Almost half of UK companies are on the way to installing voice over IP (VoIP) but uptake of unified communications (UC) is much slower, a new survey has revealed.

The research, commissioned by telecommunications vendor Teleware and conducted by analysts at PMP, surveyed 100 IT managers. One in 10 had installed VoIP, while 39 per cent were moving towards an installation. Only 16 per cent had no plans to move towards VoIP.

Lesley Hansen, marketing director for Teleware, said: “In the long term, the move to VoIP is inevitable. I do not think there are any technological stumbling blocks anymore.”

However, only 23 per cent of companies are actively pursuing a UC installation.

“One of the problems is UC still has a woolly definition,” said Hansen. “Also, the cost savings are not always quantifiable.”

Rob Bamforth, principal analyst at Quocirca, said: “The move to VoIP will not happen at an even rate and will vary at different companies.

“The UC market need not suffer in a recession, but I fear selling it purely as a new way to communicate is a hard sell.”