UK VoIP industry expanding

According to the Internet Telephony Services Providers Association (ITSPA), the VoIP communications industry is growing strongly in the UK, but the country remains behind most other European countries on the take-up of the software.

The comment follows statistics released by Ofcom, which show around one million VoIP users in the UK, with figures continuously growing.

Ofcom also found that more people are becoming aware of the technology - 60% of UK adults now know about VoIP.

However, according to ITSPA, while other European countries have around 30% penetration, in terms of all subscribers utilising VoIP services, in the UK this is still at the lower end of single digits.

ITSPA also suggests that IP communications, including VoIP, Internet chat, and video, are challenging traditional telephony systems.

This is backed up by and Ofcom survey in which 20% of respondents were making calls over the Internet compared with just 14% in 2005.

While IP communications are particularly popular with large and medium sized enterprises, ITSPA expects uptake to increase rapidly among SMEs.

Industry body ITSPA represents VoiP network operators and service providers.