Your local phone service provider is looking over their shoulder at what is coming up fast behind them. VoIP ? Voice Over Internet Telephony ? is gaining ground and is no longer considered a fad, but a strong and viable alternative to traditional phone service. By routing conversations over internet broadband lines, VoIP calls can be made quickly and cheaply thereby saving you, the consumer, plenty of money compared to traditional phone service. Recent improvements in VoIP technology have prompted more and more consumers to switch to VoIP, permanently altering the way many phone conversations are handled around the globe. Let's explore the growing trend of VoIP telephony and what this technology has to offer to you.

In its early days, VoIP telephony was considered by some to be a technologically unreliable fad, one that was shunned by mostly everyone who had long relied upon their traditional phone service company to provide them with dependable, if not costly, telephone service. Today, much has changed and VoIP telephony has not only vastly improved, but has attracted millions of new customers thanks to technological advancements and smart marketing.

Initially, voice quality with VoIP telephony was suspect, as conversations between users was often accompanied by crackling sounds and echoing. Indeed, drop offs due to connection problems was common, causing many to avoid making the switch. Still, as with virtually all emerging technologies, kinks have been worked out as newer, vastly improved versions are introduced. VoIP, for one, has undergone rapid transformation from fad to fixture in many homes and offices as quality levels have picked up while prices remain exceedingly low.

Indeed, price is a huge factor contributing to VoIP's rapid growth. Many VoIP telephony providers offer comprehensive unlimited local and long distance calling plans that start at less than $25 per month. Compare VoIP prices to those charged by most traditional phone service providers ? typically $70-80 per month ? and the potential annual savings is well over $500!

Yes, you have to shop around to find a high quality VoIP telephony provider, but all of the top companies offer similar deals with packages usually containing the following important features:

Free local and long distance calls.

Portable phone numbers, meaning you can take your existing phone number wherever you move; certain restrictions may apply.

Special services offered at no extra charge including: caller ID, call forwarding, 3-way calling, call return, call transfer, voicemail, and more.

Low, fixed monthly rates. No worrying about fluctuating phone bills!

In addition, most governments are taking a decidedly hands off approach to VoIP telephony and are not levying anywhere near the same high level of taxes on VoIP service as they have been on traditional phone service. Yes, take a close look at your current phone bill and you will see that double-digit fees really push up the monthly balance. Not so with VoIP telephony as it is treated in the same way as internet service.

There has been some concern about power outages and the loss of VoIP telephony service during these interruptions. Indeed, most people understand that if your home loses electrical power, then their traditional phone service would continue to work as phone lines are powered separately from electrical lines, while VoIP telephony phone service is stopped when the power goes out. To get around the problem, many VoIP telephony providers now give users a control panel where they can program their VoIP server to automatically reroute calls to their cell phone in the event of a power outage. So, there is no longer any excuse for you to not make the switch to VoIP telephony and begin realizing big savings today!