The WiFi Cell Phone
& Why the Telephone Companies Hate Cell Phones with WiFi

The WiFi cell phone has been identified by cell phone carriers as an up and coming threat to their revenue streams. Their concerns are well founded. Mobile VoIP or VoWiFi has the potential to evolve into a serious problem for them. It's possible that millions of WiFi cell phone users will either terminate their contracts with carriers or scale down plan minutes.

There is a precedent and the cell phone carriers are well aware of it. They had the opportunity to witness the impact of VoIP on wire line carriers. They lost millions of subscribers and their core product "voice" was irreversibly devalued.

There are parallels between the history of VoIP and developments in the world of WiFi. Neither technology was taken seriously in the beginning, but both have now become mainstream. We initially became familiar with WiFi in our homes. Subsequently it was adopted by business and then continued to spread like a virus to hotels, airports, public libraries and hot spots. The net result is that millions of us have been exposed to the technology and feel comfortable using it. It's simple, robust and getting better all the time.

The WiFi Cell Phone - what is driving the trend?

1.WiFi became the default option for connecting a laptop to the Internet when the chip sets were installed in all new laptops. Repeating the exercise with cell phones and smartphones is now changing the way we use these devices. Most significantly the advent of WiFi cell phones made it possible to initiate and receive VoIP phone calls via a VoIP PBX or Internet service provider such as: Skype, Vonage, Gizmo5, GoogleTalk ... without being tethered to a computer or using cell phone minutes.

2. The proliferation of WiFi networks was driven by the up-take of WiFi enabled devices including smartphones and cell phones. Many of us now live our lives almost completely within the range of one or more WiFi networks and use them continuously to interact with the Internet. The ability to make a cheap or even free mobile VoIP phone call is an added reason to roll out even more access points and so the trend continues.

3.The voice over WiFi space has attracted large numbers of innovative private companies and associations offering endless permutations on the theme of using VoWiFi to slash mobile phone costs and avoid mobile roaming charges. They include: DeFi, Truphone, FON, Whisher, Skype, SipGate, Vopium ... Their solutions are becoming increasingly attractive as well as easy to use.

4. The credibility of the Wi-Fi Certified brand and the work of the Wi-Fi Alliance in progressing the technology. The release of enterprise versions of the 802.11 standard and support for roaming can only accelerate the uptake of VoWiFi.

5. Improvements in WiFi access point technology including support for the WMM (Wireless Multi-Media) protocol. WMM gives priority to voice over data thus eliminating or reducing QoS issues and improving the VoWiFi experience.

6. Cell phone carriers are pushing WiFi cell phone users into using WiFi technology. They are doing this by charging onerous penalties for exceeding data transfer caps and motivating others with an interest in WiFi to dig a little deeper to understand the pros and cons.

7. The cell phone carriers clearly do not appreciate appreciate the significance of Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) and how information workers want to use dual mode smartphones with WiFi. In particular they have underestimated the need to cost effectively synchronize handsets with other devices and head office servers.

8. They have also been slow to recognize that voice can no longer command the premium that it once did. If the carriers cannot be more agile, cell phone users will find more cost effective ways of making phone calls. Many of us don't have far to look as we already own WiFi cell phones.

9. The current global economic upheaval may well be the catalyst that causes a critical mass of people to seriously look at how they can slash their phone bills. One option is to remove the SIM card from their WiFi cell phones and use VoWiFi exclusively.

WiFi mobile phones represent a Trojan Horse threat to the cell phone companies. From their perspective it was a regrettable that the handset manufacturers ever started putting WiFi chip sets in their products and they are now attempting to reverse the trend.

But it's not just in the Chinese market that the cell phone carriers have been successful in mounting a rear guard action against WiFi. It's is also glaring absent from the Blackberry Storm (aka the iPhone Killer). For many of us who were looking for an iPhone alternative that decision was a deal breaker.

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