MetaSwitch and Dash911 Simplify Deployment of FCC-Compliant Voice over IP E911 Services

Integration Efforts Welcomed by MetaSwitch-Based VoIP Providers Including Public Interest Network Services

 

Nashville, TN: April 11, 2006. MetaSwitch, the leading vendor of Voice over IP (VoIP) Class 5 switching and applications solutions to North American independent and competitive service providers, announced at the National Telecommunications Carrier Association (NTCA) VoIPossibilities conference that it has partnered with Dash911 to simplify the implementation of 9-1-1 emergency calling by VoIP providers. The joint solution is already being deployed by several service providers including Public Interest Network Services, Inc. (PINS).

The new business and technology solution combines MetaSwitch's market-leading Class 5 softswitch with Dash911's hosted service platform, to enable VoIP service providers to route 911 calls to the appropriate Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) based on the subscriber's current location. A full range of VoIP calling features, including custom call treatments and web-based configuration, are available to subscribers from the MetaSwitch platform. When subscribers move their VoIP device from one location to another, the Dash911 web portal - integrated with MetaSwitch's own Web Self-Care solution - offers a "ready to go" Web-based mechanism for them to easily update their location information. Call routing is achieved either via traditional MF or SS7 trunks (for subscribers within the provider's local calling area), or via the Dash911 switched 9-1-1 service using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), for out-of-area subscribers.

While this functionality was previously technically possible, it typically required service providers to develop their own Web interface and back-end integration. This new solution enables MetaSwitch users to meet FCC and CRTC requirements for 9-1-1 call routing, along with an elegant Web interface for subscribers, by executing a single service agreement with Dash911.

PINS, a total-service communications provider based in New York City's "Silicon Alley," serves several thousand fixed VoIP lines in downtown Manhattan from its MetaSwitch VP3510 Class 5 softswitch. PINS has partnered with Dash911 in order to expand beyond its current markets without expending significant effort and resources on additional dedicated 911 trunks.

"As a carrier focused on profitable growth, we are excited by the opportunities that the MetaSwitch/Dash911 partnership opens up for us," said David Birnbaum, President and CEO at PINS. "Public safety should be a concern for all service providers, and MetaSwitch and Dash911 enable us to offer our customers the highest levels of support while expanding our footprint and service offerings."

"Support for emergency calling is now a requirement for all VoIP providers offering services in North America, based on rulings by the regulators in both the United States and Canada," said Jon Arnold, VoIP blogger and Principal of the telecommunications analyst firm J Arnold and Associates. "MetaSwitch is an established leader in softswitching, so this announcement is a significant milestone in the VoIP industry's adoption of ubiquitous 9-1-1 service."

"We're pleased to work with MetaSwitch to help deliver this important component of public safety," said Dash911's Gregory Giagnocavo. "MetaSwitch's state-of-the-art technology was great to work with as we completed interoperability testing. The FCC and savvy customers are demanding access to 9-1-1, and VoIP providers using MetaSwitch can now clearly differentiate their product offerings by providing 9-1-1 emergency calling services."

"MetaSwitch has always taken public safety seriously, and was one of the first Class 5 softswitches to support 9-1-1 services for all VoIP subscribers," said Chris Mairs, MetaSwitch CTO and Senior Vice President of Business Development. "Our successful partnership with Dash911 has been positively received by our customers, as it takes us to the next level in terms of ease of deployment of nationwide VoIP services."

About Dash911

Telefinity Corporation (www.telefinity.com) offers the "Dash911 - E911 for VoIP" emergency calling service as a part of its wholesale hosted platform services offering for VoIP providers in the USA and Canada. Telefinity offers wholesale VoIP call services and its Dash911 service and proprietary software allows VoIP providers to quickly and easily implement a complete 9-1-1 solution to help comply with government regulations in the USA and Canada. Telefinity also offers 411 directory assistance, directory listing, termination and origination to its hosted provider customers. Telefinity is authorized to offer the Intrado® v911 Mobility Suite™ as part of its wholesale hosted provider offerings. Telefinity is currently a privately held company with headquarters in Denver, Colorado.

About MetaSwitch

MetaSwitch (www.metaswitch.com) is an industry-leading vendor of IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) switching and applications solutions for both packet and circuit-switched networks. Its widely deployed call agent, media/signaling gateway and application server platform supports a full range of legacy Class 4/5 capabilities and hosted unified communications services, and scales from a few hundred to millions of subscribers in both integrated and distributed configurations. Customers include incumbent and competitive local exchange carriers, as well as operators of broadband wireless, cable and fiber networks.

MetaSwitch is a division of established telecom technology provider Data Connection. The company is consistently profitable and privately held, with main US offices in California and Virginia, and European headquarters in London, UK.

About Public Interest Network Services (PINS)

PINS has been providing a variety of telecom, data, and Internet services to customers in New York and across the world for over twenty years. Originally launched as a communications purchasing cooperative, PINS still has a large number of not-for-profit organizations that rely on its technical expertise for their day to day operations. As one of the first providers of integrated voice and data T1s in 1994, PINS has a long track record of successful innovation in many different technology spaces, and continues to deploy a wide variety of technical tools to address business problems.

PINS is a privately held corporation with a twenty-two year long track record of profitability and happy customers.