FCC: VoIP Providers Must Provide 911 Services

acadiel writes "The Houston Chronicle is reporting that the FCC will require VoIP providers to provide 911 location services. This will mean extra $$$ that the VoIP providers will have to put out, which ultimately means extra $$$ that the consumer will have to put out. This is the first step in regulating an industry that should have been left alone..." I hope network end-points and physical location aren't going to be too tightly linked; one of the appeals of VoIP is using it from anywhere that has an adequate Internet connection.

Comments

Vonage has 911 service already

[xkenny13]

I'm using Vonage for VoIP phone service, and they already allow Dialing 911.

Are there other VoIP service providers that don't?

Re:Vonage has 911 service already

[phoneboy]

Many providers do 911 a bit like speed dial -- the provider looks up your address, assigns "911" to your local Public Safety Access Point. However:

1. Not all providers do this.
2. The providers that do it often get it wrong.
3. You often don't know they got it wrong until you need it because there's no way for you to "verify" that it works.
4. Not all PSAPs are created equal -- in some areas, you get to a 911 call center, in others it gets you somewhere else that isn't exactly a 911 call center.

Personally, I think it should be up to the provider if they want to provide 911 or not. They shouldn't be allowed to say they provide 911 service unless it is done right .

-- PhoneBoy

Re:How truly screwed up is this ?

[PhuCknuT]

Are YOU that out of touch that you think you need to get on your PC to make a VOIP call? VOIP phones that work just like normal phones (from the enduser view) have been in use for several years now.

Re:Overseas?

[Cbs228]

Vonage 911 dialing is supposed to-- the keyword here is supposed to-- connect you to the same PSAP (Public Safety Answer Point) that you would be connected to if you dialed 911 from a landline.

In a normal 911 call from a landline, the call goes from the telco switch to the PSAP via a dedicated trunk that carries only 911 traffic. A data channel (ISDN) is provided that sends ANI/ALI information from the phone company, which uses various databases provided by Intrado and others to match up your phone number with your current address.

Dialing 911 from a Vonage connection, however, is equivalent to dialing the PSAP's 10-digit number. The call does not go through the 911 trunk, and no location information is sent other than standard Caller ID information. Depending on configuration of the PSAP, this line may also take non-emergency calls and your call may be answered with less priority than a normal 911 call. This 10-digit number is also the number used by alarm companies to report alarms to the police.

In the past, serious problems have been reported with the Vonage 911 service. One man tried to call "911" and got an insurance company instead. I highly recommend that you test Vonage's emergency dialing feature. Do not simply test it out, however. You will want to notify your local police department that you want to do this.

In case you didn't know, DSLReports.com maintains an active forum on VoIP providers. Official reps from Vonage frequent the site.

Re:No ten-digit number??

[DissidentHere]

Actually, there are ten digit numbers for PSAP dispatch centers. Having worked for a national electronic security company for 6 years, I have many of them memorized. There are databases of 10 digit PASP numbers, but they easily get out of date, and they tend not to be free.

A Google like database of PSAP numbers that is kept up to date might be a government database project that we could support. Such a database would be useful for citizens and corporations. Even without GIS information, you could at least get close enough based on city/county information to get an emergency response.