A technique for routing data through a network is by encapsulating data into packets. These packets are then labelled with addresses and routing information and forwarded until they reach their intended destination.
Packet loss is the failure of one or more transmitted packets to arrive at their destination. In audio communications, such as VoIP, it can cause jitter and frequent gaps in received speech. In the worst cases, packet loss can cause severe mutilation of received data, broken-up audio, unintelligible speech or even the complete absence of a received signal.