London, England, June, 16, 2006—JupiterResearch reveals that voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) technology will lead to the end of the traditional home telephone number as new fixed-mobile telephone services appeal strongly to Europeans.
Two new JupiterResearch reports entitled, "Independent Internet Telephony--Build Consumer VoIP Propositions on Services, Not Just on Price," and "The Instant Messaging Presence Platform," explain how location will cease to be important for either making or receiving telephone calls. The reports highlight that 27 percent of consumers are already interested in regularly using their mobile phone in place of their home telephone.
"VOIP will convert the home telephone from analogue to digital, and once digital, the home telephone number will become unfixed. It will no longer only be available just at home, but also in the office, in Internet cafes, and even on mobile phones," said Ian Fogg, lead author on the reports and senior analyst at JupiterResearch. "VoIP telephony is attractive to consumers because services are digital, cheap, and flexible."
As numerous telephony providers launch new VoIP services, consumers will be able to take their home telephone number with them wherever they go and make calls, or listen to messages. Today, PC-based VoIP telephony already appeals to 17 percent of consumers in Europe. In addition, 21 percent of consumers are interested in diverting their home telephone to a mobile phone to answer calls while away from home, highlighting consumers' desire to use their home telephone number outside the home.
"Broadband Internet access is powering this transformation of the home telephone. But broadband threatens to become a Trojan horse as it enables mobile operators and Internet competitors--like Skype, Tesco, Vonage, and Microsoft--to compete with traditional telephone companies and Internet Service Providers. Both mobile operators and Internet VoIP competitors must lobby to ensure that their VoIP services operate unimpeded across other ISPs' connections. Or, they must be prepared to invest in fixed broadband, to ensure security of network supply for their VoIP services," advised Ian Fogg.
