VoIP Users To Exceed 4 Million
The number of consumers using Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) to make phone calls will exceed 4 million over the next 12 months, according to Continental Research’s Autumn 2006 Internet Report.
In order to understand more about which companies appeal as a VoIP provider, Continental Research asked: “If you were to get/or get a new VoIP (making Internet phone calls) service, how comfortable would you be in using the following companies as a VoIP supplier?”
| Attitudes to potential VoIP suppliers | ||
| Mean score out of 10: 1 = not at all comfortable, 10 very comfortable | ||
| All Internet users | VoIP users | |
| BT | 6.4 | 6.4 |
| O2 | 5.4 | 5.7 |
| Sky | 5.3 | 5.3 |
| Vodafone | 5.3 | 6 |
| Orange | 5.2 | 5.6 |
| MSN | 5 | 6.2 |
| Virgin | 4.9 | 5.3 |
| Skype | 4.7 | 7.4 |
| Carphone Warehouse | 4.2 | 4.7 |
| Wanadoo | 4.1 | 4.4 |
| Nortel | 3.5 | 4 |
| Vonage | 3.4 | 4.1 |
| Base: online survey: Internet users (1268), VoIP users (208) | ||
James Myring at Continental Research said: “The comfort of a familiar name is more than apparent. Internet users rate traditional companies such as BT, O2 & Sky more highly as a potential VoIP supplier than Skype.
“Fortunately for Skype, amongst VoIP users it does rate well, and being first in the market place coupled with the power of word of mouth will help enormously to raise its profile.”
Continental adds that there is considerable interest in VoIP from non-users, saying that in addition to the 1.7 million current VoIP users, a further 2.9 million internet users will try VoIP in the next 12 months.
Therefore in the next 12 months the number of internet users using VoIP should exceed 4 million.
Myring added: “Clearly many consumers would like to try VoIP. However the relatively slow growth thus far suggests that the technology needs to become more ‘consumer friendly’ so that experimentation with VoIP does not require a high level of proficiency with IT.
“Encouragingly the majority of users expect to increase the amount they use VoIP in the next 12 months. Current users’ increased calling behaviour is likely to account for a large part of VoIP call volume growth in the next 12 months.”
Recent research from Point Topic said that global subscriber numbers to retail VoIP services rose by 83% during 2005, from 10.3 million at the beginning of the year to over 18.7 million subscribers by the end (see VoIP Subscriber Numbers Rose By 83% In 2005).
In July, Infonetics Research said that Europe will see VoIP revenue grow from $2.3 billion in 2005 to $12.7 billion in 2009 (see European VoIP Service Revenue To Reach $12.7 Billion In 2009).