VoIP News: September 2009

A new headset has been developed to help deaf people use VoIP hardware more effectively by offering compatibility with hearing aids. The CLA3 headset has been designed by manufacturer Geemarc Telecom using input from people who are deaf or hard of hearing and the product is intended to help nearly ten million consumers take advantage of VoIP solutions. Customers will be able to use the headset with their hearing aid to make the technology work for them and make cheap phone calls both locally and internationally.

Consumers heading overseas and looking to keep in contact with friends and family back home with cheap phone calls could opt for a VoIP solution. VoIP hardware uses the internet to transmit phone calls and can be free when communicating between two computers or cheaper than standard calls when using a mobile handset, reports the Telegraph. As the recession has made people much more cost-conscious, VoIP solutions can be an ideal way to communicate on a budget and can also be an effective strategy for businesses to reduce their running costs.

A broadband tax being proposed by the government would be intended to help fund the development of next-generation networks. The tax would be applied to anyone with a fixed home phone line, regardless of whether or not they have a broadband service, and would charge 50 pence a month in a bid to raise £175 million to be invested in faster networks throughout the UK. Faster broadband speeds could facilitate better use of technology such as VoIP hardware and the tax could be in place before the next general election.

The UK is a world leader in terms of the supply of broadband and the prevalence of IT skills in the economy, according to a global study from the Economist Intelligence Unit. Britain was praised for the level of government support on offer for the spread of broadband and for the standard of training available for IT professionals, as well as for the wider development of the IT industry. It did not fare so well on IT competitiveness, losing three places in the rankings since last year as a result of shortcomings in areas such as research and development.

More people are looking to save money by seeking bundled packages that include broadband, television and home phone services, new figures from Ofcom reveal. The telecommunications watchdog found there has been a year-on-year increase of more than ten per cent in the number of BSkyB customers buying bundled packages in the third quarter of this year, while the increase for Virgin Media customers stands at five per cent.