A Gritskrieg Rant: Voice Over IP Services
Are the big boys scared of this?
There are times when, as a consumer, I can’t believe how long it takes for large companies to embrace change. Granted, it isn’t always in the best interest of “big business” to implement expensive modifications to their existing business model but in some cases, I can only see the advantages such changes would have for the end user, the customer. You know, the people who ultimately fund the paychecks?
One such change is Voice Over IP. If you’re with a cable provider, chances are you’re already using it when you bundle in your phone with the bill. Or if you’re a Vonage customer or you’ve been using Skype for years now. And if you meet any of the above criteria, chances are you stopped paying for domestic long distance right around the same time you signed up for services.
Now think about this… How many of the long distance carriers from back in the day of expensive long distance calls to Grammy at her home in Florida are actually still around? And how many of those left are cell phone carriers? And how many of those are still charging for International Long Distance? Are we sensing a trend here?
I can honestly say I haven’t paid to speak to anyone living internationally since the invention of Instant Messaging. But with the use of VoIP becoming more prevalent, I’ve actually *talked* with friends abroad without paying anything more than my Internet Provider fees. And let’s not forget how easy it can be to speak to your friend down under over things like Xbox Live with the built in voice chat.
Vonage recently announced an Unlimited International Calling plan available for iPhone and Blackberry users. The application installs on your phone and uses the data connection to make the calls. Skype has had a similar plan available for some time now. While the plans are limited in what countries can be called and have a monthly charge ($24.99 on Vonage, $12.95 for Skype), the cost is considerably lower than what is currently paid to dial long distance, the writing is on the wall…
Now comes the point to this rant. Why hasn’t one of the major cellular providers teamed up with one of these companies to offer lower costs to their customers? Why hasn’t a move been made to provide more VoIP Devices for even local and domestic long distance? Sure, we’re going to be seeing devices that are strictly VoIP being provided but why aren’t the big boys ahead of the curve on this one?
Perhaps the answer lies in the masses, the people who are slow to embrace new technology or aren’t necessarily in the know. After all, there are still those people who live in areas where high speed data is available but continue to pay for land lines instead of making the change to VoIP services. This means there are still companies out there who have to provide land line services and are most likely overcharging for the services.
Then there are those who are willing to pay through the nose to be on the cutting edge of technology, who are willing to fork over large sums of money to be the first kid on the block with a new device that has new capabilities.
Until a happy middle can be found, large businesses will continue to reap the profits from these groups. Until Joe Public is ready to reach the middle ground at the same time, large businesses will continue to price gouge and misinform the public. Until we’re willing to learn the technologies, we’ll be willing to pay the man behind the curtain to make our magic speaky boxes work.
Just some food for thought.
Gritskrieg – End of Line
