[asterisk-biz] Re: Dash911 -E911 for VoIP

[Gregory Giagnocavo]

Matt
Clarification:
I didn't say that signing up with Dash911 "makes you legal", I said "helps you to comply"
and I clearly say that in context of also saying that the FCC order is not possible
to implement. Not fully, not logistically, not technically in total. So far as my opinion, 
Dash911 *does* make you legal in the sense that you would then have the most complete 
solution available to you as  VoIP provider.... and I am sure that the FCC would consider
that a 'best efforts' type of compliance. 

And, yes, it IS true that VoIP providers should sign up with a 911 services provider
to "get the best they can" while everything related to VoIP 911 is being
worked out, including whatever new orders the FCC will come out with. It's a mushy,
grey area... in the FCC Notice Nov 7, the FCC went so far as to say "..we don't
expect VoIP providers to market or provide service in areas where the VoIP provider
can not provide E911."  So, there are actually some VoIP providers who are 
first checking to see if they can give E911 first, before they sign up a new customer.

This is silly, though, because that same subscriber with E911 at the address he 
uses to sign up with, could move his IP phone across the road or to another town,
and there he might only have basic 911. So what is the VSP supposed to do, cut off
his service when he logs on to update his new address location?  The way that ATT
is handling this by doing exactly that; that is, when a subscriber updates his address
to a location where there is only basic 911, they suspend his service until he later
puts in an address where AT7T knows they can provide E911 and not basic. To me, 
that is nuts, and almost nobody thinks this is the way to go. Vonage and Packet 
8 are doing what I suggest to do.. and that is, go ahead and set up the best 9-1-1
service possible, and then go sell  VoIP service as fast as you can. Meanwhile, 
tell your subscribers that you have set up the best service you could arrange, and
that "here are the limitations". .. you can see the language on www.8x8.com
and www.vonage.com

And I clearly said the having 911 everywhere is better than E911 in only one location.
Dash911 does not, and in my post I did not, say that Dash911 offers E911 everywhere.
Everywhere possible, but not everywhere. I was very clear and open about this.

After all, if VoIP providers want to get on Internet discussion lists to say what
they don't like and to hash it out and discuss it to death, that still doesn't change
the fact that  the FCC order mandates 9-1-1 coverage on a nomadic basis.   Use whichever
service provider you like, but use someone. It is what it is.

Do you also realize that there are some PSAPs who 'can' accept E911 calls for VoIP,
but refuse to do so. This is slowly changing, but there are many who won't cooperate
with VoIP. So, they still have to handle the call, but it comes in as a basic 911
call. They do the same work, but without having the enhanced caller info. Silly.

If you are trying to "figure it all out", you wn't and you can't. That's because the FCC Order and the follow up 
Public Notice on November 7, 2005 was made without a the FCC having full understanding of how 911 for
VoIP functions. 

If you don't like what the FCC mandated, and you can't "figure out" what to do, you can do
what most other VoIP providers are doing. That is, they are contacting one or more 911 for
VoIP service providers and asking intelligent questions, and building their own knowledge
base. Go ahead, call competitors to Dash911 such as HBF, Affinity, Spatial, Level3 and even
call Intrado directly. Get the information you need to get comfortable. 

But the one thing not to do is operate a voip company without any signing up with one of the
911 for VoIP providers. And don't sit around and fuss and fume and think that in some way
you are going to 'figure it all out'. We spend full time at this, and huge amounts of money,
and we have figured out that the best way to deal with this is to do the best you can with 
the best you have. In some cases, that means basic 911, in other cases that will mean E911.
Soon, later in 2006, virtually all of the population that can have E911 will have E911 for
VoIP. So go with what you can get now, and enjoy the fact that coverage for E 911 is increasing
on a daily basis. In short order, this will all be solved.


Sincerely
Gregory
www.Dash911.com
JGG at Dash911.com