Facebook continues VoIP experiment with Android app, U.K. rollout

Recently, this blog covered the rollout of VoIP phone systems on the Facebook Messenger application for iOS users. Starting in Canada and then moving to the United States, the program has been a success and the company is showing no signs of slowing down.

This week, Facebook quietly made two announcements about its mobile VoIP systems that help push it to the next level. The first is that the service will become available to iOS users in the United Kingdom. The second allows Android users to access the feature.

Kevin Krause, a writer for Phandroid, covered the announcement and tried out the new feature. According to the hands-on test, it is still limited right now. Not every user who has updated was able to make a call and some received error messages.

"So far Facebook's attempts to push Messenger as a total replacement for traditional SMS have been slow to catch on, especially with a number of other free messaging services with a strong foothold in the mobile arena," Krause wrote. "They'll likely face an equally tough time cracking the VoIP market (especially if they never advertise it) despite the ubiquity of their platform."

While this option is still very much in the testing phase, it does show that the popularity of VoIP phone systems is growing. Businesses and consumers alike can take advantage of the benefits of cheaper phone calls and improved connectivity with internet-based communication.

For the corporate sector to successfully use VoIP, however, requires more than just downloading a couple applications. Additionally, businesses should partner with an IT consulting firm that is experienced with enterprise level VoIP communication and ensure they are getting the best system.

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