Voip

9 Pages 2181 Words

(VoIP)
INTRODUCTION:
In the eyes of most, all packets are created equal. One of the most active areas of
telecommunications today is in the area of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). The logic
behind this trend makes perfect sense. If we have invested heavily in an Internet
Protocol (IP) network, why can't we make full use of it? This is a question posed by many
managers and Information Technology (IT) professionals in a wide range of businesses.
Many businesses would prefer to have one network in and out of their business for reasons
ranging from cost effectiveness to manageability. IP telephony offers a promise of
consolidation. This will allow an enterprise to converge its traditional phone system and
newer data network for greater efficiency. Arieh Dranger, president of neXTel Systems LLC
says, "I don't think it's a question of whether we need VoIP, but when it will come
together, because it represents a natural progress of integrating data—period. The
IP protocol is probably the most efficient at combining a universal communications
network." Basically, IP telephony is taking the telecom world by storm. It has evolved
from a little known and used application in 1995 to an application that is poised for
global adoption. But as with all technology, there is a price to be paid, and several
entities vying for a piece of the pie.
WHAT IS VoIP and HOW DOES IT WORK?
To put it simply, VoIP means Voice over Internet Protocol. It's a technology that allows
network managers to route phone call over the network they use for data transmission. A
voice travels over a corporate Intranet or the Internet instead of the public telephone
system. Special gateways installed at both the sending and receiving end of a
communications channel converts voice to IP packets and back again to voice. This process
must take place in a time frame of less than 100 milliseconds to sustain the Quality of
Service (QoS) that users are acc...