WASHINGTON-Another deadline for offering enhanced 911 services has come and gone. This time, however, the Voice over Internet Protocol industry is the market begging for relief.
In June, the Federal Communications Commission gave VoIP service providers a Nov. 28 deadline to provide E-911 capabilities to their subscribers. The FCC also required them to advise every subscriber of the circumstances under which VoIP E-911 service may not be available or may be limited. VoIP firms also were ordered to keep a record of the advisory for every subscriber.
With some exceptions, most VoIP operators, especially those that allow their customers to have non-local telephone numbers or to take their service with them, said they would not be able to comply with the FCC rule. For example, Vonage America Inc. said only 26 percent of its customer base has access to E-911 service.
“Lack of ILEC and PSAP readiness and/or cooperation and other obstacles have hampered Vonage’s ability to establish 100-percent call delivery to PSAPs,” said Vonage. “Due in large part to Verizon Communications Inc.’s cooperation and leadership, nearly all of Vonage’s customers within Verizon’s ILEC service territory will be delivered to a capable PSAP. Vonage believes this demonstrates that where necessary 911 elements are made available and voluntary third-party cooperation is forthcoming, Vonage can and will be able to achieve the objectives of the rules. Where such cooperation is not forthcoming, however, Vonage requires both the direct assistance of this commission and additional time necessary to deploy E-911.”
VoIP carriers do not have to cut off service to customers in areas where E-911 is not available, but VoIP carriers cannot market to or sign new customers in those areas. Nuvio Corp. and other VoIP carriers have appealed the FCC’s rules. There was also waiver language included in a bill passed Nov. 2 by the Senate Commerce Committee, which still must be adopted by the full Senate and the House. Late Thursday, the Association of Public-safety Communications Officials said it could not support the bill if the waiver language remained.
“We have serious concerns that the effect, if not the intent, of the waiver language may be to prevent the FCC from enforcing rules that require 911 and E-911 capability for all new VoIP customers. We believe that the FCC’s ability to enforce existing rules is in the best interest of the public’s safety,” said APCO. “We believe that a far better approach is to allow waiver requests to be governed by the FCC’s existing waiver standard.”
Meanwhile, the FCC is considering several waiver requests from wireless carriers that chose the handset option to provide their end users with E-911 service. These carriers say they will not be able to meet the Dec. 31 deadline that requires them to have 95 percent of their handsets be location capable. RCR
