Chatblog with Telcordia

Hunter Newby: Gary Richenaker, Chief Architect, Interconnection Solutions at
Telcordia, welcome to the VoIP Peering Chatblog. What role does Telcorida play in
the VoIP Peering world today?

Gary Richenacker:  Telcordia plays a critical role by providing service providers
the necessary interconnect routing data that identifies the correct service provider
and the appropriate network entry point for them to successfully complete a call.

HN: How has the interconnection and access to that data changed as the world has evolved
from TDM to IP?

GR:  Interconnection functions for both TDM and IP fundamentally remain
the same; that is, service providers need to deliver service sessions from point A
to point B across their networks, as well as requiring connectivity and information
from each other to make that happen.  However, the functions could be implemented
differently based on the latest technologies.  For example, number portability,
which is deployed in TDM, will continue to be a required function in an IP
environment so long as telephone numbers are used as user identifiers.  
 
Routing for IP-enabled services differs from TDM in that it needs not only specify
information on the network gateway for a particular destination number, but also
needs to consider the types of services and quality of service requirements as there
is a greater degree of freedom in terms of how a session can be delivered.
   
HN: Having a greater degree of freedom is certainly a good thing, but it comes with
added complexity as you have noted. With the advent of IP in the voice world what
was once rigid and point-to-point has now become very fluid and any-to-any. Where
the Internet is the prime example of any-to-any, IP peering is that for dynamic, yet
specific routing. What similarities do you see with IP peering in the VoIP world?
 
GR: Peering for IP has been around a long time.  Many of the technical
issues and challenges are understood and are being addressed; however, peering for
VoIP is new and the challenges facing VoIP peering include different signaling
protocols being used, SIP, H.323.  Even if networks use the same protocol, they may
use a different set of vendors. We are aware through testing that these vendors
implement standards differently and therefore there are interoperability issues.
 
Another issue is whether the service providers can peer directly.  Recently we have
seen that service providers can come together but not necessarily peer directly with
one another and they utilize the services of a neutral registry that provides the
routing information.

HN:  Managing different protocols and resolving end-points quickly and accurately
are certainly key components of VoIP Peering. ENUM is playing a role in the
resolution of end-points today for both carriers peering directly and VoIP Peering
service providers to carriers and enterprises. As a result a great deal of reliance
has been placed on ENUM. How do you see ENUM's role evolving? Will it be challenged
by SRV and, or other protocols, or ultimately dominate and become the standard?

GR:  Yes I foresee ENUM's role evolving because as new services or functionality are
added, different protocols such as SRV for messaging and presence, need to be
assessed on how these protocols would enable service providers to offer an
integrated set of services.  To date, there have been many protocols defined but not
all have been successfully deployed because of either technical complications or
commercial considerations.  Since we are in the beginning stages of VoIP and IP
Peering between carriers it is not clear what protocols will dominate.  But it is
clear that service providers will continue to evaluate how to best enable services
that subscribers/end users will want and the role of the network and how to best
deliver those services will continue to evolve.

HN: Taking the customer's needs and wants in to consideration is definetly critical
for anything to be successful, especially in the early stages. VoIP Peering has made
its mark on the voice world and it will certainly be interesting to see how it
continues to evolve. Gary, thank you for Chatblogging!

GR: Hunter, thank you for the opportunity.
 
For those interested in learning more about the Telcordia visit www.telcordia.com,
or contact Nancy Wilczewski at [email protected]