TMCnet News
VoIP, Inc. Offers Private Network 911 ServiceBy TED GLANZER
TMCnet Communications and Broadband Columnist
One thing has not been lost in the recent news regarding the Federal Communication Commission providing 30-day extension of time to PSTN-connected VoIP service providers to comply with the notice provisions of its E911 order.
The service providers are still required to offer E911 to their subscribers by Nov. 28, a deadline viewed by many as an unrealistic one to accomplish such a monumental task. Thus far, several companies, such as Intrado and TCS, have stepped forward to offer solutions that route VoIP subscriber 9-1-1 calls into the dedicated wireline E911 network.
However, VoIP, Inc. CEO Steven Ivester said in a prepared statement today that in their haste to comply with the FCC's mandate, service providers are risking emergency call quality and security.
"The industry has been focused on creating quick solutions to meet FCC deadlines related to recent regulatory actions that require VoIP service providers to offer 911 services to customers," VoIP, Inc. CEO Steven Ivester said. "Some of these solutions continue to use unsecured, and best-effort transport of the Internet for critical emergency calls."
Accordingly, VoIP, Inc. has entered the FCC E911 fray, announcing on Thursday the launch of "the industry's first private network 911 service for broadband and packet communications," promising "unprecedented" quality and reliability.
"We are changing the dynamics at VoIP, Inc., with this unprecedented move to go beyond the requirements of the FCC order to help ensure reliability and quality of 911 calls," Ivester said.
The service utilizes VoIP, Inc.'s proprietary VoiceOne network; once a call is received on the network, it is analyzed for the proper delivery to a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), call center, or other emergency location.
"Based on the destination of the location required to deliver the call, it is maintained on the private VoiceOne MPLS backbone, ensuring the best-possible quality and redundancy for transport, compared to other solutions utilizing the Internet for call delivery," VoIP, Inc. CTO Shawn Lewis said.
According to the news release, the 911 service feature can be managed by carriers, service providers, cable operators, and others through the VoiceOne web portal or XML provisioning system "in near real-time fashion" – a feature that is "not offered by solution providers in the 911 industry today."
"Offering IP related services, with the quality of service and reliability levels carriers and consumers demand and deserve, was our primary focus in designing this product offering," VoIP, Inc. CTO Shawn Lewis said. "Secondly, making the service affordable and available to all with a simplified interface was critical."
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Ted Glanzer is assistant editor for TMCnet. For more articles by Ted Glanzer, please visit:
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