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Voice over Internet Protocol, more commonly known as VoIP, is a service developing over the Internet that allows voice signals to be detected and transferred online, allowing audio conversations to carry across between people using specific computer software and an Internet connection. VoIP is also known as Internet telephony or broadband phone.
VoIP is very nifty in that it allows a user to make and receive phone calls through the Internet. It also guarantees communication despite mobility, in that even though a VoIP user is traveling, he or she can still receive phone calls from his or her listed landline regardless of wherever he or she is in the world, as long as he or she has a computer with the VoIP software and a good connection to the Internet. Most online instant messaging clients like AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), Yahoo Messenger and MSN .Net Messaging Service carry VoIP features that allow their users to engage in voice chats, regardless of location.
Many corporations have also begun to use VoIP because VoIP can function with and integrate other communications services over the Internet, such as file transfers and exchange, video conferencing and audio conferencing, thereby facilitating easier communication between the parties involved. In fact, VoIP has given multinational companies the opportunity to have their employees communicate with each other in real time regardless of location, thereby ridding themselves of the need to go on business travel just to be able to hold these meetings and conferences. VoIP is also an essential tool for companies operating call centers, as these inbound and outbound calls can be made through the Internet.
There are, of course, drawbacks to using VoIP. A glaring disadvantage is its total dependence on Internet access. Just to state the obvious, VoIP does not work without the Internet, and thus, a user who needs to stay linked to the rest of the world will have to find other, less convenient means if an Internet connection is not possible in the area he or she is in. Another obvious drawback is that VoIP cannot work without electricity, unless of course the computer is a laptop that can run on batteries.
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