During the 1980s, the analogue PSTN telephony system was rapidly aging and ISDN was its exciting new successor. Standing for Integrated Services Digital Network, this digital version of standard telephone lines allowed both data and voice to be transferred simultaneously using the standard PSTN copper wires for a more secure and stable connection for long-distance calls.
At the time, it offered higher quality, clearer calls than the old-style PSTN system, with speedier receiving and sending of data and far less distortion, and while it continued to use the cooper lines, the improvement it offered was a massive step up from the limited and inconsistent PSTN.
Yet, while all of this was cutting edge back in the 80s, today it has become just as outdated as PSTN was four decades ago. With the arrival of broadband, voice communications have been revolutionised and digital functionality has removed any need for outdated and costly analogue wiring. With this in mind, it’s easy to see why switching to SIP and VoIP is such a good idea.
SIP stands for Session Initiation Protocol while VoIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol. These two new systems are rapidly replacing the old and outdated ISDN lines. The term VoIP is quite a broad one, essentially meaning that voice can be transmitted via the internet instead of using traditional copper lines. Meanwhile, SIP is a protocol, which is now industry-preferred, of achieving a VoIP connection which extends functionality by enabling the user to end multimedia data in the form of video and messaging via VoIP.
In short, a brand new standard has been set for voice communication by VoIP. Without any physical limitations since calls are initiated via the internet, VoIP allows phone systems to move with a business while simplifying features like call forwarding and conference calls since everything can be found on a single data network rather than dedicated individual phone lines. As a result, this system is more scalable and efficient than anything that came before it.