Ever since 2004, when the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) pre-empted 50 U.S. states from regulating Vonage, the Voip industry has been crossing its fingers and hoping that things would stay that way - but knowing that at some point, sometime, the regulations would have to change.
For the past few years the Voice over IP world has seen more and more regulations creeping in, to the point where 2012 now looks certain to be the busiest year of regulatory changes yet.
Many believe that the regulatory crackdown started when the 'Interconnected Voip Service' regulations were introduced, resulting in any provider of this service being hit with a melee of FCC regulatory requirements similar to the regulations governing standard phone services.
When the '21st Century Communications and Video Act' was passed by the US Congress in 2010, it signalled their intentions to codify the contribution duties of non-interconnected as well as interconnected Voip providers.
The term 'Interconnected Voip Service' was originally defined by the FCC in 2004 in three main parts; (a) it requires a broadband connection from the users' location, (b) it enables real-time, two-way voice communications, and (c) it requires internet protocol-compatible customer premises equipment.
But now, eight years later, it seems clear - after much debate - that amendments need to be made in order to incorporate and allow for changes in technology, ie specifying an internet connection instead of a broadband connection, and 'connectivity' as the ability to connect calls to US E.164 numbers instead of just PTSN.
Whatever regulations are deemed fit to be introduced and modified in the coming months, the debate over Voice over IP technology is going to continue for many years to come, as the technology improves and the goalposts that define what is and is not relevant to Voip systems continue to move.
But despite a potentially uncertain future regarding how the systems are regulated, one thing is for sure; this technology is not going away. So do yourself a favour and choose a service provider that has a proven track record and is ITSPA registered such as VoIPDito.
For the past few years the Voice over IP world has seen more and more regulations creeping in, to the point where 2012 now looks certain to be the busiest year of regulatory changes yet.
Many believe that the regulatory crackdown started when the 'Interconnected Voip Service' regulations were introduced, resulting in any provider of this service being hit with a melee of FCC regulatory requirements similar to the regulations governing standard phone services.
When the '21st Century Communications and Video Act' was passed by the US Congress in 2010, it signalled their intentions to codify the contribution duties of non-interconnected as well as interconnected Voip providers.
The term 'Interconnected Voip Service' was originally defined by the FCC in 2004 in three main parts; (a) it requires a broadband connection from the users' location, (b) it enables real-time, two-way voice communications, and (c) it requires internet protocol-compatible customer premises equipment.
But now, eight years later, it seems clear - after much debate - that amendments need to be made in order to incorporate and allow for changes in technology, ie specifying an internet connection instead of a broadband connection, and 'connectivity' as the ability to connect calls to US E.164 numbers instead of just PTSN.
Whatever regulations are deemed fit to be introduced and modified in the coming months, the debate over Voice over IP technology is going to continue for many years to come, as the technology improves and the goalposts that define what is and is not relevant to Voip systems continue to move.
But despite a potentially uncertain future regarding how the systems are regulated, one thing is for sure; this technology is not going away. So do yourself a favour and choose a service provider that has a proven track record and is ITSPA registered such as VoIPDito.
About the Author:
Saul Saresi writes regularly about Voip systems and technology for his website which can be found here hosted phone system previous examples of his research and writing can also be found here business telephone system
