VoIP-Friendly Wi-Fi Access Points Step Closer to Convergence

That holy grail of wireless/IP convergence, i.e., the seamless handoff of a dual-mode phone call from a Wi-Fi network to a cellular network, is still a rare phenomenon in most places but small steps are being taken in the form of a new class of specialized Wi-Fi access points designed to support voice-over-IP,

Connected to a VoIP network and phone service, these access points provide VoIP’s cheaper services to cellular phone users within range of their Wi-Fi transmitters, as well as possibly offering better-than-cellular indoor coverage, the firm continued.

If a user leaves the zone of Wi-Fi coverage, and if their mobile operator supports such services, these devices will also hand off calls from Wi-Fi to cellular. Motorola’s recently-announced RSG system, expected by late this year, exemplifies the trend, ABI noted.

Philip Solis, senior analyst of wireless connectivity research at ABI Research, said in a statement, “If such products prove successful it will validate the idea and the importance of voice-over-Wi-Fi. Even a system providing a limited service, without operator-supported handoffs, offers rewards in the form of cheaper calls and better indoor coverage.”

If these VoIP/Wi-Fi access products enjoy considerable market success it would also support analyst forecasts of a boom in dual-mode cellular/VoWi-Fi devices.

Still, much work remains to be done by all industry stakeholders to arrange how services are charged and minutes billed, before seamless handoffs become an attractive proposition to most carriers, ABI said.

“ABI Research would urge mobile operators who lag behind in offering converged services to pick up the pace, or risk losing revenue to their nimbler competitors, or because their customers find lower-cost workarounds,” Solis concluded.