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January 2005


It’s VoIP 2.0 Time In Miami!


Internet Telephony Conference & EXPO is proud to make its return to Miami this February. From February 22–25, anybody who’s anybody in VoIP will be at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Miami, FL to see what’s new on an Exhibit Hall floor packed with vendors showing off their wares and to learn all about where this exciting technology is headed at a conference that is unrivaled in its depth and educational content.

The theme of this year’s event is VoIP 2.0: The Evolution of IP Telephony. And that theme carries across the conference sessions targeted at an audience that will include Service Providers, Enterprises/Government agencies, and Developers. The conference will also feature in-depth content outlining the opportunity for resellers in our industry. Here’s a look at just some of the more exciting subjects we’ll be tackling in this year’s conference.

Open Source Telephony Workshop
Open source telephony solutions are flourishing from the service provider to the enterprise. Behind the scenes, more and more service providers are using Digium’s Asterisk to run their operations and support thousands of customers. Enterprise users are in the testing phase now and word is the early adopters are thrilled with Asterisk. INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO Miami 2005 features a new workshop focused on helping developers take advantage of this platform to create new high-demand VoIP applications.

Regulation & Taxation/E-911 Summit
The FCC has vowed to do its best to keep from taxing VoIP, but politicians are screaming to regulate it, tax it, and secretly, even kill it. One problem is that the Universal Service Fund is drying up as expected. As of late 2004 the company that runs the fund, Universal Service Administration Corp. has asked regulators to increase the percentage of long distance revenue that service providers have to pay from 8.9% to 12.5%! Others say that amount needs to be doubled to 25%. Potential regulation combined with E-911 and CALEA concerns mean the road to VoIP 2.0 will have to be routed through Washington, D.C.

SIP Workshop
There remains little doubt regarding the significance of SIP — Session Initiation Protocol — and the profound effect it has had on the IP telephony industry. SIP is an IETF signaling protocol for Internet conferencing, telephony, presence, events notification, and instant messaging, and many developers are beginning to realize the tremendous potential of writing applications to take advantage of this standard. The SIP Workshop is a full-day conference designed to educate conferees on the subject of SIP. Special thanks go out to the SIP Forum and SIPCenter.com for sponsoring this event.

UNE-P To VoIP Summit
Yesterday’s CLECs exist because of an FCC ruling called unbundled network access-platform, or UNE-P for short. This rule specifies the rates that incumbent carriers can charge CLECs to lease their lines. Recently, the FCC has rethought this concept allowing ILECS to raise these rates and subsequently reduce competition severely. UNE-P’s demise is VoIP’s gain, but the shift is not without it’s challenges for CLECs. Our conference features an entire day of sessions designed to help you seamlessly transition to VoIP and begin making money immediately.

VoIP Peering Summit
This largely misunderstood shift in telecom has potential to change the way VoIP works. Peering is the concept of interconnecting networks allowing IP and subsequently, VoIP traffic to be carried between service providers and companies without the need to pay a middle-man, or in this case, an additional ‘long-distance’ service provider. By using session border controllers placed neatly between the service providers, you can provide a ‘translation service’ between your caller and the recipient who uses a different provider. The new VoIP Peering Summit at INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & Expo explains both the network and business process implications of peering.

VoIP Security
Concerns over security in the VoIP network are exacerbated when you add mobility to the equation. Remote access over WiFi and WiMAX networks — a principle benefit of IP telephony — ups the ante for administrators charged with providing secure, seamless access to corporate data. The enterprise/government solutions track at INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO prepares you to head off viruses, attackers, and hackers before they get to your network.

The Reseller Opportunity
There are two huge opportunities in VoIP for resellers: equipment and service. The equipment play is obvious; more and more VoIP products are being sold on a daily basis. Corporations are snapping them up at a rapid clip. Equally impressive is the opportunity to sell VoIP service. More service providers mean more opportunities to help these providers sell services to new customers. This is the best time to be in this business and resell VoIP. In fact, no other technology today is seeing as much growth and is generating as much spending as VoIP.

IP PBX Certification
This year, the organizers of the conference have supplemented an already great program with what is arguably one of the more innovative and significant additions to the learning experience: TMC University. TMC University’s IP PBX Certification program is the only Independent certification program of its kind validating attendees’ competency in IP PBX selection, deployment, implementation, and management.
Some of the benefits afforded by the IP PBX Certification program include:

  • Independent accreditation for completing the curriculum;
  • Independently certified evidence that you possess competencies in IP PBX selection, implementation, and management;
  • Addition of an impressive certification from a respected source to your resume;
  • Enhanced chances for a promotion; and
  • Potentially lucrative consulting opportunities.

Keynote Speakers
TMC has yet again assembled a stellar lineup of keynote speakers who will share their vision with EXPO attendees.

  • Stef H. van Aarle — VP Marketing & Strategy, Lucent
  • Gary Barnett — President & Chief Executive Officer, Aspect
  • Edward Cespedes — President, Voiceglo
  • Phil Edholm — Chief Technology Officer & VP of Network Architecture, Nortel
  • Kenn Epps — CEO, Baypackets
  • Cathy Martine — Senior Vice President, AT&T Internet Telephony
  • William Tauscher — President, CEO & Chairman, Artisoft
  • Andy Voss — President & CEO, Sansay, Inc.

Register Now!
If you are interested in learning more about the IP telephony industry or if you are interested in becoming an indispensable part of your company’s IP telephony decision-making team, then Internet Telephony Conference & EXPO — February 22–25, 2005 at the Hyatt Regency Miami — is the one event you can’t afford to miss. Visit www.itexpo.com and register now to reserve your seat at the industry’s leading conference.

[ Return To The January 2005 Table Of Contents ]