There was a time where calling was simpler.

Dial. Ring. Hope.

Kind of like the lotto, except at least one family member always acted like you’d never recover financially.

Then came the dawn of “Please Call Me” (proudly brought to you by, um, never mind…).

If you’re old enough to remember those, kudos. For those born post scratch cards and payphones, these little SMS style notifications told their own story. “Noairtime, ILuvU, “dadhasfone” – entire narratives fit into a few words or less. Tales of love, poverty, teenage awkwardness – you had to be there.

Fast forward to the present, and the way we connect has changed. A lot. Call us nostalgic, but we kind of miss the thrill. Feels like the romance is dead now. Today, it’s not just choosing between MTN, Cell C, and Telkom – your ISP can now take center stage in the ballad of Voice.

Navigating the Shift: From Airtime to Data Time:

It’s been ages since the shift from those old, circuit-switched networks to VoIP. Whether on Teams, Zoom, WhatsApp, or even LTE, chances are your ISP is facilitating it. Ever noticed the “HD Call” Option? That’s not Woolies water for Voice – it’s VoLTE, which uses the same data as your latest Netflix binge.

ISPs don’t just facilitate remote work and cat videos any longer. They’ve become a pipeline for advanced, simplified digital communication – often the difference between “can you hear me” and “crystal clear”.

Elaborate? Sure

Your ISP matters in a variety of ways. Hold our drink, we’re about to deep dive:

  • Better Quality of Service (QoS) ensures no lag or sounding like a robot mid story. It eradicates jitter and packet loss, because your ISP is controlling and prioritising traffic. Think of it as ensuring VIP treatment for calls – and that you’re not playing second fiddle to somebody’s Fortnite game.
  • Back in the day, you had to spend on interconnection fees. With VoIP, however, your ISP is the bridge between you, your app, and everyone else. Without this bridge, you’d be saying “please buffer me” instead of “please call me”.
  • Financial ruin? Thing of the past. Calling via Data drastically slashes your bill. We’ve gone from per-minute billing to bundling, with VoIP packages aligning with internet plans to make unlimited calling a reality.

Redefining the Please Call Me:

Here’s our Mic Drop moment:

Today’s “Please Call Me” isn’t an SMS. It’s a lot more. It’s a WhatsApp missed call. It’s a ping on Teams. It’s a notification saying, “you online?”.

And, behind every one of these, there’s one common denominator – your ISP lurking in the shadows. Now, we won’t outright say we’re Batman, but we kind of will.

We’re heading into a world where lines are perpetually blurring. There’s little distinction between a video call, a voice call, and a text message – it’s all a jumble of Data streams with ISPs tangled in the middle. Our role is prioritising and packaging said streams, and ultimately providing the difference between crystal clear or “hello? HELLO?”

So, next time your data-based call goes smoothly, give us a thought (or even a Tweet) – just don’t send us a “Please Call Me”.