Next Thursday, November 1st, an OpenSER BoF (Birds of the Feather) meeting will be held to discuss ideas and issues regarding OpenSER. As part of the BoF, I will be joining the folks below to tell how OpenSER is being used in production VoIP networks.
Alan Crosswell, Senior Director - Network Infrastructure, Columbia University
Daniel-Constantin Mierla, Co-Founder OpenSER
James Body, Director - Networks, Truphone
Jim Dalton, CEO, TransNexus
Norman Brandinger, President, GOES.com
Xavier Casajuana, CEO, VozTelecom
The BoF meeting will be held at the VON conference in the Boston Convention Center on Thursday from 12:45 -2:00 pm. The meeting and admission to VON on Thursday is free to anyone who registers. Go to www.fallvon.com/register and use the priority code OPENSER to get a free one day Conference Pass for Thursday, November 1st.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
VoIP Peering Panel at VON in Boston
Next Tuesday (Oct 30th) at the VON conference in Boston, I will be joining Ed Guy from Truphone and Eli Katz from XConnect on a panel to discuss ”Directories, ENUM and DUNDI”. Both of these gentlemen are VoIP Peering experts. Ed was the CTO for Free World Dialup and Eli is the founder and CEO of XConnect, a rapiding growing VoIP peering provider.
Our discussion will focus on different VoIP peering models, enabling technologies, trends and visions for VoIP peering in the future. Directories and ENUM technologies follow the classic model of a central database that provides route discovery for all users. It is a simple model based on sound economic principles - a central database offers economies of scale and positive externalities that benefit everyone. Nevertheless, there is a lot of market resistance to the centralized model - everyone is suspicious of the power and control ceded to a central routing authority.
DUNDi is a completely different model with decentralized route discovery. However, DUNDi offers the same positive externalities offered by a centralized database. By positive externalities, I mean that the benefit of using DUNDi grows as more endpoints join the DUNDi network. DUNDi, created by Mark Spencer, is a clever way to remove the objections to a central routing authority while keeping the benefits.
Unfortunately, neither ENUM nor DUNDi are rapidly gaining acceptance in the market place. The reason is because these technologies only address route discovery. A VoIP peering model requires more than just route discovery, VoIP peering also requires access control and economic settlement. Today these VoIP Peering functions are fulfilled by Session Border Controllers that are architectually identical to a class 4 switch in a PSTN inter-exchange network. This technique does not offer the benefits of ubiquitous direct peering between service providers. So part of our discussion will cover what is required to fulfill the VoIP vision for direct peering between any two VoIP networks globally.
I hope you will join us at Tuesday, October 30th, from 3:30pm – 4:30pm, in Room 209 at the VON conference in the Boston Convention Center.
Our discussion will focus on different VoIP peering models, enabling technologies, trends and visions for VoIP peering in the future. Directories and ENUM technologies follow the classic model of a central database that provides route discovery for all users. It is a simple model based on sound economic principles - a central database offers economies of scale and positive externalities that benefit everyone. Nevertheless, there is a lot of market resistance to the centralized model - everyone is suspicious of the power and control ceded to a central routing authority.
DUNDi is a completely different model with decentralized route discovery. However, DUNDi offers the same positive externalities offered by a centralized database. By positive externalities, I mean that the benefit of using DUNDi grows as more endpoints join the DUNDi network. DUNDi, created by Mark Spencer, is a clever way to remove the objections to a central routing authority while keeping the benefits.
Unfortunately, neither ENUM nor DUNDi are rapidly gaining acceptance in the market place. The reason is because these technologies only address route discovery. A VoIP peering model requires more than just route discovery, VoIP peering also requires access control and economic settlement. Today these VoIP Peering functions are fulfilled by Session Border Controllers that are architectually identical to a class 4 switch in a PSTN inter-exchange network. This technique does not offer the benefits of ubiquitous direct peering between service providers. So part of our discussion will cover what is required to fulfill the VoIP vision for direct peering between any two VoIP networks globally.
I hope you will join us at Tuesday, October 30th, from 3:30pm – 4:30pm, in Room 209 at the VON conference in the Boston Convention Center.
Monday, October 15, 2007
VoIP Peering at ISPCON
The Internet industry will be meeting this week at ISPCON in San Jose. ISPCON has always been a show for ISPs and NetHeads and more recently it has expanded its focus to include non-data applications like voice. VoIP is a natural business extension for ISPs and I will be at ISPCON tomorrow giving a tutorial on the business case for how ISPCONs can leverage their current business to provide VoIP service.
The ISPCON session is:
Track: TECHNOLOGY 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM Tuesday Oct. 16, 2007
E2: SIP Peering: A VoIP Business Model that Works for ISPs Serving Enterprise Customers.
This session will describe how the SIP peering business model is a natural service extension for ISPs providing bandwidth to Enterprise customers. The presentation will cover the following points:
- Who is the target market
- Selling proposition
- Business model and economics
- Incremental infrastructure required
- Example network design
- Understanding least-cost routing of telecom traffic
This presentation will provide ISPs the information they need to determine if they want to expand their business to provide basic VoIP services.
The ISPCON session is:
Track: TECHNOLOGY 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM Tuesday Oct. 16, 2007
E2: SIP Peering: A VoIP Business Model that Works for ISPs Serving Enterprise Customers.
This session will describe how the SIP peering business model is a natural service extension for ISPs providing bandwidth to Enterprise customers. The presentation will cover the following points:
- Who is the target market
- Selling proposition
- Business model and economics
- Incremental infrastructure required
- Example network design
- Understanding least-cost routing of telecom traffic
This presentation will provide ISPs the information they need to determine if they want to expand their business to provide basic VoIP services.
Friday, October 5, 2007
ISNs, an innovative approach to VoIP Peering
What's an ISN?
An ISN is an ITAD Server Number.
What the heck is an ITAD?
An ITAD is an Internet Telephony Administrative Domain.
If you are in the business of developing future VoIP products you need to visit http://freenum.org/ and include the ITAD concept into your long term strategic thinking. It could be just another geek idea that never flys, but it could also be another one of those unusual open source type concepts that take-off virally when the market enablers are in place.
The concept is simple - create an open numbering system for VoIP that is available to everyone, not just telephone companies.
A billion plus people in the world make telephone calls using telephone numbers provided exclusively by telephone carriers. ITADs are different. They are numbers that anyone can get from IANA (Internet Assigned Number Authority). An ISN is a subscriber number followed by a * followed by the ITAD for the subscriber.
For example, the TransNexus ITAD is 484. You can think of 484 as the domain name for TransNexus VoIP calls - just like transnexus.com is the domain name for e-mail messages sent to TransNexus. The ISN for phone extension 101 at TransNexus is 101*484.
A key feature of ISNs is that they are easy to dial on a plain old 12 digit telephone key pad. This is not the case with a SIP uri which could require a full alphanumeric keyboard.
At this point ITADs are still just an interesting idea being nurtured in a live trial by John Todd, a clever VoIP innovator. Nevertheless, it is concept that forward thinking product managers and strategic planners need to keep in mind as they look for new opportunities to out-flank their competition. Visit freenum.org for more information and to join the trial.
An ISN is an ITAD Server Number.
What the heck is an ITAD?
An ITAD is an Internet Telephony Administrative Domain.
If you are in the business of developing future VoIP products you need to visit http://freenum.org/ and include the ITAD concept into your long term strategic thinking. It could be just another geek idea that never flys, but it could also be another one of those unusual open source type concepts that take-off virally when the market enablers are in place.
The concept is simple - create an open numbering system for VoIP that is available to everyone, not just telephone companies.
A billion plus people in the world make telephone calls using telephone numbers provided exclusively by telephone carriers. ITADs are different. They are numbers that anyone can get from IANA (Internet Assigned Number Authority). An ISN is a subscriber number followed by a * followed by the ITAD for the subscriber.
For example, the TransNexus ITAD is 484. You can think of 484 as the domain name for TransNexus VoIP calls - just like transnexus.com is the domain name for e-mail messages sent to TransNexus. The ISN for phone extension 101 at TransNexus is 101*484.
A key feature of ISNs is that they are easy to dial on a plain old 12 digit telephone key pad. This is not the case with a SIP uri which could require a full alphanumeric keyboard.
At this point ITADs are still just an interesting idea being nurtured in a live trial by John Todd, a clever VoIP innovator. Nevertheless, it is concept that forward thinking product managers and strategic planners need to keep in mind as they look for new opportunities to out-flank their competition. Visit freenum.org for more information and to join the trial.
TransNexus at Comptel in Dallas
TransNexus will be exhibiting at the Comptel Plus Fall 2007 Convention and Expo next week in Dallas. The exhibit floor is open on Sunday - Tuesday October 7th-9th. If you plan to attend the Comptel show, please stop by booth 904 to visit TransNexus.
When you visit TransNexus, be sure to sign-up for a free Least Cost Routing Analysis of your telecom traffic. TransNexus will analyze your vendor rate plans and Call Detail Records to calculate your telecom vendor fees with profit optimizing Least Cost Routing.
The TransNexus analysis will give you the hard data you need to maximize the value of your vendor contracts:
- Do you need to fine tune your Least Cost Routing Algorithm?
- Will adding more telecom vendors save you money?
- Should you add Least Cost Routing for intra-state calls?
- Should you add Least Cost Routing for Expanded Local Calling Areas?
- Can you generate new revenues from wholesale VoIP peering with other service providers?
I hope to see you at the Comptel show.
When you visit TransNexus, be sure to sign-up for a free Least Cost Routing Analysis of your telecom traffic. TransNexus will analyze your vendor rate plans and Call Detail Records to calculate your telecom vendor fees with profit optimizing Least Cost Routing.
The TransNexus analysis will give you the hard data you need to maximize the value of your vendor contracts:
- Do you need to fine tune your Least Cost Routing Algorithm?
- Will adding more telecom vendors save you money?
- Should you add Least Cost Routing for intra-state calls?
- Should you add Least Cost Routing for Expanded Local Calling Areas?
- Can you generate new revenues from wholesale VoIP peering with other service providers?
I hope to see you at the Comptel show.
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