VoIP vs Telephone

The increasing popularity of mobile VoIP is certainly having an impact on telco revenue. According to an August 2012 study by research firm Analysys Mason, 20 percent of smartphone owners used a VoIP application at least once during a two-month observation period for the study. In fact, some smartphone users are beginning to use VoIP apps as their primary voice service. The study found that 4 percent of smartphone users spent more time using VoIP apps than they did making ‘traditional’ voice calls. Changing expectations among consumers and businesses are also eating away at telcos’ profits. It’s worth bearing in mind that there are still a billion people in the world who have never made a telephone call so telephony is still growing. I don’t think we’ll see the death of the telephone but I think telephony will take a reduced role in overall communication. What are your thoughts about the direction that the telephone companies are going?