Only four per cent use Skype often

Skype and other VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) technologies still have a long way to come before their usage could be considered to be truly widespread, according to a report.

Jupiter Research's Skype and VoIP - Quantifying the Hype in the UK report, published today, found that just 12 per cent of consumers use VoIP services on a regular basis.

Around a third of VoIP users are using Skype's VoIP client, and these are mainly younger uses. The report states that Skype, owned by internet giant eBay, faces a unique challenge in the UK market because many ISPs have existing telephony services that they wish to defend.

However, Jupiter Research's Ian Fogg, the lead author of the report, believes that consumer take-up of Skype will grow with the introduction of VoIP-enabled handsets that don't require a PC.

“Skype’s VoIP telephony is attractive to consumers because services are digital, free or very cheap, and are flexible,” he said.

http://www.jupiterresearch.com/
http://www.skype.com/

More news via RSS Post item to Del.icio.us Post item to Digg.com