How many VoIP carriers? Survey says 61

Feeling crowded in the market? It's understandable. A new survey says there are 61 VoIP carriers, including CLECs, ILECs, RBOCs, MSOs and independents like Skype and Vonage. It feels like there's more than just 61, though; initial word about the report doesn't indicate what the cut-off is, or if they're counting carrier's carriers like Level 3, or any of a million other questions about the tally. On the other hand, the report does useful things like counting revenue, access lines and business plans for the carriers it does follow--and it would be hard to argue that missing some smaller players would change the general shape of the industry. So let's call it 61, but without the asterisk--because Asterisk isn't a carrier, anyway.

For more information about the Research and Markets report:
- read this press release from Research and Markets