Skype has increased its share of the global voice market despite a recession that almost halved growth, according to TeleGeography.
The research firm said international call volumes have grown just 8% in the past two years, compared to an average 15% over the past quarter century.
It said carriers delivered an estimated 406 billion IDD minutes in 2009, up from 376 billion minutes in 2008.
However, Skype’s traffic has continued to skyrocket. Its on-net, or Skype-to-Skype international traffic, grew 51% in 2008, and is projected to grow 63% in 2009 to 54 billion minutes, or 13% of all minutes.
"The volume of traffic routed via Skype is tremendous," TeleGeography analyst Stephan Beckert. "Skype is now the largest provider of cross-border communications in the world, by far."
The recession has had a marked impact on many routes, Beckert said.