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Quick Jump Menu to this Issue’s Articles June 9th, 2004 Overview Next Stop, Chicago VoIPossibilities CD-ROM – Just About Available Rising Oil Prices & the Link to Telecom…
VoIPossibilities CD-ROM – Just About Available
by Ken Pyle ([email protected])
June 9th, 2004 Issue
NTCA’s VoIPossibilities included over 35 speakers spread over parts of three days and two tracks. It was an intense education on all things having to do with Voice over Internet Protocol. A common theme from several of the speakers was the concept that telcos cannot ignore this technology. It was said in many different way that a telco must be willing to cannibalize its existing business if it is going to survive.
The idea that a telco does not need to panic and jump willy-nilly into VoIP without a good plan was also emphasized. The IOC has the advantage of incumbency and market presence, so they have to be careful not to damage their reputation by offering a service that is not on par with what customers expect from their trusted brand.
It was stated by many of the speakers that VoIP is just another way to provide better service. Fundamentally, it is a marketing decision as to when and how to offer VoIP. Providers such as ANPI and Level 3 showed that a telco does not necessarily have to build the entire network to offer a VoIP service that can be compelling to existing and new customers. In fact, it was suggested by several speakers that VoIP is a great product to launch in new markets beyond an incumbent’s existing exchange area.
VoIP is definitely the wave of the future, but there are still hurdles to overcome. One of the best panels of the conference was an ad-hoc panel made up of operators, Charles Erke of Green Hills Telephone, Rob Lee of Rockport Telephone and John DeWitte of Vantage Point Solutions. This panel discussed the potential perils of VoIP security. I never thought of the damage a virus or a denial of service attack could do to a VoIP network before this panel.
Regulation is another area that is still pretty vague. What I learned is the type of regulation a telco may be subject to can be dependent upon what they are offering, how they are offering and who (e.g., the incumbent or a subsidiary) is offering the VoIP service. One thing that was agreed upon is that there will be a re-write of the telecom act in a few years, but in the meantime, the regulatory environment will be remain foggy.
I am doing the conference an injustice with this brief article. I recommend checking out the CD-ROM. I will definitely be listening to it again and again this summer.
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