VoIP Subscribers Up 18 Pct in Third Quarter

New numbers from research firm TeleGeography finds U.S. subscribers to VoIP services grew 18 percent during the third quarter of 2006.

New market figures from analyss firm TeleGeography find that the number of U.S. subscribers to VoIP services increased by 18 percent to a total of 8.2 million users during the third quarter of 2006. Great news for the industry, right? Yes and no: it’s also the second straight quarter in which the growth rate for VoIP services in the U.S. slowed. Nonetheless, growth is growth: VoIP accounted for $732 million in the second quarter of 2006, compared to just $298 million in the second quarter of 2005.

TeleGeography finds that Vonage remains the biggest player in the U.S. VoIP market, with 1.95 million subscribers. Second and third place went to cable operators, with Time Warner chalking up 1.64 million subscribers and Comcast moving into third playce with 1.35 million subscribers. Cablevision dropped to fourth place with 1.1 million subscribers.

According to TeleGeography, by the end of 2006 VoIP will be present in almost 9 percent of U.S. households, with 9.7 million active VoIP customers. Overall revenues for 2006 are expected to reach $2.6 billion, compared to 2005 when the market pulled in just over $1 billion in revenue.