VoIP Myths vs. Facts
Prose and Cons. Base Your Decisions on Fact.
Truth or Myth?
- VoIP isn't widely used.
- You'll have to dump your current PBX and all your phones to get the benefits of VoIP.
- The cost benefits only apply when calling between a service provider's VoIP phones or two similar VoIP systems.
- The sound quality on an IP connection stinks.
- VoIP service is unreliable. The network or electric power can go down at any time and leave my business without phones.
- VoIP is not secure. Making it secure will have a negative impact on service.
- More...
If you've heard of VoIP, you’ve no doubt heard the exuberant claims. "It will inevitably replace the current telephone network." "It will revolutionize business as we know it." "You can call anywhere in the world for free."
Not all the claims are positive. "VoIP calls are not secure." "The quality of service is below that of the public network." "Installing VoIP will wreck your LAN."
What's hype and what's unvarnished gospel? Do the praises they're singing ring true or false? What are the genuine risks?
There are a lot of independent resources that have analyzed the topic. Search the Internet with the keywords "VoIP" and "Myths" and you'll find a dozen articles. Or, you can get the condensed version from those we've compiled below.
Fact: Although traditional phone systems are still the norm, VoIP will be the standard sooner than later.
- In 2005, orders for IP PBX lines surpassed those for traditional TDM PBXs. (In-Stat).
- By 2008, fifty percent of small to medium-sized businesses in the US will be using VoIP. (Info-Tech Research).
- Simultaneously, the UK will reach a similar level of penetration. (McKinsey Research).
- More than 95% of major global companies will have begun a program of IP-based voice/data convergence by 2010 (The Gartner Company).
Conclusion: Your customers, your vendors and your competitors will take advantage of the increased functionality and cost savings of VoIP telephony. When business broadly adopts these practices, expectation for performance in responsiveness and versatility will increase. Remember how Fed-X and faxes changed people’s perception of speedy service? Count on increased expectations in your business.
Myth: You'll have to dump your current telephone system and all your phones to get the benefits of VoIP.
Fact: Manufacturers have developed a variety of products that provide a gentle migration path from legacy PBX to IP voice (see Epygi Gateways).
Need to amortize a previous investment or take a lease to term? Your business can use the old familiar PBX and desk sets until they fall apart (the phones, not the employees) and still take advantage of the cost savings created by sending some voice traffic over the Internet. The smartest applications can even route calls along the least expensive paths. (See Epygi Quadro E1T1 Gateway)
Conclusion: Protect your investment. Reduce your risk. You can keep your old phones and upgrade as IP voice applications proliferate.
Myth: The cost benefits only apply when calling between a service provider's VoIP phones or two similar VoIP systems.
Fact: Calling other VoIP phones on a service plan is free with many providers. And you can call any phone and save versus traditional long distance charges.
Your IP phone does not prohibit you from calling devices of any other type: landline, mobile phone or satellite. Internet service providers offer myriad plans that include everything from flat monthly charges for unlimited calls to a schedule of charges for international calls to metered calls by the minute and even prepaid privileges. With your own network comprised of an IP PBX, gateways and phones (see Epygi), you have an almost unlimited choice of compatible services.
Conclusion: You can call any phone anywhere in the world. It's the same as with your old phone technology, only a lot less expensive.
Myth: The sound quality on an IP connection stinks.
Fact: Depending on the codec or compression program for voice converted to data on your system, sound quality can be significantly better than that of traditional telephony.
Where traditional analog telephones transmitted sound as electrical waves, VoIP samples your voice hundreds of times per second and transmits the information digitally. It's possible with the right decompression and sound reproduction equipment to approach the sound available on MP3 or CD players.
The voice quality you get through a quality digital signal processor (DSP, see Epygi Quadro IP PBX) is almost always better than that of conventional long distance calls.
Conclusion: Using the proper equipment can greatly increase your satisfaction with voice quality while giving you features that your old phone lines never had.
Myth: VoIP service is unreliable. The network or electric power can go down at any time and leave my business without phones.
Fact: With a DSL or cable connection, traffic congestion can still cause service hiccups at this stage in the technology's development. Power outages do occur. Maintaining a traditional line or lines for emergencies is still a good practice.
A properly engineered network and quality service providers can enhance call quality, prioritize voice traffic and prevent problems. Still, it doesn't hurt to have the benefits of converged voice and data while keeping one foot in the past. No matter what ISP you choose, any telephone system you adopt should include provisions for a "lifeline" to the public switched (and line powered) network (see Epygi Quadro IP PBX).
Consider, too, that if your business is spread over multiple locations, survivability can be better supported today by IP telephony than by traditional PBXs. If you have two locations supporting communications and B fails, B is simply cut off. Under VoIP, B can remain running since it can reconnect via location A.
Conclusion: Stuff happens. You can enhance your business communications and avoid needless risk with emergency lifelines to the plain old telephone service.
Myth: VoIP is not secure. Making it secure will have a negative impact on service.
Fact: As with any data application, security policies, firewalls and encryption greatly reduce the risk of hacks or intrusion.
A secure communications network is critical for any business of any size. Your transition to IP voice must include protection from cyber-thugs looking to eavesdrop. The best IP PBX systems and associated routing devices (see all Epygi products) have built-in security features including a firewall and Virtual Private Networking.
Conclusion: A hacker that can access your data stream can decode the voice protocol and even make calls using your lines. The good news is that whatever is deployed for data security also is applicable to voice packets. Taking proper precautions and the right hardware can make your VoIP network as secure as any other form of telephony without sacrificing valuable features.
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