Arcep: VoIP hugely popular in France

French telecom regulatory body Arcep has said in a report that internet based telephone calls are increasingly becoming popular in the country.

Arcep added that the VoIP based calls represented a quarter of total fixed-line calls in France by the end of last year. This means that the volume has essentially more than doubled in 2006.

The regulatory body added: “This comes mainly from the fast growth of subscriptions to telephone services based on Internet Protocol, the number of which has doubled since the end of 2005.”

The report further claimed that the number of French consumers subscribed to high-speed Internet reached 12.7 million at the end of 2006.

The country gained from the tariff cuts imposed by the regulator and fierce competition in the mobile telecom sector.

Popularity: 23% [?]