As more voice minutes are switched to the Internet and traditional telecoms firms react, marketing and service costs are likely to rise, narrowing the price-gap over time.

ECONOMIST: Internet telephony

Stephanie Chandler is a professional speaker and author of Own Your Niche: Hype-Free Internet Marketing Tactics to Establish Authority in Your Field and Promote Your Service-Based Business.

FORBES: The Power of Saying No--And Why This Should Be Your Top Resolution for 2013

Stephanie Chandler is a publisher, professional speaker, and author of Own Your Niche: Hype-Free Internet Marketing Tactics to Establish Authority in Your Field and Promote Your Service-Based Business.

FORBES: The Blog Abyss: Why Your Blog Isn't Generating Traffic and What You Can Do About It

The company already has about 5, 000 business customers who buy everything from local phone service to high-speed Internet access, and it is spending heavily on marketing to recruit more.

FORBES: Fiber in the sagebrush

"Any consumer, anywhere can now enjoy an affordable, high-speed internet bundle that includes DIRECTV service, " said Shannon Campain, senior vice president of Sales and Marketing Operations for DIRECTV.

ENGADGET: DirecTV, ViaSat launch Exede satellite broadband and TV bundles

According to Ipsos Insight, a marketing research consultancy, 56% of Internet users in the U.S. subscribe to broadband service, and that number is expected to climb to 70% by early 2006.

FORBES: Seven Ways To Get Broadband

Some internet companies would be better off cutting back on their lowest performing marketing programs and staffing up more fully on customer service.

FORBES: Seven Signs of a Customer-Focused CEO