Europe Ready for Cell-VoIP Convergence, Survey Says

A survey in European conducted by Motorola indicates that users are ready to adopt converged cellular and Wi-Fi voice-over-IP (VoIP) voice calling services.

According to Motorola, more than 50 percent of more than 1,000 consumers in the survey in six European countries would switch to a cellular carrier that offered the converged service using technology such as Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA).

UMA, a technology that Motorola has championed, enables seamless handoff between cellular and Wi-Fi networks. When adopted by cellular carriers and incorporated into phones, users could make VoIP calls over wireless LANs using their cellular phones. Motorola and a host of other infrastructure vendors have been trying to convince cellular carriers to adopt the technology.

A third of those who said they would adopt the converged service said they would make most or all of their home calls using VoIP and their cellular phone, according to Motorola. And while the converged service would require in-home broadband, only 22 percent said they were reluctant to abandon their regular in-home telecom provider for the new service.

"This research clearly demonstrates that the European market is ready to embrace UMA-enabled services," Margaret Rice-Jones, Motorola's corporate vice president for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, said in a statement.