A new study finds a lower-than-expected number of households have subscribed to a voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service. The study by Parks Associates says only 2 percent of households with broadband connections have signed up for VoIP – a number that pales in comparison to the 32 percent of broadband households that expressed an interest in VoIP in a 2002 Parks study.
The growing popularity of VoIP service is being watched intently by the alarm and security monitoring industries. Offered as an alternative to plain old telephone service (POTS), VoIP may
have compatibility issues with alarm systems .
The survey of more than 4,000 Internet households also found that the VoIP market has increased by 500,000 subscribers in the past year.
The report, “Residential Voice-over-IP: Analysis and Forecasts (Second Edition),” will be released by Parks Associates in January.
