Have you ever used voice or video calls using WhatsApp, Skype, or Instagram? That’s all VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol, and it’s fast gaining traction with businesses around the world. According to the Research and Markets 2021 study, the corporate VoIP services market was worth $68.3 billion. The market is expected to grow to $83 billion by 2026 at a CAGR of 4 percent. 

The ongoing pandemic has forced the hands of the majority of businesses to shift to remote working protocols. And to ease the shift to work-from-home culture and improve team collaboration in remote setup, businesses have been relying on VoIP sound the world. VoIP is not only convenient, but it also helps in reducing operational costs.

Since VoIP services are cost-saving and productivity-improving, businesses globally are now recognizing its advantages. And to their benefit, the best VoIP providers in the market not only offer good VoIP services but also take care of everything from installation to maintenance. According to a study, there’s a 90 percent reduction in the start cost for new businesses after they install a VoIP system.

By the end of the year 2024, the VoIP market is expected to reach a whopping $194.5 billion market value, which is something. Let’s take a look at some of the emerging VoIP trends in 2022.

The Rise of 5g

In the past few years —especially during the last two years of pandemic— a majority of businesses have adopted the mobile-first approach. It’s expected that businesses that adopt a mobile-first approach will continue growing in 2022 and beyond. The mobile device market is expected to touch the $800 billion mark by 2032.

The growth is being fuelled by the steep demand and boost in sales of 5G-enabled smartphones recently. Thanks to the blazing fast speeds, 5G is expected to benefit VoIP through reduced call latency and improved quality of service. With 5G, VoIP services are estimated to take less than a millisecond to connect to the servers. 

Popularity of UCaaS

UCaaS or Unified Communications as a Service will gain traction in the year 2022. What is UCaas? UCaaS platforms are VoIP services at their core but also offer a multitude of services apart from just voice calling over the Internet protocol. These features include instant messaging, team collaboration, conference calls, and more. 

UCaaS unifies all online communication for an organization within one platform. This way, businesses don’t have to invest in different tools for different requirements. Instead, they can simply invest in a UCaaS platform of their choice and enjoy all services in one place. What makes UCaaS even more convenient is that they are cloud-based, which means anyone can access these platforms from anywhere.

Needless to say, UCaaS is an ideal communication platform for companies shifting to remote working. This way all workers and employees will have a centralized hub for all official communications.

AI Will Become More Powerful

AI in VoIP allows service providers to identify the nature of the incoming call based on urgency. This way they can classify critical calls and assign them to the most competent employee in the organization. In 2022, smart digital voice assistants powered by AI are expected to revolutionize the whole interaction between a company and the customer.

The combination of AI and VoIP will help businesses curate advanced call routing and use auto attendants to handle incoming calls effectively. Moreover, AI aids in skill-based call routing capabilities in VoIP. Together, AI and VoIP will aid in making the whole communication faster and better optimized.

Integrated VoIP Support in IoT

It’s expected that in 2022 and beyond, VoIP support in the Internet of Things or IoT will increase. When used together, VoIP and IoT are capable of changing the way businesses operate in day-to-day use. For the uninitiated, IoT involves streamlining the data exchange between internet-enabled devices to enhance interconnectivity. 

As for VoIP, it helps with the transmission of data over IoT. With a combination of these two, businesses around the world can set up smart workplaces. In such workplaces, employees will be able to look up and access any information they need from wherever they are and whenever they need it.

These are some of the top VoIP trends in 2022 that are expected to become popular. Apart from these, there are trends like in-app VoIP communication, increased mobile usage, and more, that businesses should stay on top of. Staying abreast with the recent VoIP trend will help in getting the maximum benefit out of the technology.