Gaining Flexibility with VoIP

VoIP is not  just  about making  and  receiving telephone calls; it’s about a whole  new way of communicating. Sure, it includes telephone calls,  but there is so much more  to the  VoIP telephony picture. VoIP integrates most if not  all other forms of communication. You can even  run videoconferencing to your  desktop.

With VoIP, your  company enjoys increased productivity and  customer satis-  faction. These improvements are typically realized through the flexibility  offered  by enhanced calling  features. A few calling  features, such as voice  mail and  call transfer, have  been around in the  POTS world for quite some time.  On the  other hand, integrating data, voice, and  video  applications to run over  a single  network and  work with wireless phones are more  recent innovations made possible by IP telephony.

Following  are some enhanced calling  features made possible by IP telephony:

  Vemail: Before IP telephony and  VoIP, you accessed voice  mail through a telephone and  accessed e-mail through a computer. With VoIP, you can read your  voice  mail on your  computer screen and listen to your  e-mail through an IP-enabled telephone. The new term for this  converged fea- ture  is vemail (pronounced  “v-e-mail”).

  Web surfing: Because VoIP operates with the  same set  of IP rules and protocols that support Web-based applications, it is possible to access the  Web with an IP-enabled telephone. If you have  an IP telephone with a large enough screen, it can display Web pages or a list of your  favorite Web links. For instance, you could use your phone to view your  stock exchange trading status or the  current weather forecast.



In an IP telephony world, these calling  features (and many  more) are avail- able  with no monthly recurring charges. VoIP, with all of its many  benefits, is quickly  replacing traditional POTS-based technologies. VoIP is even becoming a superior replacement for many  former computer-only applications.

One of the  big stories with VoIP is the  many  new and  exciting features that increase your  ability to be agile and  mobile. You no longer have  to say “I’ve got to get to a phone!”  VoIP can be on your  desk,  computer, mobile phone, or PDA. It can be hardwired or have  no wires  at all. This flexibility  is astounding to those familiar  with traditional telephony.

If you have  a mobile user base, be sure  to check out  IP soft phones. A soft phone  is software that works  on a laptop computer or pocket PC and pro- vides  most of the  functionality of a traditional desk  phone. If a user can con- nect to a network, the  soft phone provides a way to reap the benefits of IP telephony regardless of location.