Peterson's comments, made in a keynote address in Orlando last week, stood in stark contrast to presentations from several businesses well on their way to outfitting their companies with new IP-based networks, phones and applications.

Jeff Lemmer, manager of global telecommunications at Ford Motor Co., said the automaker conducted a thorough financial review of voice-over-IP technology before starting a three-year rollout to 60 sites in Michigan. The company is about halfway through the effort to replace 40,000 analog phones with VOIP phones from Cisco Systems Inc., according to Lemmer.

In a keynote at the conference, Lemmer said the review included "detailed financial modeling" to determine return on investment. He would not comment on details of the review but said the "financial savings are on target."

PPL Corp. has saved more than US$1 million annually on maintenance and toll calls with a VOIP system put in place two years ago, said Dave Stever, manager of communications technologies at the Allentown, Pa.-based supplier of electricity and natural gas.

In addition, Vantis Credit Union Ltd. in Winnipeg, Manitoba, projects that the installation of IP-based video-conferencing kiosks from Nortel Networks Ltd. in eight remote offices over the next two months will boost annual revenue by 15 percent to 20 percent, said CEO Michel Audette. The kiosks will enable customers in remote offices to discuss business with officials in other facilities, and also reduce the need for staffers in the remote offices, he said.