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VoIP technology embraced by SMEs

Published On 29 March 2007 at 08:55:49

The number of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) which use Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) to make business calls will double in the next year.

That is the conclusion of a new report from BT Business. In its research, the telecommunication firm found that 25 per cent of SMEs currently use the technology, but 48 per cent expect to within the next 12 months.

Smaller companies are most likely to embrace the new technology, with 57 per cent of companies with two to ten members of staff saying they plan to switch to VoIP.

Most businesses cited VoIP's low costs and convenience as the reason they planned to use the technology.

"There has been a huge increase in the use of VoIP by the UK's smaller businesses and that looks set to continue," said Bill Murphy, managing director of BT Business.

"However, there is a large proportion of the community, particularly medium-sized businesses, who could still benefit from understanding more about VoIP and using it to the best advantage of their business."

Welsh SMEs are the least likely to have already switched to VoIP, the report revealed. Only five per cent said they currently used the technology and just seven per cent expected to switch in the coming year.

A recent survey suggests that 80 per cent of the managers of telecommunication firms expect VoIP to be a bigger revenue generator than traditional fixed-line systems in the near future.

 

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