VoIP Phone Hype.....Phooey
I hold no ill will towards marketing, but do become offended
when someone feels I should lose my critical analysis skills and
buy into marketing hype.
For example - revolutionary new technology allowing 1 digit
calling? Easy connect to VoIP via cell phone? Yada yada...hype &
emotion... &..well you get the idea.
The way VoIP works, there are several critical aspects to insure
anything close to toll quality calling. First is the instrument
used. Next is the inside wiring. Assuming both of these are not
a problem, the access line becomes the next major factor. Here
there are 3 points. First is quality of the access line - its
ability to deliver error free bit streams. Next is the
bandwidth. As a shared application, the bandwidth must be
sufficient to serve the needs of both VoIP and all other
applications simultaneously. Third is the logical distribution
of that bandwidth. In effect, the bandwidth must be split
between VoIP and the other traffic to insure VoIP has a
consistent available rate of communications between the premise
and the POP.
Getting all of the above correct is not trivial, and those who
attempt a pure plug and play approach stand a fair chance in
being disappointed with their VoIP service. But let's assume
this all goes well (at both ends for an end to end VoIP call).
The next issue is travel over the Internet from ingress POP to
egress POP. Different carriers have different paths, which
impacts latency. A VoIP session is probably the most sensitive
to latency of all common applications (although live video is
probably the most sensitive). The carrier incentive is to keep
as much traffic as possible on their own facility. This is a
business need, not a technical need, but it does impact the
quality of service users experience. Multiple carriers provides
protection against failure, but it does not insure true shortest
path routing. More important than multiple carriers is the
ability and willingness to purchase priority transport of
packets based on IP header information or other protocol
approaches, so that a VoIP call continues as a high priority
session and with sufficient bandwidth across the carrier's
network.
Finally, there is the placing of calls to standard phones. This
is where the PSTN gateway comes into play.
Now what parts of the total technical aspects will your service
control? This is where the hype goes away and critical thinking
comes into play.
Don't believe because many of us here have technical experience
we lack business sense. Or vice versa.
The second issue is just how is the revenue stream divided
between delivery costs, marketing, administration, and sales
points? What are the volumes required for a breakeven scenario?
What is the estimated market cap? Does the promised opportunity
stand up to critical analysis of the business plan? Is capital
sufficient to reach breakeven revenue streams? Are the processes
in place to deal with service problems even if the problem is
outside of your control, in order to retain good will in the
market space?
Many of us are interested in a logical analysis of both the
business and technical aspects. Just don't try blowing the
preverbial "smoke up our butt".
Whew....I think I'll get a cold drink now.