News / Voice
VoIP growth leaves the old phone network in place
A 2006 commentary on voice over IP described a widening set of consumer services without declaring the public switched telephone network obsolete.
What was announced or reported
It pointed to residential providers, PC-to-PC calling, cable voice services and Internet companies adding voice features. Those developments made IP calling more visible, but adoption and the practical replacement of established telephone infrastructure remained gradual.
Context and limits
The article’s central question was about consumer behaviour as much as technology. Its subscriber and company references are a snapshot of the VoIP market at that time, not an account of present-day services.
Why the distinction matters
The comparison is useful because it avoids reducing the transition to a single protocol change. Consumer habits, numbering, device compatibility and service bundles all affected whether IP voice could substitute for conventional calling in everyday use. The same caution applies to the period’s named subscriber figures.