IDC views voice over IP (VoIP) as the next generation of technology to change the telecommunications landscape. The market for consumer VoIP services is still in its infancy, but IDC's future outlook points to exponential growth within the next four years. IDC predicts that residential U.S. VoIP subscribers will grow from 10.3 million in 2006 to 44 million in 2010.

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c38027) has announced the addition of 2006 Latin America Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Overview to their offering.

This report is a comprehensive overview of the Latin American region covering the following:

- Key Statistics - Market and Industry Overviews - Regulatory Environment - Major Players (fixed and mobile) - Infrastructure - Mobile Voice and Data Markets - Internet, VoIP - Broadband (DSL, cable, wireless) - Pay TV and Convergence

SupportSoft, Inc., a leading provider of Real-Time Service Management (RTSM) software, announced the results of an independent survey (1) among "voice over Internet protocol" (VoIP) users in the U.S. In the survey, conducted among VoIP subscribers representing both specialized VoIP providers and cable companies, customers of cable companies were the happiest with their service, with 61% expressing satisfaction. Despite this positive outlook, 34% of cable VoIP users said that a technician had to visit their home within 90 days of the initial service installation due to a problem. A full 16% had a technician visit their home two or more times.

Sonus Networks, Inc., a leading supplier of service provider Voice over IP (VoIP) infrastructure solutions, announced that Synergy Research Group, a leading independent industry analysis firm, has named Sonus Networks the market share leader in high density media gateways, a key component in Sonus' award winning IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)-ready architecture. With 30% of the market in Q1 2006, Sonus is leading the world's migration to IP-based voice with carrier-class solutions that offer service providers greater operating efficiency and end users access to a broad range of new communications services.

Entrepreneur magazine has released the 12th Annual Hot 100 list. The Hot 100 lists the fastest-growing new companies in the United States. The listing is comprised from an initial list of fast-growing companies from PricewaterhouseCoopers. VoIP Supply, LLC, a leading provider of Voice over IP telephony hardware, software, and services, was ranked number 45 based on the company’s impressive growth over the past three years. It is estimated that over 27,000 companies received consideration for inclusion on this prestigious list.

As more consumers carry their iPods with them everywhere, they are hoping Apple will add WiFi and VOIP for the killer converged mobile entertainment device, according to a new study from ON World.

"The PC industry has found an ideal services model and this is the 'real time Internet,'" says Mareca Hatler, ON World's Director of Research. "Services such as VOIP, video, music, radio, news and instant messaging coupled with mobile devices such as a WiFi enabled iPod, and the ubiquity of broadband will result in 100 million consumer mobile VOIP users in 2011."

Cedar Point Communications, the leader in integrated VoIP switching technologies for the cable and telecommunications industries, announced that its SAFARI C(Cubed) Multimedia Switching System earned the highest rating ever given in the Broadband Gear Report Diamond Technology Reviews.

SAFARI C(Cubed), the only totally integrated carrier class VoIP switch designed for the cable industry, earned Four and One-Half Diamonds from Broadband Gear Report's panel of industry experts. The rating represents a half-diamond increase over last year's score for SAFARI C(Cubed), which was entered in the VoIP Solutions category.

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c23787) has announced the addition of the Global Sources report "VoIP Products in China" to their offering

About 75 percent of the VoIP makers included in this report expect an increase of at least 94 percent in their output in the next 12 months. In Taiwan, volume production is forecast to reach 4.20 million units by end-2005, an increase of over 50 percent from 2004. Taiwan has about 50 VoIP product makers. The technical strength of Taiwan makers and their ties with global VoIP giants make the island a major force in global VoIP manufacturing.

According to a new TelecomWeb white paper, there is a significant gap between the percentage of U.S. businesses that believe IP Telephony (IPT) can change the way they do business and the percentage that actually are achieving business value from their IPT investments.

The IP Telephony Business Value Gap: Top 10 Reasons Why Businesses Aren’t Getting Full ROI From VoIP reveals that while a majority (55%) of North American organizations implementing technologies like Voice over IP (VoIP) believe the investment will enable converged applications that can deliver business value by improving business processes significantly, only 15% said they currently are implementing applications that offer business value.

Internet search giant Google will increasingly pose a threat to US mobile operators by offering free wireless connection, supported by location based advertising in major US cities. This finding is featured in the latest study, "Google in mobile and wireless: Analysing the impact and assessing the threat of the search giant's market entry," published by industry analyst firm visiongain. Moreover, Google is set to become a major player in the mobile search market, continuing its current strategy of partnerships with operators and manufacturers.

CMP Media released the results of the Interop 2006 pre-show survey, indicating that a significant percentage of IT professionals have already implemented or have plans to implement VoIP, video and unified communications, along with wireless networks, showing sharp growth in the adoption of converged technologies. This study also identified the top areas that attendees will be researching and possibly buying while at Interop Las Vegas 2006: wireless technologies (65%), closely followed by security (63%) and management (55%). In addition, almost half (47%) have integrated or plan to integrate VoIP together with an 802.11 wireless network, along with 67% for VoIP-only implementation. The research further revealed that 79% of enterprises are using video for conferencing purposes or meetings, and 58% are either using or plan to use unified communications. A follow-up survey will be conducted after the conclusion of Interop Las Vegas 2006, currently taking place until May 5 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.

Measures considered by some operators to block, or make illegal, the use of VoIP services on their network are a waste of time, especially given the clear signals by consumer and business users indicating a demand for these type of applications. This is one of the findings from visiongain's new report, "VoIP in Europe 2006-2011: Market analysis and forecasts."

Vonage's announcement that it has teamed up with UK Wi-Fi service provider The Cloud to offer free VoIP calls is the first major move in this direction, which will force mobile operators to follow suit.

Netcentrex, the leading enabler of next generation converged voice and video solutions, announced that, according to an annual report issued by industry research firm iLocus, Netcentrex delivered 29% of VoIP local call volume minutes for standards-based Voice over Broadband (VoBB) platforms, making the company the leader in this market. In addition, Netcentrex was named the leading Independent Subscriber Feature Server worldwide, with 32% market share.

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c35746) has announced the addition of the new eMarketer report "Consumer VoIP: A Fierce Battle in a Larger War" to their offering.

The $190 billion US fixed-line telephony market is up for grabs with cable companies, ISPs, Internet portals and pure-play VoIP providers all lining up to take a share of what has traditionally been the Telco's bread and butter. The companies that control the broadband connections are likely to come out on top.

Over the course of nine months, the percentage of British adults who say they have heard of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) or already make telephone calls via an Internet connection increased from just a little over one-third (37%)(1) to nearly half (46%). A similar shift in awareness and use in the United States has been displayed (36%(2) vs. 51%).

These are some of the findings from a Harris Interactive survey measuring VoIP awareness and usage conducted online from October 12 to 16, 2005 among 1,089 U.S. adults aged 18 and over and 1,117 British adults aged 18 and over.