History of The Telephone - 21st Century Developments

21st Century Developments

Internet Protocol (IP) telephony (also known as 'Internet telephony') is a service based on the Voice over IP communication protocol (VoIP), a disruptive technology that is rapidly gaining ground against traditional telephone network technologies. In Japan and South Korea up to 10% of subscribers switched to this type of telephone service as of January 2005.

IP telephony uses a broadband Internet connection to transmit conversations as data packets. In addition to replacing the traditional Plain Old Telephone Service POTS system, IP telephony is also competing with mobile phone networks by offering free or lower cost connections via WiFi hotspots. VoIP is also used on private wireless networks which may or may not have a connection to the outside telephone network.