ABI Research Helps Companies Find a Path through the VoIP Jungle.

OYSTER BAY, N.Y. -- Residential VoIP telephony - the use of the Internet as a vehicle for voice calls - has been attracting a lot of publicity lately. But with less fanfare, companies large and small are also adopting the technology as a way of updating their legacy PBX systems. This market is still in a relatively early stage of development, with adoption largely confined to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Migrating to VoIP in the enterprise can require a complex set of decisions, especially for larger organizations. ABI Research has just released a new study which will help both buyers and vendors arrive at the right conclusions. "Enterprise IP Telephony Solutions and Protocols" includes a benchmarking cost-analysis model that uses generic case studies to assist in the choice of hosted-service solution or a premises installation approach.

Michael Arden, ABI Research's principal analyst of broadband and residential entertainment technologies, says, "For some companies, a hosted service makes more sense, while for others, a do-it-yourself approach is best. To assist the decision-making, we created a database of fictitious companies of differing characteristics such as the number of extensions and remote offices, desired phone system features, and brand allegiance." Less tangible qualities were also assigned, such as the level of technical savvy. The resulting matrix allows readers to identify their own situation and provides a weighting mechanism and recommendations about the best path to take.

IP telephony uses a number of protocols. One of the more popular is Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) which is more dynamic and extends the intelligence of the network to the phones themselves. The second half of the study examines what SIP can and can't do, the equipment that uses it, and developers' efforts to supplement its functions.

Founded in 1990 and headquartered in New York, ABI Research maintains global operations that support annual research programs, quarterly intelligence services and market reports in wireless, automotive, semiconductors, broadband, and energy. Their market research products can be found on the Web at www.abiresearch.com, or by calling 516.624.2500.