Business VoIP handsets are often praised as offering so much more than a conventional telephone handset; and IP telephony for being so much more than simply an alternative to ISDN. Now, a recent study has revealed that in Japan, at least, there is an increasing recognition and a growing use of the many added value features of both VoIP (voice over internet protocol) handsets and IP (internet protocol) telephony.
According to the study, carried out by research organisation IDC, the percentage of Japanese users who, for example, organised video conferencing, voice conferencing or internet conferencing via IP telephony increased year on year in 2009-10 from 19.2% to 27.8%.
The study also found a significant increase in the use of added value features such as presence notification on VoIP handsets (presence notification allows other users to see whether or not a person is at their desk). VoIP handsets are also favoured, of course, for added touches such as built-in phone directories.
IDC emphasises that this increased exploitation of the features of IP telephony and VoIP, has occurred in spite of overall investment levels in the technology not having significantly increased over the same timescale.
Interestingly, although most companies are well aware that calls made via VoIP avoid the comparatively expensive tariffs charged by traditional telephone companies, the findings of the IDC report reflect an increasing attitude elsewhere by businesses that favours the administrative capabilities of VoIP and IP telephony as much as, if not more than, their money-saving attributes.
These administrative and management capabilities of VoIP and IP telephony also include being able to add additional lines or extra extensions without the need for complex rewiring; and, if using the services of a remote host business VoIP provider or a wholesale VoIP provider, enabling easy up-scaling or down-scaling of internal business phone systems.
