Do Non-Cable VoIP Providers Stand A Chance?

Several VoIP bloggers have been weighing in lately on the advantage that cable providers have over most other types of VoIP service providers. As well, some also feel that services like Jajah and Rebtel just will not succeed. The fact is, there are actually quite a few ways that VoIP service can be provided:

• pure play – Vonage, SunRocket.
• satellite – DirecTV, SES Astra.
• powerline – Duke Energy.
• cellular wireless data network.
• high-speed dial up (broadband)
• cable broadband – Comcast.
• VoIP bridges for phone-to-phone calling – Jajah.
• soft phones over broadband – Sightspeed, Gizmo Project, Skype and alternatives.
• dual-mode cell phones or single-mode Wi-Fi phones over municipal Wi-Fi.

Did I miss anything? But of all of these, only cable companies and a few others can offer a triple-play of service: TV programming, Internet access and VoIP. Thing is, as VoIP News mentions, some non-cable VoIP providers need to use a broadband connection, giving cable and high-speed dialups profit even if customers don’t buy VoIP from them. And with the triple-play of services, it’s no wonder that cable companies like Comcast in the US have a million VoIP subscribers already. Do other providers even stand a chance? Personally, by the end of the decade, I think that pure-play providers will have been absorbed or disintegrated.

Personally, I’d rather go with cable. I can get my TV and Internet in a bundle deal, and find a VoIP soft phone for free. Why pay the cablecos extra for “digital telephone”? If I want to use a handset, I can set up a wireless router and use a (Skype) Wi-Fi phone. And as more people learn about VoIP and the different types, costs, and benefits, I’m wagering that others will feel the same way that cable gives you the best deal.