said on TMCnet that VoIP is "perhaps one of the most important, game-changing technologies on the market".