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What is VoIP Phone Service?

If you have broadband Internet service you can take advantage of the lower costs for VoIP phone service.

VoIP stands for "Voice over Internet Protocol". That means simply that your call is transmitted over the Internet's fiber optic network using the protocol of the Internet.

If you call goes much beyond your local calling area it will be converted to a digital signal and transmitted along a fiber optic network. Traditional phone companies have their own fiber optic networks and Internet service providers have other fiber optic networks.

The traditional phone company uses its fiber optic network differently than a VoIP call uses the Internet's fiber optic network. This is part of the reason VoIP calls are so cheap.

The traditional phone company reserves a frequency along a fiber for your call as long as you are on the line. This uses the fiber optic resource for the complete duration of your call.

VoIP, however, creates "packets" or bundles of digital data and sends them along the Internet's fiber optic network. The paths these packets take are optimal to get from the origination point to the destination. The fiber optical network is used in VoIP only as long as necessary to transmit your packets. This reduces resource use and allows others to use the resource along with you.

If you have VoIP service, you make call anywhere in the world that has Internet service and an interface to the local phone company. At the local phone company near the person you are calling, the digital signal is converted to analog. Then it is passed along the local phone company's phone lines to the person you are calling.

VoIP providers make use of the Internet's free fiber optic network to pass your call to the calling party's local phone company. The cost of the call is little more than the price of a local phone call in the called person's location.

While VoIP has a price advantage over traditional phone service, there are also some disadvantages. Perhaps a major disadvantage is that VoIP and your broadband service depend on power being supplied to your broadband modem and digital to analog converter boxes. When your local power goes out your phone service also goes out. Also, 911 calling is more difficult since determining your street address is difficult using only your IP address; you may need to tell the 911 operator your address in order to initiate an emergency response.

The following are resource you can use related to Voice over IP (VoIP) phone service:

VoIP in the News

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