100 Million Mobile VoIP Users By 2011: Analyst

While voice-over-IP is already spreading rapidly in homes and enterprises, there also will be 100 million users of mobile VoIP by 2011, according to a study released Tuesday by ON World.

"Services such as VoIP, video, music, radio, news and instant messaging coupled with mobile devices such as a Wi-Fi-enabled iPod, and the ubiquity of broadband will result in 100 million consumer mobile VoIP users in 2011," Mareca Hatler, ON World's director of research, said in a statement.

In particular, the study predicts that 36 percent of the devices mobile users have in 2011 for accessing VoIP service will be entertainment devices such as Wi-Fi-enabled iPods, the study predicted. Skype will be a big winner in this market and, by 2011, will have 25 percent of mobile VoIP users throughout the world, according to the study. That will result in $1.2 billion in revenues a year for Skype, the study claims.

In addition to analyzing technology and the marketplace, the market research firm said it also based its findings on interviews with 100 top technologists.