What's VOIP and how can I call Europe?

[Lifetime]

I have recently received a telemarketing phone call from a lady who stated she works for Pulse Telecom, a new phone company on the market. She also said they have low rates to call Europe and a very good connection with VOIP, by internet. I wonder what is VOIP and if I can use my Mac Desktop to call Europe via VOIP?
Thank you.

 

[Sky Blue]

Ever heard of Skype?
www.skype.com

VOIP is voice over IP, using your internet connection to place calls. Calls are usually cheaper than going through a regular phone company.

 

[belvdr]

Ever heard of Skype?
www.skype.com

VOIP is voice over IP, using your internet connection to place calls.

Actually any network connection, so long as the voice termination point transfers it into the phone system.

 

[tonyburkhart]

Yes, there are many VoIP programs that you can use for voice calls at a discounted or no cost. There is even free software if you want to integrate SIP.

As Sky blue said, Skype. It is one of the easiest to use and most robust of the non-commercial grade VoIP solutions.

Read up on Voice over Internet Protocol on Wikipedia :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_over_Internet_Protocol

and

Session Initiated Protocol :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Session_Initiation_Protocol

Hope that helps!