Cheap VoIP, or voice over Internet protocol, phone service is everywhere. You have probably seen phone plans from ISPs and independent VoIP providers offering unlimited national calling for discounted, flat rates and wondered, “what’s the catch?” Whether you saw advertisements for cheap digital phone offers, VoIP discounts, or any other discount digital phone service, the reasons for the low prices are the same: VoIP phones transmit information in a different way than analog telephones.
VoIP Discounts and Digital Phone Calls
VoIP phone offers, also called digital phone offers by many VoIP service providers, are cheaper than classic, analog phone plans because VoIP providers use the same network responsible for bringing you high speed Internet access to transmit VoIP calls. Classic analog phones use a Public Switched Telephone Network, or PSTN, to transmit your voice to the recipient caller. Because this network is used exclusively for telephone calls, and in many ways transmits data less efficiently than a digital broadband network, analog telephone services cost more to maintain. Naturally, PSTN service providers must then pass those maintenance costs on to the consumer.
On the other hand, VoIP providers are able to use the more efficient broadband network that is already used to transmit data to your computer over the Internet. Because this network does double duty as both a VoIP and high speed broadband Internet network, especially in cases where a user is already underutilizing the network’s capacity, digital phone providers are able to provide VoIP discounts. Some telecommunications companies, such as the independent VoIP provider Vonage, are able to “piggy-back” on the high speed broadband network provided by your ISP to make VoIP calls for even cheaper rates. Unfortunately these independent hosted VoIP providers can sometimes also offer lower quality service.
Free VoIP vs. VoIP Offers from a Digital Phone Service Provider
You may be wondering why you must pay for digital phone services at all if VoIP providers are utilizing already existing networks. It is true that free VoIP services are available if you already have an existing high speed broadband Internet connection. One notable example is Skype Internet Telephony, a program which allows you to make calls from your computer to another computer that has also downloaded and installed the software.
However, free VoIP services are primarily used to make PC-to-PC calls or VoIP-to-VoIP calls. You are only able to make calls to people who have a computer, all the additional necessary equipment, and have installed the software. Getting digital phone service from a VoIP service provider allows you to make VoIP calls to anyone with a phone, and as long as you have a touch-tone phone there is no additional equipment to buy.
VoIP Discounts and Digital Phone Offers from ISPs
Furthermore, VoIP service providers are able to provide additional savings and convenience from bundled telecommunication service plans, which consolidate VoIP and high speed broadband Internet into one bill. Because high speed Internet is required for quality VoIP, why not get both services from the same provider and save a bundle? The following high speed broadband Internet providers also offer digital VoIP discounts:
