Reports have surfaced that an illegal VoIP set-up has been found and dismantled in Rawalpindi, a fast growing city in the heart of Pakistan’s Pothohar region. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and FIA stormed the home of one Muhammad Hafiz on Wednesday, finding an illegally maintained and operated Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) set-up. According to the authorities, those responsible for the system learned of their impending raid, managing to destroy the system, made up of 40 SIMs and three international gateway exchanges. However, during a second raid at a separate location, two men were arrested in connection with the unlicensed VoIP scheme.
VoIP is Increasingly Popular for Businesses
VoIP solutions are increasingly popular among businesses across the world. The benefits of using VoIP, most often referred to as an internet phone service, are many. Most notably, VoIP is said to give businesses increased communications mobility and rich media capabilities. Further, since VoIP services exist digitally, thereby ridding them of any geographical identity, the idea of international or domestic phone calls is quickly disappearing.
Most notably for businesses of all sizes, perhaps, is the savings that VoIP is known to bring. After a VoIP system has been installed, most businesses see a drastic reduction in the cost of both outgoing and incoming calls. In fact, many report they have saved over 50% on their calls since adopting a VoIP system.
Translating Directly into Explosive Growth
The long list of benefits that come packaged with VoIP have led to a strong growth in the industry over the last five years, with industry analysts calling for explosive growth from the end of 2013 to 2018. By 2018, VoIP is expected to control more than 40% of the business voice market, a growth of nearly 25% in four-years. It’s this huge growth that has people across the world, people like Pakistan’s Muhammad Hafiz, willing to brave the law in order to tap into the growing wealth there is to be made in the industry. While this latest case in Rawalpindi may have made the biggest splash, VoIP’s assured growth means it certainly won’t be the last.