NewPhone is a triple play service provider offering services in Norway and Sweden using the incumbent service providers' broadband and mobile Internet. The company has grown from a turnover of SEK 8 million in 2004 to SEK 51 million in 2006.
You are a mobile service provider in Sweden. To what extent have you utilized VoIP so far?
We integrate the IP PBX with mobile phones. If you have a fixed line phone, we can take the fixed line numbers, put them in the PBX and when somebody calls that number the PBX will divert the call to the mobile phones. Between the PBX and the mobile phones we send calls through a SIP tunnel and that is where we use VoIP. Being IP based, subscribers can take calls on their handsets anywhere in the world provided they have IP connection and our wireless IP Phone.
Which VoIP vendor do you work with?
We have deployed Broadsoft solution.
How would you compare fixed line VoIP with the mobile VoIP in Sweden?
All the research we have done so far tells us that the market here in Sweden is going mobile and that makes it even more relevant to just go mobile with VoIP from the beginning.
In general, what is your perspective on the growth of fixed line VoIP?
Most of the residential customers will use Skype or MSN because if it works there is no need for you to buy the service for more money. The fixed line at your home will only be a backup and the only time I see it being used is when you have cost issues. For that you will have Skype etc, so it is difficult to make money with fixed line VoIP overtime.
As a mobile service provider, what has been your experience with the use of VoIP technology so far?
We started with VoIP about 4 years ago. It wasn’t fully developed at the time. It began to work in late 2006 when we were able to implement quality of service. The VoIP technology is getting better. I don’t see any weakness in the technology as such. With SIP VoIP can do a lot more then we are able to do today.
How much traffic have you migrated over to IP so far?
We are a small operator. We are handling about 2 million mobile minutes per month. About one-fourth of that would be Norwegian traffic. I would say that about one-quarter of a million minutes are VoIP at present.