Internet faxing: an online service that puts an end to fax machines
Yes, in fact, conventional fax machines are dying and will soon be out of business. We now live in a digital world: emails, cell phones, instant messaging and GPRS systems are everywhere and slip into everyone’s lives. Ask yourself: When was the last time you sent your mail through the postman? And when was the last time you clicked that reply or forward button to send an email? Technology changes, our quality of life too.
Fax services are quite similar to email. When the first email services were introduced, not many people got hooked and they still think that posting sent through their office worker is more secure and reliable. But as soon as people find the convenience of emails… the heat spreads and affects every person’s life.
Internet faxing, also known as online faxing, efax or fax to email or virtual fax, is a technology that allows you to send and receive faxes in email forms. Modern internet services have made sending faxes easier and faster in a cheaper way compared to conventional fax transmissions. “We’re eliminating the need for a fax machine,” says Janice Kapner, director of marketing and corporate communications for eFax. eFax is one of the pioneers in the internet fax business offering free fax to email service to over a million subscribers.
By signing up for eFax services, you’ll get a real fax number where you can receive faxes, which are then forwarded to an email address of your choosing. You can also send faxes to a regular fax machine through the service. Click here for more reading on eFax service reviews.
Internet faxing has caught the attention of businesses large and small. More than 14 billion pages were sent over IP-based networks in 2002 and the number continues to rise, yielding more than 20 billion pages sent at the time of writing.
Why is Internet fax service growing so fast? Answer: the cost. Internet faxing requires less cost compared to conventional fax machine, which required the user to purchase a fax machine, fax machine toners, additional fax lines… the list goes on. With Internet faxing, you don’t have to invest in equipment; you don’t need to pay for a dedicated fax line; you don’t have to allocate an additional budget to maintain your fax machine.
Internet fax services often only require a fixed fee to use. For eFax, subscription fees range from $0 to $19.95/month; can receive faxes up to 200 pages for free; then you can send faxes for a low price of $0.10/page; you get a local or toll-free number; you get additional services, such as voicemail to email services.
Also, Internet fax does not give a “busy” tone. You can always receive faxes as they will simply arrive in your email inbox. Faxes can be received even if your PC is offline or the phone line is in use; it’s always on and you’ll never miss a fax with Internet faxing. “The ‘always on’ aspect of a web-based fax service means that many faxes can be received simultaneously at the same number,” says Leslie Morgan Nakajima, director of corporate communications for Onebox.com.
Convenience is another plus point for Internet faxing. With Internet faxing, your faxes are automatically converted into digital files. This, in turn, helps you manage your files easily. Just like other files on your computer, you can now copy, forward, and organize them on your PC’s hard drive, simply and cleanly. With most Internet fax services, your faxes become digital files that can be copied, forwarded, and archived. There is no learning curve for the service, one can simply subscribe and start using it to enhance their daily work.
On the other hand, there are some limitations to Internet faxing: you need online access and a scanner to fax paper documents. That’s why the other numbers from Dataquest show that traditional faxing will stick around for years to come. However, the economics and manageability of Internet faxing will allow an increasing number of savvy home office workers to do without a fax machine.
