IP TELEPHONY

IP telephony (Internet Protocol telephony) is a general term for the technologies that use the Internet Protocol's packet-switched connections to exchange voice, fax, and other forms of information that have traditionally been carried over the dedicated circuit-switched connections of the public switched telephone network (PSTN). Also known as VoIP phone systems, IP telephone systems typically comprise a VoIP private branch exchange (an IP PBX) and desktop VoIP phones (IP Phones) that connect to a VoIP service provider via a Local Area Network (LAN). One of the key advantages to IP telephone systems is that whereas long-distance calls on a regular phone system can be cost prohibitive, the same calls on an IP phone system are free -- there are no fees beyond the cost of Internet access.