TMCnews Featured Article
April 10, 2012
VoIP Management Key to Communications Success
By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor
While the arrival of voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) in the telecommunications industry might not seem like it was that long ago, it has become an important aspect of every telecommunications provider’s infrastructure.As VoIP has grown to become the standard, VoIP management has become an important tool in keeping the platform running smoothly, according to this IT Business Edge blog.
VoIP management assists companies in getting all they can out of their IP telephony platforms. And, VoIP management also assists in troubleshooting problems that occur in the network. As the convergence of data networks and voice networks bring new challenges to the forefront, VoIP management is the method telecommunications managers are choosing to find solutions.
The introduction of VoIP brought with it new security concerns that weren’t an issue with legacy systems. VoIP management is instrumental in easing these concerns.
Effective VoIP management includes testing of the equipment, and call quality, which is an ongoing VoIP management procedure. Call accounting gives detailed records that can help with internal billing. Service assurance in VoIP management offers a proactive assessment of IP telephony services, such as dial tone services and call success rates.
VoIP management also includes configuration management, which helps keep the network from experiencing outages. With the VoIP compound annual growth rate expected to stay at around 16.5 percent through 2015, VoIP is looking strong; it’s likely that VoIP management platforms will continue to be a priority. The only distraction from this growth could be in the challenges that come with the transition from traditional VoIP to IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) platforms.
According to a report from Infonetics Research (News - Alert), the VoIP and IMS equipment market had a good final quarter in 2011 jumping nearly 16 percent over the third quarter to $690 million, which totaled $2.6 billion for the year. Large providers like AT&T, China Telecom, China Unicom (News 
- Alert), Deutsche Telekom and NTT were taking on VoIP and IMS equipment projects. Infonetics predicts that the number of IMS subscribers will grow from 177 million last year to 610 million in three years.
Many cable companies in the U.S. are offering bundled VoIP services, such as cable television, phone service, and Internet service together with one price. This model has been a good seller, but threats loom in the distance. One of the threats comes in the form of OTT IP video. Discount voice communications are also cropping up, and more people are using free services such as Skype (News - Alert) to communicate.
These factors could one day limit the further growth of VoIP, challenging providers to explore their assets and market value to identify new opportunities for the next generation.
Edited by Juliana Kenny
Internet Telephony Magazine
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