Local Gateways Make it Cheaper for VoIP Users

Not all calls are created equal. While calling might seem the same—you dial a number, it connects you with the person being called—the implementations vary.

This is especially the case with VoIP; the difference in technology is not just between traditional TDM calling we were raised on and the newer, IP-based VoIP method of calling. There’s also different ways that VoIP can place the call.

The big difference between VoIP providers in terms of connections is whether they travel entirely through the Internet or use a local gateway.

With VoIP calls that are entirely conducted through the Internet, calling goes through a phone’s data connection. With the use of a local gateway, the majority of the call happens over the Internet but the call then comes back on the telephone network at the last mile so the phone uses call time, not data time.

For an IP-based office phone, this is not a big issue. But for mobile users, this difference can have a dramatic impact.

That’s because services such as Facetime, Google Hangouts, Skype and Viber typically rely on the data side of the user’s cellular package. These data packages typically have caps, whether it is 1 GB or 5 GB. Even with compression, this data usage can be an issue for users who are not placing calls while connecting via Wi-Fi. In fact, Skype used to only allow its service to work on smartphones when the phones were on Wi-Fi—probably because it knew the fallout from burning through all its user’s cell data would create antagonism for the company.

When a local gateway is used, however, callers get the best of both worlds.

On the one hand, they get the cost savings of having their calls go over the IP network. This means reduced or free callings because the actual calls are cheaper for the provider.

On the other hand, users who use a VoIP service that takes advantage of local gateways are able to make their calls with cellular talk time, not the data portion of their plan. Since many cellular plans have unlimited or shared pools of calling minutes, this makes a VoIP solution that uses a local gateway much cheaper for users. It uses a cell resource that is much more plentiful.

The advantage of a local gateway could change in the future as shared data pools become more common on cell phone packages, or if data allowances increase as 4G LTE technology makes bandwidth more plentiful.

At least currently, however, for most users there’s a definite advantage to using a VoIP provider that takes advantage of local gateways.

Edited by Alisen Downey