Up VoIP Creek Have an emergency plan while VoIP providers work on 911 shortcomings.
By Mike Hogan
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
VoIP's lack of landline-class emergency services didn'tseem that big a deal initially--tall phone-bill savingsovershadowed the problem. Then a couple of Vonage customers dialed911 and didn't get an emergency response.
Within days, state attorneys general had filedconsumer-protection lawsuits against Vonage, and Congressintroduced new bills to tax VoIP. The FCC told internet phonecompanies to have landline-grade emergency services byNovember.
Most broadband phone companies already have 911 services of asort. But unlike a traditional phone number, a VoIP phone numberisn't tied to a street address, so customers have to registertheir locations. Some calls get routed through administrativeoffices instead of directly to emergency responders--often withoutlocation and callback numbers. That all needs fixing by November,warns the FCC.
"That shouldn't be a problem," says Brooke Schulz,Vonage senior vice president. "We were already close togetting access to the Bells' infrastructure." All fourBell Operating Companies have agreed to open their 911 systems toall VoIP providers.
That still won't automatically pinpoint businesspeople whouse VoIP on the road, something that could be fixed by Enhanced911, or E911, service. That is being slowly rolled out, region byregion, and adopted by carriers to different degrees. For a $1.50monthly surcharge, 8x8 claims to provide coverage "which mirrorsthat of legacy landline phone service providers" in 43states.
Covad,SunRocketand ZoomTechnologies have all expressed confidence they can meet theFCC's deadline. But service levels and features could vary fora while, warns Teresa Mastrangelo, principal analyst atBroadbandtrends.com. Remember, even with E911, you can't makeany calls if you lose power. And no one has figured out how to findinternet-only callers whose transmissions don't veer onto thetraditional phone network.
For the near term, scrutinize your VoIP provider's emergencycoverage closely. And if you do dial 911, specify your location toemergency personnel--just to be on the safe side.
