News Blog 4

What I learned from class:

Internet Telephony: a category of hardware and software that enables people to use the Internet as the transmission medium for telephone calls. For users who have free, or fixed-price Internet access, Internet telephony software essentially provides free telephone calls anywhere in the world.

Mass customization, is the use of flexible computer-aided manufacturing systems to produce custom output. Those systems combine the low unit costs of mass production processes with the flexibility of individual customization.

Relevant Article:

Internet Telephony: Coming in Clear
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2006/tc20060710_291171.htm?chan=technology_ceo+guide+to+technology

It is true that VoIP's benefits outweigh its drawbacks for business. First, this type of service can dramatically lower the telecommunications costs. For instance, the operating costs for VoIP service providers are significantly lower than for traditional phone companies. With lower expenses, VoIP providers can charge much less than their competitors. And with VoIP, businesses no longer have to maintain separate networks for phones and data--another significant money saver. Second, VoIP also provides useful features and capabilities that conventional phone technology can't offer. For example, you can get virtual phone number and get voice mail and faxes with your e-mail. In other words, VoIP service can make the phone system highly flexible and increase the productivity. Even though it has some drawbacks such as difficulty in sending faxes and the frequent reliance upon internet connection, one thing is for sure: VoIP technology is continually evolving, with compelling new benefits being developed for businesses.