Pack Up Your Circuits: VoIP is Moving In

Moving everything to VoIP may seem an obvious step, but economically and efficiently connecting service provider and enterprise VoIP networks is the key. Panelists today will discuss the driving factors behind successful VoIP migration for end user and service provider alike.

Session leader Michael Khalilian, president of the IMS Forum (formerly IPCC) and CTO at VoX Communications, will begin by discussing end-user criteria for selecting VoIP hardware and software, VoIP ROI cases, and QoS and SLA differences between cable modems and DSL.

Enterprise migration will be a focus. The term migration means many things to people, said panelist Charles Vogt, president and CEO of General Bandwidth. Though enterprises have already migrated to IP PBXs for their voice needs and have seen benefits from cheaper long-distance and intra-branch calling, they cant figure out why they still have to connect to their service provider via circuit technology.

The supplier side of the equation also will be covered. Khalilian will discuss the future for VoIP service providers and technology vendors, criteria for resellers to select a VoIP partner, and regulatory issues including E911 versus 911, and Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).

Presenter Mark Pugerude, vice president of business development at Broadwing Communications, also will focus on the regulatory concerns. He noted that many companies discuss VoIP as an application with their clients, with a heavy focus on the cost benefits of routing calls on the Internet. They often dont tackle the regulatory and safety issues inherent to having VoIP users who arent trackable by geography. My thought was, one of the things not being brought up that often is the challenge in supporting nomadic/mobile users, he said. Broadwing will announce full support for 911 and mobile users around the show, and so its a timely topic for me to cover.

Pugerude will offer a summary of the FCC regulations in this area, a summation of the leaders in the space and how they meet the requirements, and an overview of the Broadwing solution.

Vogt noted that service providers will migrate TDM access plants to packet, although revenue and customers still rely on circuit-switched T1s and PRIs. Similarly, they wonder how they can wean other customers away from Class 5 features and on to higher value, next-generation services, said Vogt. This discussion will provide answers to these issues and provide insight on how new technologies can be used to enable graceful, cost-effective network migration and develop new, high-value services for enterprise and other customers.

Panelists Pugerude and Vogt also will be joined by Farshid Mohammadi, general manager for UTStarcom.