Posted via free Wi-Fi hotspot at Apple Core Hotels’ Ramada Inn in New York City.

Last week I had a chance to chat with Raju Gulabani, CEO & Chairman of Telesym, a company that makes server and client software that turns PDAs and laptops into VoIP phones. The conversation, covered many topics, but one bit which stood out was why Voice over Wi-Fi makes sense in the enterprise, retail and warehousing marketings.

By providing a PBX interface, the company is staying away from the consumer space. Why? Because according to Raju, Ïconsumer (VoIP) market today makes no sense and in the long run the market is going to be destroyed.Ó However, he argues that the enterprise return on investment is quite clear.

bq. Raju points out that today, of the total cell phone usage in the United States US, nearly 23 percent minutes are used by business users on campus but away from the desk.

Twenty three percent of $55 monthly phone bill is a significant recurring expense. Especially for large Fortune 500 type companies. In comparison, by spending about $200 once, the companies can simply route the wired calls to the PDAs or to the laptops, which can reduce the cellular phone service. ours is a $200 one time charge on a device that you own.

The retail operators, warehouses, and health care institutions have glommed on to this and are shifting much of their voice infrastructure to Voice over Wireless LAN. Telesym has made sure that its products interface with the PBX systems. ÏWe work with Cisco, 3COm, Avaya, Nortel and Siemens,Ó says Raju, and points out that a Dialogics card allows circuit switched PBX boxes to get Voice-over-WiFi enabled.