Households pick up VoIP

BT has announced that one million people had registered to use its Broadband Talk and Softphone voice-over-IP (VoIP) services, as growing numbers of residential users and home workers switch on to the cost savings of making calls over the internet.

The figure comprises people who have signed up to the Broadband Talk service and obtained a dedicated VoIP number, said a BT spokesman. “All of those people have registered to use the VoIP service in addition to a broadband package, including some who don’t even have BT as their ISP,” he explained.

BT also said a significant proportion of its 500,000 Business Broadband customers are using VoIP, although the telco giant refused to divulge the exact figure.

Also, BT launched a Wi-Fi version of its Fusion fixed mobile convergence (FMC) package.

The new version lets users make calls over cellular networks, Wi-Fi hotspots or private wireless LANs in the home or office for a fixed monthly fee. Handsets are available from Nokia, Samsung and Motorola.

A new report from market research firm Vanson Bourne found that 54 percent of UK businesses are aware of FMC packages like BT Fusion. Ten percent are already using the technology and another seven percent plan to implement FMC in the next two years.

In the survey of 100 UK businesses, cost savings were cited as the most significant benefit of FMC.