Wholesale Voice Carrier Market Size, Share, and Industry Analysis By Service (Voice Termination, Interconnect Billing, and Fraud Management), By Technology (Traditional Switching, VoIP & IP Exchange), By Application (Telecom Service Providers, Mobile Network Operators, Enterprises & Business, and Others), and Regional Forecast, 2025-2032

The global wholesale voice carrier market expansion is being greatly influenced by the increasing demand for international voice connectivity in the emerging markets and the advent of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). There are two main routes of expansion including the migration of the market to the IP-based voice service (known as VoIP) and the integration of unified communications. The wholesale voice carrier services refer to the bulk voice carrier services whereby the telecommunication operators use these services to interconnect the calls over different networks and geographical locations.

Wholesale Voice Carrier Market Driver

Globalization of Business and Migration Patterns to Expand the Market

The business's global presence and migration patterns have increased significantly with the demand for international voice calls. Given that multinational corporations are increasingly spreading out from borders, a form of communication between staff, partners, and customers feels as though it must be seamless and cheap.

Transition to VoIP Services to Advance the Market

Promotion of the conventional circular switched telephony to the Voice over the Internet Protocol (VoIP) has gained significant importance in the wholesale voice carry market. The advantages of VoIP over traditional telephony are the cost savings, enhanced flexibility, and advanced features offered by VoIP.

Wholesale Voice Carrier Market Restraint

High Competition from Over the Top (OTT) Services Pose Potential Impediments on this Market

High competition from Over the Top (OTT) services is one of the major restraints of the wholesale voice carrier market. Many platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Viber, among others, offer free or very low-cost voice and video calling over the internet connection.

Wholesale Voice Carrier Market Opportunity

Wholesale Voice Carriers to Create Opportunity in this Market

Wholesale voice carriers have a compelling opportunity at the expense of the emerging markets. These are hotspots of rapidly growing economies, upsurging use of smartphones, and wider internet reach, where there is a growing demand for telecommunications services, mostly voice communication.

Key Insights

The report covers the following key insights:

• Market drivers, restraints and opportunities
• Influence of key industry players and key developments
• IP based Voice Service Statistics
• Virtual Mobile Network Operators, By Key Countries

Segmentation

Analysis by Service

By service, the market is divided into voice termination, interconnect billing, and fraud management.

The voice termination is the segment within the wholesale voice carrier market for which this delivery of voice calls to the endpoint is, that is, whether this is a landline, mobile phone, or VoIP endpoint. The segment is significantly expanding the market by optimising call routing and assuring high-quality voice delivery over different networks.

The interconnect billing segment involves the complex financial transactions that happen between telecommunications operators on the exchange of voice traffic. This segment is taking this market ahead by bettering the billing process, better transparency, and more accurate settlement of the interconnect charges.

Analysis by Technology

Based on technology, the market is divided into traditional switching, VoIP, and IP exchange.

The wholesale voice carrier market is undoubtedly moving toward IP-based solutions, yet the traditional switching segment, relying on a circuit-switched technology, still has a role to play with market expansion, albeit in a more specialized manner.

The VoIP segment is the major fuel for growth in the wholesale voice carrier market. VoIP and the internet/IP networks that it uses provide users with a significant number of the advantages of switching less expensively, more flexibly, and with more advanced capabilities.

• According to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) - Voice Telephone Services Report, as of December 31, 2023, there were approximately 455 million interconnected VoIP subscriptions in the U.S.

Analysis by Application

Based on application, the market is divided into telecom service providers, mobile network operators, enterprises & business, and others.

The application of wholesale voice carrier services to Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) is significant. The segment may lead the market. The wholesale voice is essential to the operation of all service providers, both fixed line and Internet service providers, as it is the method for extending their service offerings and connecting their customers with the global telecommunications network.

The application of wholesale voice carrier services to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) is particularly important for international roaming and inter-network connectivity. The segment is likely to expand considerably in the future.

Regional Analysis

Based on region, the market has been studied across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa.

North America’s advanced technological infrastructure and robust telecommunications ecosystem yield a large impact on the wholesale voice carrier market in North America, especially in the U.S. VoIP headquarters are in this area, as major carriers and tech providers are leading VoIP and unified communications and cloud-based voice solutions.

• According to FCC - Voice Telephone Services, as of June 30, 2022, mobile voice subscriptions in the U.S. reached about 353 million.

Different regulatory environments, enriched telecom infrastructure, and a focus on data privacy exert a strong influence on all players in the wholesale voice carrier market coming from Europe. The market is greatly impacted by the European Union's regulatory framework for promoting competition as well as protecting the consumers interests.

The Asia Pacific region is a key growth engine for the wholesale voice carrier market on account of the fast advancement of the economies in the region, rising mobile penetration, and escalating demand for international communication. Wholesale voice providers are faced with a variety of challenges and opportunities in the region’s diverse markets with highly developed economies such as Japan and South Korea and rapidly developing ones (adding India and Indonesia) in one place.

Key Players Covered

The report includes the profiles of the following key players:

• Verizon Partner Solutions (U.S.)
• BT (U.K.)
• Tata Communications Limited. (India)
• Deutsche Telekom AG (Germany)
• Orange (France)
• IDT global Services (U.S.)
• NTT Ltd. (U.S.)
• Cox Communications, Inc. (U.S.)
• Lumen Technologies. (U.S.)
• Telstra (Australia)
• Telenor Group (Norway)
• Vodafone (U.K.)
• GTT Communications, Inc. (U.S.)

Key Industry Developments

• In September 2024, Acmetel and Tata Communications joined forces to expand their voice services across the globe. Such a partnership indicates an attempt to increase the geographical availability of voice services. In particular, when communication is conducted across borders in the globalized economy of today, businesses need to function similar to fluid, as one unstoppable, continuous flow.
• In June 2021, the collaboration of Microsoft Teams Operator Connect with BICS has been on the wheel in the wholesale voice carrier market and is an important change. The fact that this collaboration is happening represents the growing intersection between traditional wholesale voice services and cloud-based communication platforms.

In April 2020, NOS International Carrier Services’ acquisition by Tofane Global represented a significant development within the wholesale voice carrier market, as there are very many impacts attached to it. It is a clear indication of the trend with which the wholesale voice carrier market is undergoing consolidation. To gain global reach, the company is integrating existing carrier businesses, yet the strategy is to acquire them to increase scale and market uptake.