An Introduction to Voice Over IP

For more than a century, the public switched telephone network (PSTN) has used circuit switching whereby, for each telephone call made, circuits are switched in the intervening telephone exchanges to create a physical connection between the caller and the person being called for the duration of the call. The great advantage of this type of switching is that call quality is extremely high because a dedicated line is being devoted to the call. The major disadvantage is that this type of switching is expensive because it requires considerable capacity in the network as most of the time most of the capacity is not being used.


The alternative to circuit switching is called packet switching and traditionally this has been used for data networks connecting computers. In such a network, data is divided up into small packets which are given identifying information and then sent over the network by a variety of different routes, before being reassembled at the end into the format of the original message. Packet-switched networks do not use an elaborate system of switches or exchanges but a much simpler system of routers.


The great advantage of this type of switching is that it is very cost-effective, making much more intense use of the network, by routing packages along the least busy lines. In the past, packet switching was not used for voice because the breaking up and reassembly of the packets would cause an unacceptable deterioration in quality, notably because of the variable delay in the packets. However, increasingly these delays can be engineered out and indeed systems can distinguish between packets that are voice and packets that are data and give priority to the former.


Now with new technology and increased reliability we are able to offer a standardized service for business and residential customers that is equal to or even surpasses the quality one would receive over the Public Switched Telephone Network. All the subscriber needs is a Broadband Internet connection.


Benefits of VOIP

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