VoIP causes numbering rethink this year

The Australian Communications and Media Authority is proposing to change numbering rules to improve flexibility in the numbering plan to recognise some of the realities of newer services, such as VoIP services.

The ACMA discussion paper, Geographic Numbering Amendments, released for public comment, explains the proposed amendments and discusses their potential effect. The proposed amendments would remove limitations in the numbering plan on outbound only services (including VoIP) and provide a framework governing the use of geographic numbers when used for services outside their normal area.

"The current telecommunications numbering arrangements date from 1997 and earlier. They assumed services were delivered over the public switched telephone network. Since then, the number of carriage service providers has grown from a handful to hundreds. More fundamentally, the technologies used to deliver telephone services have changed considerably - including the rapidly increasing availability and use of VoIP services," said ACMA Chairman, Chris Chapman.

"Evolving technologies and business models are testing the capacity of current numbering arrangements to meet industry and consumer needs," said Chapman.

"Our stakeholders have sought a number of changes to numbering arrangements to accommodate new services over the past 12 months. In responding to these concerns, the ACMA intends more generally to examine a range of emerging numbering issues over the course of 2010 that will help inform any new fundamental approach to the allocation of telephone numbers under the numbering plan and the regulation of numbering administrative arrangements," said  Chapman. "This discussion paper is a first step in that process."

In seeking feedback on its proposals, the ACMA recognises the very significant value of providing predictability on the regulation and administration of the numbering resource. In addition, but equally, the ACMA considers it important that telephone service providers inform consumers about the potential differences and limitations on their services when consumers are issued with a telephone number that does not correspond with the physical location of the service.

The proposed amendments are an initial response to the regulatory pressure on numbering as a result of growing consumer demand for and the take-up of new and innovative services.