Vodafone Helping Disrupt The Telecommunications Industry

The wireless telecommunications industry isn’t necessarily known for its innovation. Rather than seeking ways to disrupt the industry, most of the big boys expand their reach by consolidating with other companies through mergers and acquisitions. But in spite of all this, Britain’s Vodafone (VOD) Group seems to be jumping on the newest innovation that could change the landscape of the entire industry.

The Power of Wi-Fi

Last week, Vodafone announced it would be launching Wi-Fi calling in the United Kingdom during the summer of 2015. What this means is that when a customer is connected to a Wi-Fi network, Vodafone will automatically route all calls over that connection, as long as you’re out of the network coverage. While on the surface this doesn’t necessarily look like much of an upgrade. However, there are two things to consider:

1. This makes it possible for users to use their mobile phones internationally without having to pay for international calls (as long as they are connected to Wi-Fi, of course). This is because the phone will only recognize that it’s not within the network coverage and automatically switch over.
2. With more calls being routed over Wi-Fi, this decreases the overall bandwidth of network air time, which has the potential of decreasing the costs for Vodafone and, therefore, Vodafone’s customers.

Not the First

While the innovation is fairly new to the industry, Vodafone isn’t the first to jump on the wagon. In the UK, it follows EE, Three and O2. However, as Engadget states, Vodafone is improving on the idea:

“Three and O2 have already launched their respective services, but to use them you need to have a dedicated app installed on your smartphone. EE is trialing a service that doesn't rely on any extra software, and today Vodafone says it'll be using a similar approach. So in theory, it'll work quietly in the background with minimal input. Provided you're connected to a Wi-Fi network, calls will switch over automatically when you're out of network coverage.”

Not Perfected

There are still some technology kinks to work out, though. The transition from network to Wi-Fi will only be seamless for 4G (VoLTE) customers. For example, customers who live in a 2G/3G area that start a call over Wi-Fi at home, that call will drop once he or she leaves that network and is back in Vodafone’s network. I’m not quite sure why this isn’t available for these areas. Motorola (MSI) pioneered the technology almost three years ago, so there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be possible here.

Bottom Line

Vodafone is hardly innovative in this regard, but it’s smart to be an early adopter of the Wi-Fi calling wave. It’s only a matter of time before other global powerhouses jump on board. It’s a win-win for both the company, which can save money on air time bandwidth, and customers, to whom the company can pass on some of the savings to remain competitive in the marketplace.