In-Stat, a technology research firm, this week released a report entitled, Worldwide Demand for Wi-Fi/Cellular Combo Phones, which—despite the word “worldwide” in its title—concludes that demand in the United States for “dual-mode” Wi-Fi/cellular phones is increasing. In fact, the firm found that of the 1,400 some-odd “mid-to-high income [American] businesspeople familiar with technology” surveyed and who own a mobile phone, nearly half who planned to replace a phone wanted Wi-Fi support in their next handheld.

What is voice over Wi-Fi, and do cell phones that support Wi-Fi data transfers also support voice communications? First off, voice over Wi-Fi is a way of transferring voice via the Internet in the form of data packets. According to Allen Nogee, In-Stat’s principal analyst, wireless technology and infrastructure, “Most smartphones with Wi-Fi that can run [third-party] applications can support voice-over-Wi-Fi if [such a third-party app] is available for that model phone.” In other words, no, just because your fancy new handheld has Wi-Fi doesn’t mean you can join the voice-over-Wi-Fi parade.

I’m not sure which “businesspeople” In-Stat queried, but in my experience, CIOs don’t care so much about Wi-Fi support, at least on corporate smartphones, as they typically have group plans with carriers and the potential cost-savings associated with using Wi-Fi on their handhelds just doesn’t grab their attention. They’ve got enterprise laptops with Wi-Fi cards, and their corporate handhelds don’t need to support Wi-Fi. At least that’s what Paul Roche, Network Services CIO, told me when we worked together on our business-savvy smartphone review. I reviewed four handhelds as part of that review and worked along with four IT executives, including Roche. Of those executives, none said Wi-Fi support on their corporate smartphones was a necessity, and only one said Wi-Fi was of some importance.

Nogee identified two benefits to CIOs and their enterprises of using voice-over-Wi-Fi phones: control and cost. “Businesses give you your phone, but then they lose control of it. You can call anyone and they can’t stop it,” Nogee said. “These [voice-over-Wi-Fi] phones let them get control back when users are in the building, and they save money on cellular charges since most calls are made in the building [using the corporate network].”

Currently, the number of Wi-Fi-enabled cell phones available in the United States pales in comparison to mobile phones without Wi-Fi support. And that’s for a number of reasons, not the least of which is

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