Rise of VoIP

Shipments of VoIP (Voice-over IP or Internet calling) PBX phones in the US are expected to grow at a compounded rate of more than 20% over the next five years, according to a new report from Insight Research. However, VoIP phones in the enterprise will not represent the majority of the installed PBX base until 2009.

PBXs are the phone systems used by large companies to route calls to individual offices. The older TDM-based phone technology is expected to decline at roughly the same rate but will continue to dominate the installed base until the end of the decade. The study, 'IP PBX and IP Centrex: Growth of VoIP in the Enterprise 2004-2009', says that around $4.3 billion worth of PBX equipment will be shipped this year.

One sign of VoIP's becoming the mainstream was the fact that during 2003 traditional PBX vendors like Nortel Networks and Avaya began shipping more of the newer IP PBX phones than rivals Cisco and 3Com.

Bob Rosenberg, President of Insight Research, says that the cost of going VoIP is still a factor inhibiting growth: 'the price of newer IP phones will continue to be about 25% higher than the TDM alternative, even as volume shipment of VoIP phones takes off. VoIP never was and never will be the least expensive way to deliver voice to the enterprise - but the allure of VoIP's rich applications (like video telephony) will slowly convert enterprise legacy customers'.

More information including a free report excerpt is available at www.insight-corp.com/reports/pbxcentrex.asp

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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