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Dialing Up a New Generation of Telephone Service
Ma Bell no longer is the mother of all telephone service, which is changing as fast as computer, Internet and other technologies.
A new generation of telephone service is generally referred to as "digital" and "Internet protocol," or IP, voice services. And its development by telephone, cable TV and long-distance companies, Internet service providers (ISPs) and market newcomers is getting a broadband boost.
So what's the big deal?
For one, this evolving way to communicate mixes elements of the computer, telephone and TV to create a new kind of service that some day will be cheaper and sharper than today's voice-only services. What's more, IP telephony will save businesses a lot of money and simplify network-management efforts.
A brief technology lesson will help you understand where telephone service has been and where it's going.
Today, most of us are used to analog telephone service delivered by our local telephone company -- usually a Baby Bell like BellSouth, SBC Communications or U S West, which recently was bought by Qwest. In this "circuit-switched" universe, a telephone call travels over telephone companies' networks from switch to switch until it reaches its destination. In this analog environment, the voice signal -- really a collection of sound waves -- is sent and ultimately delivered in "wave" form. The drawback to that system: Analog signals can suffer from noise pollution, and reach their end-point sounding scratchy.
Digital telephone service is delivered over the same networks in much the same fashion analog calls are. However, the sound elements of a telephone call are "digitized." That is, they're transformed into small bits that can be more efficiently transmitted over a network. Digitizing a signal reduces the noise pollution that can infect a telephone call.
IP telephony, on the other hand, breaks up the elements of a telephone call into "packets" of data that can be sent over the Internet, as well as over newly developed fiber-optic networks. When the call reaches its destination, all of its packets are reassembled to create the finished product. Packetized calls are cheaper than calls sent over the established telephone companies' networks.
Who's offering service today?
Quite a few companies -- most of them only a few years old -- are offering IP telephone service, including:
Most of these services ask you to download their software from the Internet to your computer -- a process that a broadband connection can zip through in seconds. The companies also require a short registration form, as well as a credit card account so you can be billed for your calls. When that's done, you'll be able to place a call from your PC to another user's telephone with a few mouse clicks. To place a PC-to-PC call, you and the person manning the computer at the other end must have the same Internet voice software.
Working out the kinks
As with any new technology, digital and IP telephony service providers must work out some bugs. Among them:
- Guaranteeing quality service: Some IP telephony packets don't arrive at their destination at the same time as the others. If a call is missing some pieces at the end of its journey, that call's sound can be scratchy or barely audible.
- Offering such features as caller ID and call-waiting to consumers spoiled by decades of strong Baby Bell service is a challenge.
- Overcoming consumers' historical suspicion of new technologies.
- Finding ways to deliver new service on a wide scale, which will require expensive network-upgrade efforts.
Check out our reviews of the various Internet telephone downloads.
