John,
You wrote: ---------- >Message: 3 >Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2005 14:18:56 -0400 >From: Asterisk VoIP <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: [Asterisk-biz] VOIP Services State/Federal >Licensing requirements >To: [email protected] >Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 >Any one can help me to find out is there and legal >State/Federal licensing requirements to start VOIP >services? My company would like offer VOIP services >to our existing customer base just wondering >before going any further do we need to get any legal >licensing from State/Federal authority to offer >commercial VOIP services or we can offer under our >existing LLC status? I replied to this topic on the AsteriskBiz list last week June 8, 2005. Date: Wed, 8 Jun 2005 17:09:38 -0700 (PDT) From: "M O" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> View Contact Details View Contact Details Subject: VoIP Compliance with the FCC, and your Local State Public Utility Commission. Either register as CLEC or IXC per this... To: [email protected] Rehan, Matt, Matt, thanks for replying to Rehans question. For everyone, Matt was making reference to www.fcc.gov ----------- 6/3/05 Commission Requires Interconnected VoIP Providers to Provide Enhanced 911 Service. Recorded Audio/Video Webcast of Commission Meeting http://www.fcc.gov/realaudio/mt051905.ram But to add to the answer to the question posed by Rehan, " Or any other government agency, if they havent, then how does fcc rules the e911 and how does fcc know who is and who is not a VOIP service provider? " http://www.intelecard.com/inissue/03newtoprepaid.asp According to Attorney at Law, Thomas K. Crowe: Does regulation apply? ---------------------- At the outset, providers must consider whether their business model will subject them to regulation or allow them to operate outside the costly burdens of regulation. While this determination is usually not difficult in the case of a prepaid wireless or a conventional prepaid calling card provider, it can be more complex in other cases (for example, a prepaid VoIP provider). Companies that are subject to federal and state regulation are called "common carriers." In general, common carriers offer telecommunications service to the public at large for a fee. The exact definition of a common carrier can vary slightly by jurisdiction, but it basically involves providing service to the general public for a profit. If a telecommunications company operates as a common carrier, it will be subject to regulation and fall under state public utilities commission (PUC) certification and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensing requirements. Just as important, it will be subject to federal and state telecommunications regulatory fees and assessments, including the Universal Service Fund (USF) assessment, generally billed at 8-9 percent of telecommunications revenues. Conventional prepaid calling card providers are generally classified as common carriers. So are switched and switchless resellers, facilities-based carriers, CLECs, dial-around or 101XXXX providers, operator services providers and many others. Wireless prepaid providers, even though they offer wireless services, are also generally classified as common carriers. This means that they must comply with federal entry requirements (FCC Section 214 licensing) and certain state PUC regulatory requirements. --------------------------------------------------- Contact Staff attorney Gregory Kunkle (202)263-3642. Tell him Martin sent ya! ;) He can fax to you, as he did me, thier Attorney rates to get you properly licensed before the FCC. As for me, WindyCitySDR, located here within Chicago, Illinois, per the Illinois Commerce Comission, they are interested in regulating you/your entity WHENEVER you are carrying voice via any means within the state of Illinois, PERIOD!!! But the odd thing is, when I attempted to register with them, they, the ICC, told me though "We are DEFTLY interested in regulating you/entities like you, the current position on ISPs or "ISP / Internet Protocol related stuff ", they are taking a " we wont fuck with you " approach. If they get complaints about you, they are shutting you down or giving you unwanted "DRAMA". They'll let you operate, they dont track you down, though they assured me it is something they could do relatively simply. Send undercover cops in to purchase some VoIP service, knowing that within your state you were to have registered, but you did not. So, we are in contact with them, and they are aware of us, though they said there is nothing currently in there charter that REQUIRES me to register with them, nor they, the Illinois Commerce Commission, to regulate me, WindyCitySDR. :) So, at the VERY LEAST, establish a contact with your local state public utility and let them know what your about like I did. So nobody can one day say you tried to avoid being regulated or whatever nonsense. Per this page here: http://www.regnumgroup.com/licensing.html Specificly speaking: -------------------- IXC - Inter-Exchange (Non-Dominant) Common Carriers regulated by State Certification. These providers are Common Carriers providing international or interstate service on a wholesale, direct route, prepaid, or post paid basis via either Traditional Mode (TDM) or Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP). This category includes: * Facilities-based Carriers � Providers that own and operates telecommunications switches and transmission points between States within the United States and/or international points of presence abroad. * Operator Service Provider � Providers that provide alternative operator services for IXCs or toll operator services to call aggregator locations; or clearinghouse services to bill such calls. * Resellers � Providers that have one or more switches but primarily leases the transmission facilities of other carriers and bill its own customer base for services used. * Switchless Re-billers - Providers that have no switch systems or transmission facilities but may have a billing computer. These clients aggregate traffic to obtain bulk discounts from underlying carrier and re-bills end users at a rate above its discount but generally below the rate end users would pay for un-aggregated traffic. * Multi-Location Discount Aggregator � Providers that contract with unaffiliated entities to obtain bulk/volume discounts under multi-location discount plans from certain underlying carriers, then offers resold service by enrolling unaffiliated customers. * Prepaid Calling Card Provider � Any person or entity that purchases 800 accesses from an underlying carrier or unaffiliated entity for use with prepaid debit card service and/or encodes the cards with personal Identification numbers. Competitive Local-Exchange Providers regulated by State Certification. These providers are common carriers that provide local access to consumers from the public switched network on a prepaid or postpaid basis: * Facilities Based and Re-Seller CLEC Providers - Clients providing last Mile telecommunications service to consumers to and from the public switched Network via their own facilities or the facilities of another CLEC or ILEC. * Data CLEC Providers � Clients providing last mile data or VOIP service to consumers to and from the public switched network via their own facilities or the facilities of another CLEC or ILEC State Telecom Licensing? http://www.regnumgroup.com/licensing.html Martin O'Shield > > What is the DEFINATION of a voip service provider, > what if a company like net2phone is selling pre paid > pc to phone service ? Message: 3 Date: Wed, 8 Jun 2005 10:00:52 -0400 From: Matt <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: [Asterisk-biz] e911 compliance To: [EMAIL PROTECTED], Commercial and Business-Oriented Asterisk Discussion <[email protected]> Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Go to the FCC website www.fcc.gov and download the recent documentation. It clearly describes what a voip provider is that needs to provide E911. Basically (and this is basic) if you require broadband and the customer can receive calls and can place calls you need to provide E911 service. On 6/8/05, Rehan Ahmed AllahWala - Super Technologies I <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hello All, > > I was wondering, Has any one registered there company as a VOIP service provider with FCC ? > > Or any other government agency, if they havent, then > how does fcc rules the e911 and how does fcc know who > is and who is not a VOIP service provider ? > > What is the DEFINATION of a voip service provider, > what if a company like net2phone is selling pre paid > pc to phone service ? > > OR ipkall is offering inbound phone service on ata > and pc. > > I know i saw a thread going on before on this issue, > but i still do not understand what to do about this > issue. > Thanks, John. __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Read only the mail you want - Yahoo! Mail SpamGuard. http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail _______________________________________________ Asterisk-Biz mailing list [email protected] http://lists.digium.com/mailman/listinfo/asterisk-biz
