Voice communication will certainly remain a basic from of interaction for all of us. The public switched telephone network simply cannot be replaced, or even dramatically changed, in the short term (this may not apply to provide voice networks, however). The immediate goal for voice over internet protocol service providers is to reproduce existing telephone capabilities at a significantly lower “total cost of operation “and to offer a technically competitive alternative to the public switched telephone network.
It is the combination of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) with point-of-service applications that shows great promise for the longer term. The first measure of success for voice over internet protocol will be cost saving for long distance calls as long as there are no additional constraints imposed on the end user. For example, callers should not be required to use a microphone on a pc. voice over internet protocol provides a competitive threat to the providers of traditional telephone service that, at the very least, will stimulate improvements in cost and function throughout the industry implemented using an internet protocol network. This design would also apply if other types of packet networks (such as frame relay) were being used.
Some example of voice over internet protocol (VoIP) applications that are likely to be useful would be:
- Public switched telephone network gateways: Interconnection of the Internet to the public switched telephone network can be accomplished using a gateway, either integrated into or provided as a separate device. A PC-based telephone, for example, would have access to the public network by calling a gateway at a point close to the destination (thereby minimizing long distance charges).
- Internet-aware telephones: Ordinary telephones (wired or wireless ) can be enhanced to serve as an Internet access device as well as providing normal telephony. Directory services, for example, could be accessed over the Internet by submitting a name and receiving a voice.
- Internet-office trunking over the corporate intranet: Replacement of tie trunks between company-owned using an private branch exchange Intranet link would provide economies of scale and help to consolidate network facilities.
- Remote access from a branch (or home) office: A small office (or a home office) could gain access to corporate voice, data, and facsimile services using company’s Intranet (emulating a remote extension for a private branch exchange, for example). This may be useful for home-based agents working in a call center.
- Voice calls from a mobile PC via the Internet: One example would be using the Internet to call from a hotel instead of using expensive hotel telephones. This could be ideal for submitting or retrieving voice messages.
- Internet call center access: Access to call center facilities via the Internet is emerging as a valuable enable adjunct to electronic commerce applications. Internet call center access would enable a customer who has questions about a product being offered over the Internet to access customer service agents online. Another voice over internet protocol application for call centers is the interconnection of multiple call centers.