Ofcom 999 ruling 'can benefit VoIP users'

The decision by the UK telecoms industry regulator Ofcom to require VoIP services to support 999 calls will prompt further improvements, it has been suggested.

Apart from simply making sure that IP telephony solution users will be able to call the emergency services if necessary, analyst Bill Pechey writing in IT Week said that there could be more general improvements to VoIP as well.

He noted that the 999 change required alterations to Ofcom's General Conditions of Entitlement to bring VoIP services under its remit.

But this goes further than just emergency calls, with the eighth condition requiring that services provide operators and directory enquiry services, while the 15th condition demands that disabled people are given adequate support and charged at lower rates.

Mr Pechey suggested that VoIP firms could avoid having to comply with these standards by not supporting incoming calls from the traditional PSTN network.

However, he added that "Ofcom is aware of this but does not expect many to do so because of market pressures."




Posted on: 2007-12-18, in: General VoIP

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