The VOIP game is ready to begin

Johannesburg, 16 Nov 2004

Industry players are upbeat about the possibilities for voice over IP (VOIP) to change the way companies do business, but some feel it is still an immature technology.

"There is a lot of expectation surrounding the issue of VOIP since the deregulation announcements, and on 1 February 2005 a new game will begin," UUNet SA`s regulatory and operations executive Edwin Thompson told delegates at ITWeb`s 'VOIP: The Way Forward` conference, held today at The Campus in Bryanston.

Thompson says the reason the industry is so excited about VOIP is that it is allowing for the amalgamation of the previously separate worlds of voice and data, it will improve business efficiencies, provide freedom of choice and give companies the ability to manage a single overall IT strategy.

"I believe the [communications] minister`s key objectives are to minimise the disparity between rural and urban communities, increase the accessibility of technology and allow for the growth of small business operations," he says.

"There are many challenges that have to be overcome, but the benefits to be had from doing so will make it all worthwhile."

He points out that among the challenges is the issue of interconnection, as well as those of combining new technologies with existing infrastructures and the adoption of new business models, which will have to occur as data providers begin to operate voice systems.

"The benefits, however, include serious issues like bridging the digital divide, creating new investment opportunities - such as those in the contact centre arena - and increasing people`s skills in order to operate in the new environment.

"Other benefits are improved operational efficiencies for organisations and a whole new approach to building a network, since you no longer need separate networks for data and voice," says Thompson.

Improved productivity

Mitel MD Andy Bull agrees that VOIP and IP telephony will not only be good for the industry, but will help us to change the way people work.

"Today there is a need for increased responsiveness in terms of real-time communications, as many business people today have to make decisions on the fly, while there is also a need for greater proximity to clients and partners," he says.

"VOIP can help to extend working hours and make them more flexible, allowing workers to operate from home if needs be, and it will also allow for opportunistic communication, so there will no longer be a need to set up formal meetings, these can instead be done through video or voice link-ups."

He says the aim at the end of the day is to improve productivity and speed up the time it takes to make decisions.

"The real question is how does SA get there? I believe we will have to adopt an evolutionary approach, as companies are unlikely to simply rip out their old communication system and replace it.

"Businesses will want to grow their systems as they can afford to do so, and by doing it in a piecemeal approach, it allows them to 'put a toe in the water`, so to speak, and test what VOIP can do for them.

"The idea is to lead the evolution to IP telephony at the customers` pace," says Bull.

Words of warning

"Before the industry gets too excited about VOIP, it needs to be aware of some of the pitfalls and unresolved issues that could still affect this technology," claims Dr Russell Achterberg, Telkom`s head of technology strategy and integration.

"People need to understand that VOIP is technologically inferior to voice provided over a PSTN, although it does lead to the creation of some interesting business models. The real reason for the excitement is that what were traditionally closed markets are now starting to open up."

He says there are still many unknowns with regard to the regulatory position, and there are numerous opinions as to where we will end up, but at present the industry has to wait and see exactly what stance the government takes.

"There is still a lot of confusion surrounding the issue, with many of those organisations hoping to provide VOIP services seeking an extremely liberalised market, while the incumbents believe the regulator is not going to interpret the determinations too liberally," he says.

Achterberg says that in truth, Telkom feels the determinations cannot bring about a major policy shift, as they relate to an existing Act. However, with the second draft of the Convergence Bill due soon, this could bring about such a policy shift.

"Everyone needs to remember that it took PSTNs 100 years to sort out interoperability issues, and VOIP has now taken us back to square one, as it is an immature technology that is ill-defined in regulatory terms.

"There is still plenty of work to be done on the VOIP business case, as you cannot simply cut-and-paste a standard business model onto this technology."