10 Reasons VoIP Hasn't Hit the Mainstream...Yet

10 Reasons VoIP Hasn’t Hit the Mainstream…Yet

by Kathryn

VoIP technology has been steadily growing in use over the course of the last five years. As broadband Internet becomes increasingly ubiquitous, more users are finding that it’s easy to place voice calls through their computers. However, the growth of VoIP hasn’t peaked yet. The average person uses both mobile phones and computers on a daily basis but doesn’t yet make use of VoIP technology to streamline their communication.

Let’s take a look at the top ten reasons that VoIP hasn’t hit the mainstream yet so we can see what it will take to make VoIP a common technology:

1. VoIP is marketed to businesses. The average residential customer could easily make use of VoIP calls to reduce their calling costs and streamline their voice, data and image communication. However, VoIP currently isn’t being widely marketed to the residential population. Instead, most VoIP providers advertise specifically to business customers which means that the residential market across the world is currently missing out on VoIP. As more residential customers start becoming aware of what VoIP can do for them, VoIP use is likely to grow.

2. Problems in the industry. There are dozens of VoIP providers today but very few of them are considered to be stable in the industry. Last year, a major VoIP provider (SunRocket) shut down and customers were left out in the cold. Although most of those customers were transitioned to new VoIP providers, they experienced numerous problems with the transition including being billed for VoIP service they weren’t receiving. Another major problem has been that Skype, a global leader in computer calling, has seen several issues crop up recently including excessive SPIT (VoIP spam). These flaws in the industry make consumers hesitant to get involved with VoIP until the market becomes more stable.

3. Mobile broadband and smartphones are relatively new. One of the best features for VoIP users is that calls can be routed through the computer at a low cost but forwarded to multiple phone numbers. This means that your cell phone can take VoIP calls. However, mobile VoIP is a very new thing due in part to the fact that mobile phones are only just starting to have the capacity to carry both voice and data at the level desired by customers. As more and more people start using mobile broadband, we will see more and more people using mobile VoIP.

4. Confusing costs. One of the things about VoIP that deters customers is that it’s difficult to understand most VoIP pricing plans. With your mobile phone, you probably have a set monthly rate for a certain number of minutes and then a per-minute rate if you go over your minutes. If you’re lucky, you might have one of the new all-usage flat-rate monthly plans that some companies are beginning to offer. Those plans are easy to understand. In contrast, VoIP plans vary by the number of lines that you’re using, the location that you’re calling, the features that you have and other details. If VoIP companies can find a way to make their payment plans make more sense to the average user, more people might become interested in VoIP technology.

5. Security concerns. Many people are concerned about the security risks that they believe VoIP poses to their computers and phone lines. When 2008 predictions for security problems were made at the end of last year, VoIP hacking was high on the list. Thus far, those fears don’t seem to have been realized (although there’s been an increase in VoIP spam for some users). However, it’s enough of a fear to deter new customers from checking out what VoIP is all about. In order to make VoIP calling more mainstream, we’ll need to see strengthening of VoIP security features.

6. Installation issues. When VoIP first hit the market, it was primarily in the form of on-site VoIP. This required the user to purchase hardware that had to be installed in the home or business. This is no longer the case as hosted VoIP (also known as virtual PBX systems) have become the norm. However, potential customers who had looked into the original VoIP systems may not yet realize that things have gotten significantly easier. VoIP companies need to promote this aspect of the business while also offering superior technical assistance during download and use in order to attract the average consumer.

7. Bad reputation regarding call quality. It has only been in about the last year that VoIP companies really got a handle on the technology that they are using to connect calls through computers. Prior to that, individuals interested in using VoIP had to sacrifice some call quality for the benefits of the service. This led to a bad reputation for VoIP; people assume that all VoIP calls are going to sound bad. The reality is that VoIP calls will sound at least as clear as calls on your mobile phone and may be much clearer if you are using a landline to place the call. VoIP fans will have to spread the word that call quality has improved if they want others to join the VoIP bandwagon.

8. Lack of attention from other industries. One of the ways that technologies spread is through collaboration with other industries. For example, online social networking has been combined with mobile technologies and GPS location services to allow it to become of widespread interest to multiple facets of society. As a general rule, VoIP hasn’t received much collaborative attention from other technology sectors. However, this has been changing in recent years. Click-to-call widgets have brought together VoIP and social networking, mobile broadband has brought VoIP to cell phones and video conferencing technology has started bringing VoIP to remote businesses.

9. Lack of media coverage. There are many reasons that VoIP hasn’t become mainstream yet but one of the biggest ones is that people simply don’t really know what it’s all about. Media coverage of VoIP technology has been lacking compared to many newer voice technologies. VoIP is spreading primarily through word of mouth so as people start to tell each more about it, growth of VoIP should increase.

10. It’s new. In the end, the fact that VoIP hasn’t peaked yet is due to the fact that it’s still a relatively new technology. The way that it’s being used today – using hosted VoIP systems and collaboration with other industries – is particularly new. Some kinks still need to be worked out and VoIP businesses need to establish themselves in the market in order to truly attract the attention of the average user.

There are a lot of factors which are hindering VoIP from hitting the mainstream market full on. Despite this, the number of VoIP users continues to grow at a steady rate. This growth suggests that there is a strong interest in VoIP by users who are aware of what it’s all about. If the VoIP industry can resolve some of these outstanding issues and make VoIP easier to use for the mobile broadband customer then there’s a good chance that the VoIP market will see a surge.