In Computing, a soft phone is software that simulates a real telephone and runs on a general purpose computer, rather than a dedicated device. It is usually used with a headset connected to the sound card of the PC or USB phone.

Softphones are typically a part of Voice over IP environments and may be standard-based SIP/H.323 or proprietary. Many implementations are available, like the widely available Microsoft Windows Messenger or NetMeeting.

The most typical . They work fine with most ITSP - Internet Telephony Service Providers.

Very popular Skype is not just a soft phone but a P2P VOIP service. One can connect a USB phone or a USB telephone gateway to Skype and will get get free phone-to-phone VoIP service.

The soft phone is actually apart of a larger technology group - the CTI (Computer Telephony Integration). As mentioned above there are various types of soft phones, some are through VOIP, some work using USB phones, and some are pure softwares which talks to PABXes through the (LAN )Local Area Network - TCP/IP to control and dial through the hardware phone. Usually this is done in a call center environment to make calls from central customer directory or to receive calls, where the customer information will pop-up on the computer screen when the phone rings, giving the call center agents a lot of information on who is calling and how to greet and speak to him or her.

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