It might not be what you would normally expect, but even telephone companies today are likely to be using Voice-over-Internet Protocol to route regular phone calls, instead of their own International Gateway Facilities (IGFs). This seems non-intuitive, especially since telcos themselves build, maintain, and re-sell IGF services, but with today’s communications infrastructure rapidly shifting towards IP-based transport mechanisms, you can expect VoIP to be the standard in voice communications not too long from now.

Furthermore, routing calls through VoIP is definitely cheaper than having to go through IGFs, as these entail interconnection fees, maintenance fees, and other charges, which add up along the way. Most likely, telcos are experiencing the brunt of the intense competition with free and pay VoIP providers, and hence are looking at means to lower costs. Hence, routing regular calls—both domestic and international—over the Internet may be a good solution.

So with the popularity of VoIP, and with bandwidth costs getting lower and lower, we can see a lot of independent “telcos” sprouting up here and there. Many ride on customers’ existing high speed Internet connections. Some offer their services with dongles that plug into the customer’s regular telephone line.

One thing’s for sure: until a better and cheaper voice transport mechanism comes up, VoIP is likely to be the standard for many years to come.