VoIP Technology

Initially, Private Branch Exchanges (PBXs) and key systems were designed to reduce the amount of human intervention needed to make and receive phone calls. They also kept the number of required cords to a minimum. But as data transmission technologies expanded, many PBX makers began to integrate VoIP Technology to help their users save money. If your PBX isn’t VoIP Technology -enabled, not to worry—you can enable it yourself. By connecting an IP gateway between your PBX and your intranet, calls will be routed through your data line and will circumvent long-distance carriers. That is one of the beauties of VoIP Technology.

PBX manufacturers aren’t the only people dodging traditional phone lines. Long-distance carriers themselves—though careful not to abandon their lucrative circuit-switching business—have been using VoIP Technology behind the scenes for years. Though you probably haven’t realized it, a lot of your calls, especially international ones, are currently directed through data lines.

So how good is VoIP Technology? Businesses with extensive overseas contacts or high call volumes will benefit the most from VoIP Technology. But many international companies and call centers have been reluctant to dive in because of significant previous investments in circuit-switched platforms. And then there’s the issue of transmission quality…

During periods of high network congestion and limited bandwidth, digital packets are often dropped, making for poor call quality and lost connections. But if you’re using VoIP Technology over internal data lines (such as your intranet), bandwidth is more predictable and you should experience less data loss. Intranet users can also use more sophisticated VoIP Technology programs that support full-duplex, real-time voice communications.

Another reasonable complaint of VoIP Technology is that when fully adopted, what happens when your network goes down? No computer. No phone. Unfortunately, this is a hazard you have to live with for now.

But then there are the undeniable advantages. Given that VoIP Technology circumvents long-distance tolls, calls will typically cost from a few pennies per minute to nothing at all. Aside from this cost savings, the dream is to have the ability to collaborate with multiple people on projects without worrying about the different applications required. You won’t have to call each other on the phone and e-mail each other revisions back and forth; you’ll simply sit down at your workstation and collaborate on projects as if co-workers and clients are seated directly in front of you.

The future of VoIP Technology: Overall, quality of service problems will improve as faster transmission systems become available. Microsoft has recently included VoIP Technology software in their Windows XP and promises to make net-based calling as good as regular phone services. The software giant’s presence alone should improve the VoIP Technology market considerably. But even if their bold promise isn’t fully realized in the near future, intranet users can still experience distinct advantages from VoIP Technology now.