VoIP and broadband go hand in hand

VoIP phones play a part in fuelling the clamour for broadband access, and access to broadband makes it possible to use VoIP phones, Allied Fiber has said.

The long-haul dark fibre provider Allied Fiber describes VoIP solutions and broadband as bring "inextricably connected," with one feeding off the other.

Hunter Newby, CEO at Allied Fiber, writing in VoIP magazine INTERNET TELEPHONY, said that it is "no big mystery" that VoIP adoption is higher in countries with more broadband subscribers.

However, Mr Newby goes on to ask whether an internet connection can accurately be described as broadband if it is unable to run a full VoIP application.

He suggests that only fibre optic networks can be "truly considered" broadband and that such networks are needed to properly use VoIP as they supply "a much faster end-user service".

Mr Newby also urges increased investment in fibre optic networks as this would bring VoIP "to the masses" and boost adoption substantially because "fibre brings the broadband that carries the VoIP".

Google last week unveiled plans to develop and experiment with its own fibre networks, in part to observe its effect on next-generation applications, such as high-definition IP telephony solutions.