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This is cool
Jun. 11th, 2004 11:14 pmVoice Over IP, including "Fibre to the premises".
British Telecom is planning on replacing the entire PSTN with IP.
"In the future, everything will be the 'net"
The Press Release( doesn't really go much into the advantages of the switch, other than mentioning that now voice and data can come in in the same connection. Which, to the layman, is already the case if you have DSL. So what's the advantage of IP?
Some of the advantages I can think of:
1. The end of phone numbers. Soon, if you know the person's username, you'll be able to drop down from one interface, or have it automatically selected by using the appropriate device, to send an IM, an Email, or make a phone call to that person.
2. Mobility: Once everything's on IP, there's no real concept of a "home" phone. Any phone you log into becomes yours, just as any PC you log into lets you read your email or surf your favorite web sites. Cell phone, home phone, laptop computer, hotel phone, public payphone, extension in another room at a friends house, whatever - log in and send and receive calls with your own phone number (or username if the other party is using IP also).
3. End of Long Distance. It's already dying out, as phone companies try to compete with cell phones, and the realization that a long distance call doesn't cost them any more to connect for you than a local call does. But once everyone's on IP, and the phone is mobile all over the world, the very concept of long distance can't apply if you don't know where the receiver of the phone call is. Even what country they're in.
Anyway, most people who watch such things have already decided that this is the way things are going in the future. What's really interesting about this is that they plan to start this in October. The beginning of the end for PSTN isn't some maybe-sometime nebulous future. It's four months away.
Very cool.
British Telecom is planning on replacing the entire PSTN with IP.
"In the future, everything will be the 'net"
The Press Release( doesn't really go much into the advantages of the switch, other than mentioning that now voice and data can come in in the same connection. Which, to the layman, is already the case if you have DSL. So what's the advantage of IP?
Some of the advantages I can think of:
1. The end of phone numbers. Soon, if you know the person's username, you'll be able to drop down from one interface, or have it automatically selected by using the appropriate device, to send an IM, an Email, or make a phone call to that person.
2. Mobility: Once everything's on IP, there's no real concept of a "home" phone. Any phone you log into becomes yours, just as any PC you log into lets you read your email or surf your favorite web sites. Cell phone, home phone, laptop computer, hotel phone, public payphone, extension in another room at a friends house, whatever - log in and send and receive calls with your own phone number (or username if the other party is using IP also).
3. End of Long Distance. It's already dying out, as phone companies try to compete with cell phones, and the realization that a long distance call doesn't cost them any more to connect for you than a local call does. But once everyone's on IP, and the phone is mobile all over the world, the very concept of long distance can't apply if you don't know where the receiver of the phone call is. Even what country they're in.
Anyway, most people who watch such things have already decided that this is the way things are going in the future. What's really interesting about this is that they plan to start this in October. The beginning of the end for PSTN isn't some maybe-sometime nebulous future. It's four months away.
Very cool.
