[enum-wg] ENUM Adoption - Does a business case matter?

Hi Torsten,

>> User ENUM will pushes governments,
>> regulators, operators and companies to the new paradigm.
>
> One possibly extremely successful method would be to convince Skype that
> they do ENUM lookups on their SkypeOut service and deliver the call via
> IP (and free of extra charge, of course) if there is a valid IP target
> returned or to offer a way to terminate skype: URLs as a means of
> SkypeIn. Both would boost ENUM! The only problem: SkypeIn and SkypeOut
> as they are are sources of revenue for Skype.

What I see in this situation is that Skype is assumed as a non "public
protocol" firm. Everything about skype is "closed", while the
internet, ENUM and SIP are on the other way. You have to see also that
the value of ENUM is the same as Skype, the size of the network. More
the users, more the value of the network. I believe that Skype has
already reached it's critical mass, while ENUM didn't. Why should
skype "give a hand" to ENUM? Will it have some kind of "business
case"? Any advantage in it? Don't think so.

If skype starts to support SIP, then ENUM has a chance... does any one
knows if they will support SIP soon?

>> The second will be to "force" operators to question the ENUM tree
>
> I think they are doing that a lot, unfortunately. ;-)

LoL! (good thinking...)

> No, sorry, but I think here you don't say what you mean. I guess you
> meant to say:
>
> The second will be to "force" operators to *query* the ENUM tree
>
> I agree with you that - as much as I hate saying this - it will have to
> be the regulator who needs to so something about this.

Yes. What kind of information/pressure can be applied to the regulator
to force the ENUM querying by the operators? Open the market to small
operators? Detach numbers from landline/mobile service? What can be
the drive to this change?

> Unless someone
> could come up with a different compensation for the network operators
> for the lost revenue of IP termination.

I really don't think that there will be any "lost of revenue". You
have to think in two ways:

1st - the "traditional PSTN network" that was up until 2004. The
cost/revenue model was based on circuits fees and voice calls. The
operator received per call. The interconnect rates were high, and the
business model was there for decades...

2nd - the "new IMS network" that will appear in a couple of years. The
cost/revenue model will/is based on broadband access, bandwidth,
quality of service, while voice will be just a commodity. It will
bundled... in fact, they will be happy not to pay anything to
interconnect carriers to deliver the call. More the users with ENUM,
more the revenue (less the cost) for the call initiator.

The problem is the present... the 1st model is moving towards the 2nd
and no one knows/wants to take the first step.

> If you need any links in / information about German telco regulation,
> feel free to ask me.

Yes, I need some information. I will contact you personally. Thanks.

Thank you all,

Rui Ribeiro
racribeiro at gmail.com