A majority of corporate executives expect to implement Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), new research has indicated.

According to a report on networking and business strategy from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), reduced cost and flexibility are the two principal drivers for VoIP adoption.

Companies said that advantages of the technology included its ability to carry calls on internal networks, thus bypassing traditional telecom providers, and its additional promise of greater functionality.

The EIU survey of 254 senior executives revealed that 43 per cent of respondents are currently using, testing or planning to implement VoIP within the next two years, while another 18 per cent believe they will implement it in the long term.

"The question is no longer if but when VoIP will become the new standard for voice traffic," said Cathy Martine, senior vice president of internet telephony at AT&T, which commissioned the research.

Current barriers to adoption, including weaknesses in VoIP's performance, reliability and security, are being overturned, claimed the report.

"Cost studies are now easier to perform, savings are more predictable and the questions of quality and reliability have now largely been addressed thanks to the development of international standards and stable software and hardware solutions," added Martine.

Eighty-seven per cent of respondents identified the reduction of telephone charges as critical or important in their decision to use or plan to implement VoIP.

But the report warned that ultimately VoIP investments should not be judged on cost savings alone. Seventy-one percent of the survey respondents cited VoIP features such as unified messaging and 'follow-me' as critical or important in their decision to use or plan to implement VoIP.