How Voice-over-IP (VoIP) works
Technologies are increasingly advancing and as such, all manners of technological innovations are sharing mutual beneficial relationships and Virtual Reality and Voice Over Internet Protocol, or rather VR and VoIP are no different. In simple terms, VoIP is a technology that allows you to make telephone calls over a broadband internet connection. It relates to the terms IP telephony and internet telephony, both set to be huge business in the foreseeable future.
Much like VR, VoIP has had a lot of hype in previous years, which seems to cool before heating up again. The main advantage of VoIP is that it uses the internet as it most basic system thus it is essentially free so long as you have a secure internet connection. Naturally, VoIP today is used everywhere, from Skype to Facebook Messenger, WeChat, WhatsApp, Viber and many others. In fact, your mobile operators are probably not even using analog signal for voice, given the proliferation of VoLTE (Voice-over-LTE) technology.
But what do VoIP and VR have in common? Well, they’re both set to be huge in the coming years and will help to improve businesses and personal use everywhere. They all share the fundamental value of the consumer’s ability to interact with audio in a dynamic manner, and as VoIP revolves around audio, VR technologies can help to make audio more interactive thus benefiting VoIP.
VR hardware and content will be massive for any business looking to bring in the newest technology and that includes VoIP. It is estimated that the enterprise market for VR hardware and content will increase from just $592.3 million last year to an astronomical $9.2 billion by 2021.
Virtual Reality content around woman’s head. Illustration Credit: Amelia Rose
At the absolute most basic level, VoIP technologies allow analogue telephone communications to be digitally transferred and routed over a series of data networks, whether it’s a wide area network (WAN), or a local area network (LAN), or the internet. The two packets of communications, both digitized voice and data, exist together and move simultaneously over a network. The third party, video, is now a major network consideration for organisations worldwide and VR can help this. Anyone with a smartphone can use a VR headset to enter virtual worlds at the click of a button and this is huge business for the area of communications, organisations everywhere are on alert. This will undoubtedly help to change the way businesses interact with customers and employees.
Many big businesses are getting on board with VoIP such as AT&T and Verizon whilst a number of leading organisations are already on board with VR. HP collaborated with experts to bring the ultimate VR experience. However it’s certainly worth comparing Ooma vs.Vonage Head to Head for best Business VoIP.
For example, The OMEN PCs from HP are built with the hardware needed for a seamless out-of-the-box experience, tried and tested for optimal VR performance. Whilst this is a huge move for HP, it is one that is set to pay off and will soon be a thing of the norm as VR becomes more mainstream, alongside VoIP. We’re hearing voices that by the end of the year, HP plans to ship business “VR Ready” PC’s which are optimized for VoIP Desktop application which is getting a VR user interface.
Together, as businesses adopt VR and VoIP, the positive effects will be untold. Standards will continue to evolve and session initiation protocol will continue to be developed by standard bodies, heavily marketed by companies supported them and eventually integrated vendors’ VoIP equipment, which will soon include VR. To increase appeal, it’s important VoIP supports as many protocols as possible.
New applications will also stem from VoIP and vice versa. Businesses are beginning to roll out new communications that takes advantage of packet-based communications, these often include multimedia conferencing, video, presence management, IP-enabled call centers, and e-commerce applications such as “click to talk” customer assistance.
One common concern from potential consumers relates to telephony’s low levels of reliability and security when compared with traditional voice networking. However, by providing solutions that maximize the reliability of VoIP gateways, such anxieties will be calmed. By the cohabitation of VR and VoIP, audio will be enhanced. However, this is only possible if there are in both security and survivability.
