Watching blogpulse's chart of Skype's blogshare, I can't help noticing how closely the line of the term "VoIP" follows the incidence of Skype-related terms. It's almost as if VoIP is mostly getting mentioned as an explanation or echo of Skype. Has VoIP become redundant as a consumer marketing term? If you're a rival, are you better off saying your product is "like Skype" than "a VoIP tool"? If you're Skype, why would you even mention the term to consumers?

So if Skype is driving the public perception of VoIP, how much is Vonage affecting the "VoIP meme" with their massive US ad campaigns?

Skype is more than VoIP, of course, and the company has a real chance to define its brand on its own terms, and not just on this last-millenium bit of jargon. Careful framing may put all the traditional VoIP people at a disadvantage. For example, Skype adds value with secure phone calls; does your VoIP do that? Since "free" isn't enough to justify North American mass adoption, Skype marcom will explore all the other offers it can make. Its choice of offers may not only redefine VoIP, but set expectations (privacy, presence, collaboration, picture sharing, voice quality, ease of use, video, it just works) competitors may find challenging to match.