The technology behind VoIP is not new. It is easy to understand and there are a few basic steps that are followed each time you make a VoIP call.

You place your call by dialing a telephone number to any normal telephone number anywhere in the world. A connection between you and the dialed number is then established. As you talk into your telephone handset your voice is converted into digital data. This data is then transmitted across the connection that you have already established by dialing the other parties telephone number. The data is routed across the Internet using the same standard computer language that the Internet uses – which is called Internet Protocol (all computers connected to the Internet understand and use this language to communicate). The data that was your voice is reconstituted on the other side into normal analogue sound that human beings understand.

It is easy to see why the technology is called Voice over Internet Protocol!

You can place a call from any normal telephone number to any other normal telephone number from anywhere at any time.

Nothing else changes! All that happens in the background is that the path taken for the call follows a different route via the Internet as opposed to via the phone company’s network.

VoIP is actually a very simple technology. But it is also powerful and as you will see it can save you substantial money over conventional phone calls via your usual telephone operator (Telecom) that basically does the same thing, but using their own network to route your calls.