FCC wants Enhanced 911 service for VOIP calls

 

Connecting state and local government leaders

The Federal Communications Commission has started the process for giving IP phone calls Enhanced 911 service.

The Federal Communications Commission has initiated the rulemaking process for giving IP voice service providers access to caller location information for emergency phone calls.

The new rules are required under the New and Emerging Technologies (NET) 911 Improvement Act of 2008. It requires that voice-over-IP service providers be given access to services and information needed for providing Enhanced 911 services 'on the same rates, terms and conditions that are provided to a provider of commercial mobile service.'

As the country's public safety infrastructure moves to new technologies, questions have arisen over whether state and local responders who answer emergency phone calls and dispatch services will have information on who is making calls and where they are originating. Congress and FCC have resolved the issue with regard to cellular phone services and are now addressing VOIP services.

'The commission must, no later than Oct. 21, 2008, issue regulations implementing certain key provisions that, among other things, ensure that providers of IP-enabled voice services have access to the capabilities they need to provide 911 and E911 service,' according to the FCC's notice of proposed rulemaking, issued this week. 'We fully intend to have those regulations in place by Congress' deadline. Therefore, we issue this notice and provide a short comment cycle that will allow us to meet our statutory obligation.'

Comments are due within 12 days of the notice's publication in the Federal Register. Information for submitting comments is included in the notice.

FCC established E911 rules for VOIP services three years ago, but did not require that service providers have access to the routing information needed for the services, an issue addressed in the new law.

The NET 911 Improvement Act is in part a recognition that the country's communications infrastructure is moving from a predominantly circuit-switched environment to a packet-switched IP environment. That transition is complicated by the variety of media used to access communications services. Not only has VOIP been thrown into the mix of wireline and cellular phones, but some phones now use a combination of cellular and wireless IP technology via Wi-Fi connections.

The law addresses how voice service carriers are to comply with requirements that they provide location data for 911 calls to public safety answering points. That is a relatively straightforward process for fixed phones on traditional public switched telephone networks. Cellular phones use different technologies to locate calls, and IP calls use yet another set.

The situation is further complicated by the fact that many carriers partner with one another to initiate calls on a roaming basis when the caller is outside his home area, and many calls are carried on a variety of networks via a variety of media using a variety of protocols.

The apparently simple requirement that VOIP providers have access to the capabilities needed to provide E911 data is not so simple to implement, and FCC officials are seeking comments on how to define capabilities and the applicable rates and terms. They also want input on roaming agreements between wireless Commercial Mobile Radio Service (CMRS) carriers, an issue not typically thought of as related to VOIP E911 services.

'The issue is being raised here because it appears that, in certain situations, wireless providers offering dual-mode VOIP/CMRS handsets use the 'last known cell' as part of their routing protocol for mobile VOIP calls,' FCC Commissioner Michael Copps said. 'It is not entirely clear at this point whether CMRS providers can obtain this information when their customers are roaming on another CMRS network. Accordingly, we ask whether the commission should require host roaming networks to provide this information to their roaming partners.'

Other issues being considered include the security of information that must be shared between networks and service providers.

'What network security issues do providers of IP-enabled voice services pose for the 911 and E911 networks?' the notice asks. 'What steps can the commission take to correct or ameliorate these concerns? With respect to information privacy, are there any issues specific to IP-enabled voice service providers that raise new concerns regarding the protection of customer proprietary network information? What steps should the commission take to ensure IP-enabled voice service providers' customers' information is protected during and after a 911 or E911 call?'

NEXT STORY: Tech flaws hobble watch list

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.