Close to 1200 companies are now providing Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service in the US and Canada. Despite this figure more and more cable companies, DSL operators, and telecom majors are moving to this technology, most likely because they realize that VoIP is the future of telephony. They also likely realize that the market is still wide open, making now the best time to capture it.
The success of VoIP services can be boiled down to two factors. Cost is the first factor. Unlike conventional telecom companies, VoIP companies do not need to invest in expensive infrastructures because the Internet serves this function already. This means they can start and run a phone service at a tiny fraction of the cost of a conventional telecom company–a savings that can be passed on to the consumer.
This allows VoIP companies to make a profit while charging rates that are comparatively very low. In fact, some VoIP companies offer call plans starting as low as $9 a month. Furthermore, most of VoIP companies offer unlimited calling across the US and Canada. The end result is a phone bill half that which the average phone subscriber is likely to pay for conventional...