Many think that VoIP is the solution to all telecom problems. It is a solution, but not to all problems. It does not give you something for nothing, in the long run, though in the short term, something may be had for almost nothing.
The articles describes the problems faced by VoIP operators in the US, where the basic infrastructure is already in place. In countries of the South, we have to keep in mind that the fiber has not been laid; the households have not all been connected; etc.
Internet Phone Company Halts Operations – New York Times
Start-ups like SunRocket and Vonage, the largest and best known of the group, tend to offer only phone service, and they do not have the ability of the larger companies to ensure quality of service because they do not operate their own telecommunications lines, said Richard Greenfield, a media analyst at Pali Research in New York. “They only have one product and they can’t control quality,” Mr. Greenfield said, adding that the business is “extremely challenging.”According to estimates from TeleGeography Research, SunRocket is the second-largest Internet phone start-up, after Vonage, with a 2 percent market share.
In April, SunRocket said its 200,000-subscriber milestone was a testament to customers’ embrace of Internet phone service, which allows calls to be transmitted as data over the Internet.
As a selling point, SunRocket offered potential customers a year of unlimited calling in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico for $199.
Vonage, which went public last year, was a pioneer in the commercialization of the technology. But its fortunes have floundered, along with its shares, which closed yesterday at $2.95.
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