You know legacy circuit-switched voice is living on borrowed time when the granddaddy of the technology in South Africa, Telkom, announces it’s wholeheartedly embracing voice over Internet protocol (VoIP).

The telecommunications operator said on Tuesday that it is introducing new VoIP plans for business customers, offering up to 10 lines together unlimited calls to both fixed and mobile numbers for a fixed monthly fee.

Telkom said the new calling plans, which are “crafted” for its PBX customers, are “competitively priced and customers will see immediate savings on their calling usage”.

The company has launched a VoIP voice plan, offering calls at 30c/minute to Telkom fixed and mobile numbers (no matter the distance), 50c/minute for calls to other mobile and fixed operators and — significantly — free on-net VoIP calls (see table below).

Source: Telkom

It is also offering a plan for R1 599 that provides unlimited voice calls to all South African networks (with a fair-use policy) along with five voice sessions (or SIP lines).

A R2 999 plan also offers unlimited calls and 10 SIP lines, also with a fair-use policy applied.

Data usage is zero-rated if companies sign up to a Telkom broadband package, it said.

Telkom has also launched a VoIP solution called IP Voice, which caters for business customers with independent single lines, the company said. This is offered in its digital subscriber line and fibre broadband portfolio. — (c) 2019 NewsCentral Media