Home Office Households Set the Stage for U.S. Consumer VoIP Adoption

IDC: Home office households have historically been early adopters of advanced technology, and this pattern continues with VoIP communications. The number of U.S. households with income-generating or corporate home offices are more than twice as likely to implement VoIP in the next 12 months compared with households in general, a new IDC study reveals. Currently, 39.1% of corporate home offices and 23.7% of home-based businesses are interested in or using VoIP. In contrast, only 10.8% of households without home offices are VoIP aware.

Home offices will adopt VoIP communications at a faster rate than U.S. households overall. Although cost savings are important, features such as convergence with mobile phones will be increasingly important to home offices in the long run.

Among other key findings of the study are the following:

• Although VoIP has moved beyond the very earliest adoption stage, many home office households are reluctant to use VoIP as their only telephone service, and rather add it as a second method of communication.

• Savings on long distance continue to be the key driver of initial interest in VoIP by home offices.

IDC study, Home Office Households Set the Stage for Consumer VoIP Adoption Publ 20060726