All-IP is largely unknown in Switzerland

1.9 million. This is the number of households that Swisscom claims to already serve with All-IP. If the customers of many other large and regional providers, including cable providers, who obtain triple-play services (Internet / TV / telephony) via All-IP are included, the number of All-IP users is likely to be considerably higher. In view of the fact that the Internet protocol is now used almost everywhere in Switzerland for the provision of all services, the Berlin-based communications specialist AVM wanted to find out what exactly Swiss consumers know about the technology that is "All-IP".

The results of the representative consumer survey conducted throughout Switzerland by AVM with the independent market research institute Link contradict in the extreme the original assumption of an equally widespread awareness of the new technology, according to the report. Just under one in thirteen confirmed that they knew roughly what it was, one in nine said they had already heard of it but did not know what All-IP was, and an overwhelming majority (81%) claimed not to know the term "All-IP". This is the sobering result of the consumer survey in the eyes of the study authors

Changeover causes different expectations regarding changes

The consumers who said they knew roughly what All-IP was all about were also asked what would change for them in the course of the switch to All-IP. The study proved to be very informative on this question as well, AVM adds. One in two respondents (almost one in three among Italian-speaking Swiss) said they could imagine a change in their consumer behavior. Among them, one in seven employees with a medium to high gross income revealed that they had no idea what such a change would look like: a potential of "undecideds" who might even change their Internet provider in the near future.

One in five, on the other hand, resolutely pointed to a change of Internet subscription in favor of greater flexibility: a "downgrade" to a data-only line instead of an "all-in-one" package (Internet/telephony/TV) is an option for these consumers because they mainly make mobile calls and prefer "TV on demand" offers. An opinion shared by as many as one in three in rural areas. One in six respondents said they were not enthusiastic about the switchover and identified the router constraint as a reason for their own dissatisfaction: Here, the fact that carriers are prescribing routers of their own brand to their customers for the Internet, telephony or TV services they use as part of the switchover is mentioned in no uncertain terms, quite unlike in neighboring Germany, for example, where the free choice of router has already been a reality since August 2016.

One in thirteen respondents is even irritated by the changeover because of the increase in the price of Internet subscriptions while usage remains unchanged. However, it is unclear whether this is purely a fear or a statement substantiated by their own experience.

The advantages of All-IP

The switch to All-IP offers consumers many advantages. Internet, TV and telephony are available from a single socket in the wall, regardless of whether you get the services via cable, copper (DSL) or fiber optics. Fixed-line telephony is transmitted via Internet protocol and no longer over different frequency ranges on a single line. This improves call quality, because voice-over-IP telephony, which is already widespread, can also be used to make calls in acoustically high-quality high-definition (HD). Another advantage is that smartphones can also be connected to the IP connection via WLAN and can be used like conventional landline telephones. And most TV providers already transmit their TV channels via IP today anyway. For some time now, communications specialist AVM has been offering routers that integrate this new technology into the intelligent home network.