VoIP Services Set For a Huge Jump in Popularity

Gains and losses in popularity are really nothing new for most any communications service; there's often a certain degree of fluctuation as some discover a service and others discover different services. But voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service is set for a fairly major upward jump, according to new reports, as VoIP service popularity will nearly double in fairly short order.

The report in question, released from Transparency Market Research, notes that the market for VoIP services is set to grow 10 percent annually until 2021, a development which will nearly double its effective size from 2013 levels. In 2013, the market weighed in at an already-hefty $70.9 billion, but by 2021, the market would reach nearly double at $136.76 billion, and its total subscriber base would reach about 348.5 million users.

This news has already prompted some movement in the sector as firms look to get hands on a slice of that newly-expanded market. TDS Telecommunications Corp., for example, has recently upped the availability for managedIP, its primary business VoIP solution, but it didn't stop there. It's also set to offer a price break for those who buy Polycom VVX500 phones through the company; buying one for use with managedIP allows the buyer to get a second phone for one cent. There are plenty of advantages included with managedIP as well, including an online Web portal, a simultaneous ring system, and a remote office teleworker option.

A market that's poised to double in size is one thing, but to conduct that doubling over the course of less than 10 years says a lot about that market in general. We all likely knew, if only on an anecdotal level, that the VoIP market was a big deal. Some even figure it might be the means to turn mobile service into a data-only prospect thanks to VoIP's close cousin voice over LTE (VoLTE) service. But it's the enormous array of things that VoIP can do that's likely driving a lot of its popularity.

VoIP, when used properly, can reduce the need for business travel, save impressive sums on long distance and international calling, can readily connect members of the mobile workforce, and can even allow customers a quick way to get in touch with businesses. A tool capable of doing all these things at the same time is a tool that's hard to pass up, and that likely goes a long way toward explaining Transparency Market Research's projections of huge gains in the sector. Admittedly, word recently did emerge to say that the enterprise telephony market was set for a drop fairly soon, but the cause of the drop was attributed in part to the rise of cloud-based technologies, which might well be seen to include VoIP systems. This serves as a bit of corroboration to Transparency's research.

So while Transparency's projections may not pan out when 2021 arrives, we'll still likely see a VoIP market that has greatly increased in the interim. There are just too many uses for VoIP for there not to be some clear interest, and thus some clear plans to buy.

Edited by Maurice Nagle