VOIP and SIP News

SIP Trunking is a growing Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and unified communications method.
A new study by Heavy Reading IP Services Insider has shown that businesses will install 24.3 million Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) trunks over the next three years. In 2009 there were 8.5 million SIP trunk installations in all.

SIP Trunking is very popular among SMBs as it cuts costs and gives them flexibility in the operation of their business phone systems.
A research analyst with Heavy Reading , Denise Culver, said: "SIP trunking is a way for smaller enterprises to afford the same leased-line services which are available to their larger competitors. They can have all the prestige that comes with looking like a large, organised corporation, but without having to make the same cost investments."
She added: "Although doubts remain about the service quality of SIP trunking, it's clear that small businesses are seeing the value of IP-based networks. As they do SIP trunking will grow significantly in the run up to 2013."

A U.S. Copyright Office ruling is allowing iPhone users install third-party applications, although Apple says that doing so'still null and voids your warranty'.

Referred to as 'jailbreaking', third-party applications are installed by going around the restrictions imposed by the manufacturer in this case Apple. These restrictions prevent iPhone users from using unauthorized Apple applications.

This could be good news for VoIP fans as there are an increasing number of VoIP applications being released for the iPhone to allow cheap worldwide calls.

The news will also be a breath of fresh air for users as there are many apps which have had developer restrictions imposed on them by Apple. Furthermore these restrictions prevent users from getting the full capabilities of the iPhone which could become a full mobile broadband solution thanks to its unlimited data access.

With that in mind the Chip Dowload site came up with a full guide on how to jailbreak your iPhone.

1) Download iOS 4.0.1 for your version of iPhone.

2) Update this to the latest firmware using the IPSW file which is available on iTunes 9.2

3) Start Redsn0w 0.9.5b5-5, Mac or Windows and point it to iOS 4 (Final Version) to proceed with the jailbreak.

4) Select “Install Cydia” and click Next, making that sure your device is plugged in but turned off first.

5) Connect your device in recovery mode. You will see a screen where you have to quickly hold “Power” button and then hold the “Home” button simultaneously. After a few seconds release the “Power” button but keep holding the “Home” button until installation begins.

Once you are in you can unleash the full VoIP capabilities of your iPhone.

VoIP provider AltiGen has given Unified Communications software to a Child Abuse Prevention Center (CAPC) to help them protect youngsters.
To enable the center in Orange County, California, to quickly respond to child abuse complaints the latest IP telephony software as well as 100 IP phones were donated.
These replaced their old phone system which was outdated and often disconnected at opportune moments or misplaced voicemails.
VoIP and Unified Communications allows people to communicate very quickly and time is of the essence when it comes to saving children's lives.
The CAPC has an early intervention program to prevent child abuse before it occurs and strengthen parent-child relationships in the process. In 2009 the Center helped over 15,000 children, 4,300 families and 3,800 parents.
AltiGen Sales VP Mike Plumer said: "Approval to help a victim in a child abuse case can take time but with our intuitive VoIP software we were able to send crucial call recordings and voicemails to county officials quickly. The first time we used this feature we got approval to help a victim of abuse within hours, as opposed to it taking weeks.”

3CX, which offers a software based VoIP PBX for Windows, has released version 9 of its Phone System.

The Phone system V9 gives a free SIP phone for Android, video support and enterprise capabilities.

This upgrade allows clients to monitor their remote PBX installations via the 3CX Assistant. It also offers automatic remote installation and configuration of the 3CX Assistant and the 3CXPhone for a full VoIP solution.

The CEO of 3CX, Nick Galea, said: “The 3CX Phone System 9 is a complete Unified Communications solution. We have added support for smartphones as clients and standards-based video. Furthermore there are key enterprise features which widen 3CX’s appeal to larger companies”

He added: “3CX now has over 20,000 server installations worldwide. With v9 available this number will grow dramatically.”

The V9 Video support allows a single click set-up of video calls with other 3CXPhone users. Video calls are also possible to standards-based video phones including those made by Yealink, Xlite and Grandstream.

In terms of Android smartphone support, with 3CX v9 Android users can receive or make calls from anywhere using their extension. They just download the 3CXPhone for Android softphone and configure it to their 3CX Phone System account.

Other features are the provisioning of the 3CXphone and 3CX Assistant which makes deploying and administering installations much easier.

Phone System users can install the client apps by clicking on an HTTP link which will automatically install and configure them. Updates are automatically sent to the clients.

The 3CX Assistant now lets you create conference calls to internal and external users easily and offers improved presence and call forwarding.

For more information on the many features available visit 3CX.

Broadband services in the UK are better than those in the US, which enables better VoIP quality, according to research.

Market research firm Strategy Analytics revealed a new report on technology in 57 countries, rating them according to cost, speed, household penetration and urban quotient.

Amazingly American only came 23rd, one place behind the UK. South Korea came first followed by Hong Kong and Holland.

In theory VoIP quality in Britain is better than in America as VoIP relies on high speed broadband to create quality IP telephony solutions and increased voice data.

Ben Piper of Strategy Analytics said: "We feel confident that our multifactor index is a true indicator of broadband capabilities in a country."

Meanwhile VoIP traffic continues to rise in the US now that the firm 360networks has rolled out improved coverage to 1.4 million people. VoIP users in California, including the area of Sacremento, can now make use of 17,200 miles of fibre-optics which will provide increased IP telephony solutions.

The state of Connecticut is calling residents to warn them about dangerous weather or incidents, but warns that Voice over Internet Protocol lines will not be included on its database.

Locals who do not have VoIP lines can register their numbers here. Those who do have a VoIP telephone number need to go to the CT Alert sign-up page.

The 911 Emergency Notification System is used by the Connecticut Public Safety agencies to make people aware about hazardous events such as public health emergencies.
These agencies include the fire brigade and the police as well as Homeland Security. Using phone system contact information they can relay specific warnings about local threats while keeping the contact information strictly confidential.

A 'visualizing the internet' graphic created by the company Nielsen shows that VoIP is one the main reasons why people use the internet.
Considering that VoIp service Skype alone which has 39 million unique users, VoIP in its entirety accounts for 0.82% of the total internet usage. That is compared to some 0.56% of internet usage surveyed in the study being taken up by adult content.
By far the most dominant internet presence were search engines with Google alone claiming over 349 million unique users. The survey covered numerous countries including the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Australia, Brazil and Germany. The percentage figures represent unique users in January 2010 and the data is presented in the form of a treemap where you can fit a large amount of data into a small space. It was gathered as part of a BBC season on Superpowers.