The advent of wireless broadband has put a new twist on people’s
mobility and communications. Wireless broadband connections can take
many different forms. From an extension of conventional wired networks
in your home or office, to wireless coverage of entire metropolitan
areas, to the proliferation of WiFi hotspots all over the world – the
Internet truly makes the world a global place.
Wireless Broadband and IP Telephony
Companies like Clearwire and Mobilepro Corp are connecting college
campuses, even whole cities to the Internet wirelessly. Using fixed
point to point, point to multipoint, and Non-Line-of-Site (NLOS)
technologies, these companies can eventually cover areas of dense
population that will rival the cellular networks.
Worldwide, even in remote locations, WiFi hotspots only need a little
electricity and a satellite uplink to connect to the world.
Wireless broadband and IP telephony have the most potential in the
small business and traveling community. A small business with branch
offices spread around the country (or the world for that matter) could
save considerably on their telecommunication expenses utilizing VoIP.
As would the traveling salesperson staying at a far away hotel, more
and more of which have their own wireless networks. Just pick a
provider, find a hotspot and watch your phone bill drop.
IP Telephony over wireless broadband is emerging as a viable
alternative to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), and is
even encroaching on the cellular communications industry. Whereas the
big cellular networks put in place by companies like Sprint and Verizon
have done a good job blanketing North America, and Europe, the cost to
the consumer can be cut even more by utilizing the Internet to
transport voice.
VoIP and the Cellular Networks
IP telephony is a disruptive technology, meaning that it has the
potential to turn an existing market upside down. Imagine how the
Telco’s felt when a long distance call for which they used to charge a
dollar a minute can now be made for pennies. Needless to say, the Ma
Bells and mobile phone companies will resist this change, but as the
technology evolves, adoption seems inevitable.
Just as the sound quality on cellular networks are generally less than
land lines, massive adoption of mobile phones show that people are
willing to tolerate loss of quality for convenience. Quality of sound
over an IP connection can be anywhere from a dropped call to cell phone
quality, to the equivalent of a land line connection, depending on
network utilization.
The advantages of VoIP over conventional telephony are becoming
clearer, but what would be the advantages of IP Telephony over cellular
phones? While both cell phone companies and the pure-play VoIP
providers have monthly plans, internet phone companies do not charge
more for prime time, and the monthly service charges are significantly
less. Most mobile phone companies offer free nationwide long distance
in the U.S., whereas Vonage, for example offers free calls throughout
the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, and Europe.
International rates with VoIP are the lowest to be had, to some
countries as low as 2-3 cents a minute for a call to a PSTN number.
Calls to cell phones however, are charged at a much higher rate.
WiFi Cell Phones
Essential to the widespread implementation of wireless VoIP is, of
course, the hardware- the phone itself. While many pure-play Internet
phone companies have had WiFi telephones for a while, the ideal
solution would be a cell phone that goes both ways. Companies like
Truphone have furthered the cause by developing an Open Source
application based on the widely accepted Session Initiation Protocol
(SIP), which allows a seamless transition from the Internet to the
PSTN.
Nokia, a leading manufacturer of cell phones, has developed a line of
“Smart Phones” starting with its E60 series that is dual band and can
switch between cellular and WiFi networks. Their latest innovation, the
N80, combines all the latest technology and truly is a “smart” phone.
These phones will automatically switch back and forth while roaming
between cellular and WiFi networks, purportedly without dropping the
call.
IP Telephony over wireless networks is a technology just out of its
infancy, and is yet to become wide spread. The cost effectiveness of
routing voice packets over the internet as opposed to land lines, or
even cellular networks, cannot be denied. But don’t expect the Telco’s
or the cellular phone companies to embrace this technology
wholeheartedly until they can figure out a way to make a profit.