VoIP User opens up the iNum range to all its users

As you may have seen in some forum remarks, we have been working on adding support for iNum (http://www.inum.net).

As of now every SIP Account on our network has an iNum number on which they can receive calls.

The inum number is based on your 0844 number and contains the last 7 digits prefixed by +88351000. So if your VoIP User My Sip number is 0844 986 32 46 then your iNum number is +88351000 986 32 46.

You can also find your iNum number in the My Sip Account menu option.

Further more we have opened up the outbound routing to any iNum number, which on VoIP user is a free destination and is not effecting the community pot or your personal rating. This means that you can now reach other iNum users from your VoIP user account simply by dialing their iNum number on your phone.

Another handy option is the fact that iNum has a lot of dial-thru numbers worldwide that local users can dial in to, then dialing the iNum number that they want to reach.

More details on the networks that currently support iNum for their members, as well as a list of dial-thru numbers available world wide, please visit: http://www.inum.net/what-is-inum/inum-partners/.

Of course I want to thank Rod Ullens and the team at Voxbone for their work in getting this effort running. This is an important step in bringing PSTN and 'VoIP Islands' closer together.

Regards,

Tj

iNum website: http://www.inum.net
Voxbone website: http://www.voxbone.com

Reply from czerwonykrasnal on Dec 29, 2008 - 10:18 AM

I'm new to this service, so be patient if I'm asking for obvious things )

At first - do I have this inum automatically, or I have first obtain a 'sip' account (I have this 844 number in UK you give while registering).

I do ask this because in another info you wrote, that inum is 83351000 and then last 7 digits of the 844 number - so it should exist (?) in general or it is existing/activated ONLY when I obtain this 'sip' account (and if yes so why to complicate all the process?).

The other thing is how to place a call - there are those access numbers - I select this number, then the voice prompts me to input the inum - what exactly do I write - 00833etc or 833etc?

Can anyone help a complete ignorant in this matter?

And can you phone without those access numbers? And in what way?

Thanks

Reply from dean on Dec 29, 2008 - 10:45 AM

Welcome to VoIP User czerwonykrasnal.

Quote:

it is existing/activated ONLY when I obtain this 'sip' account

Yes, you need a SIP account. It's a free signup - click the My SIP Account link in the top left menu.

Quote:

(and if yes so why to complicate all the process?).

An iNUM number on it's own would not be of much use - you need a SIP account so something rings when it's dialled

Quote:

The other thing is how to place a call - there are those access numbers

No, they are not access numbers. Your iNUM number is for your own VoIP User SIP account and can just be direct dialled in the usual way.

Dean

Reply from czerwonykrasnal on Dec 29, 2008 - 11:35 AM

unfortunatelly I'll have to wait - strangely I registered with one email address, and obtained this 844 number, but when tried to get Sip account, was rejected (as free address?)

- I'll try the other day (it's not possible to change the address same day), hoping that the other address will suit you ) BUT I'm a bit confused - why I got the number 844 but I cannot get 883 with the same address?

- you wrote "An iNUM number on it's own would not be of much use - you need a SIP account so something rings when it's dialled " - well for me it could be linked to 844 number I just obtained, and consequently rerouted as the 844 - I do not understand what for I should have additional account? I mean I thought it is (a swich, a sip, or whatever) just set for 844 - because I can reroute it to a landline number or to my sip device/address (there is existing such a possibility)

- the access numbers I was talking about are stated here: http://www.inum.net/what-is-inum/inum-partners/ and sorry, I'm still not sure how do I use them? I select them (one of those access numbers) from my phone (normal-landline), then when prompted to insert 'inmu', I'll have to select 883... or 00883...?

- if these are international numbers, they should be 'reachable' from any network, I assume that the prefix 00883 is (in theory) valid as those satellite numbers (don't remember prefix). Or am I wrong?

Reply from dibsmft on Dec 29, 2008 - 11:50 AM

Once active you can call your iNum from other voip providers that will route them such as Gizmo, FWD, Mobivox and Voxalot. Calling the number that way amounts to roughly the same as calling using the SIP address user [!at] sip.voipuser.org (replace the [!at] with a @). You can also call the numbers from Skype (cost same as call to UK) or using the "local numbers" for which you would dial 00883 etc. You can also call voipuser-voipuser using the 0844 or the 00883 numbers although I normally use the sip address user [!at] sip.voipuser.org (replace the [!at] with a @) as it is easier to remember.

The incoming call to the iNum is delivered to your voipuser account so you need to be logged in in order to receive it.

So far, I know of no PSTN POTs provider that will route the 00883 numbers.

Reply from dean on Dec 29, 2008 - 02:32 PM

Quote:

well for me it could be linked to 844 number I just obtained, and consequently rerouted as the 844

That can't be done as there is no way to obtain revenue for the 883 in order to pay for the cost of forwarding to wherever your 0844 number is pointed.

Dean

Reply from dibsmft on Dec 29, 2008 - 03:21 PM

I suppose the best thing is for people to have an ATA so that incoming calls from 883 got to voipuser and then voip to the ATA and then to a handset.
So far, the Mobivox arrangements for 883 are the only ones aimed at connecting directly to the regular phone system (at a cost) so the call is like a collect call. I suppose there is no problem in forwarding TO and iNum from a "My Numbers" number as that cost "nothing". I guess incoming iNum can be forwarded to a voip-PSTN provider through a full Voxalot account.
So, when will BT or Bell begin accepting calls to iNum and what will they charge?

Reply from middletn on Dec 30, 2008 - 02:17 PM

Can anyone tell me how Inum is different to something like SIPBroker, or do they do the same sort of thing?

regards

Reply from czerwonykrasnal on Dec 30, 2008 - 03:47 PM

I (as of now) do not know the practical side of this Inum -

- I thought that this is a "valid" (everywhere) number, but from your responses it semms to be simply an URI (?)

- I'm a bit confused what for an international numbering agency created this 833 number, when it is NOT reacheable form... landline phones (I'm not so sure it is NOT, but someone wrote it)

- the problem is also with your 844 number (e.g. it is NOT avaliable/reachable in many networks)

- in Poland I was fighting for 2 years to include some numbers in cell networks, because they were avaliable on selective basis. I was shocked to receive the answer from national regulator that everything is OK, because any number operator (for instance free 800) has to have a contract signed with each (!) phone operator. For me this was completely nuts, for I cannot immagine every owner of each number to sign contracts with each phone line provider, which are in poland now counted in hundreds. I'm not talking of suppliers (vendors) of those special numbers, but of users...! Except in case of total chaos, that would be immaginable. Nowadays we can phone to any number (it seems so)



NOW about structure of the VoipUser services:

- someone wrote it's not possible to forward/switch 833 to landline, because it is free

- and why not? at first you switch 844 to mobile (I presume), so it's not balanced as landlines are cheaper

- I do not understand why VoipUser shouldn't work as Betamax for instance. How do they generate income I'm not sure, but having a credit I can phone (landlines) FREE up to 5 hrs per week, this is a kind of switching/forwarding to landline phones.

- this way it could be really a personal number and with the possibility of forwarding to other number this would be a nice solution

- why not?

Reply from ianplain on Dec 30, 2008 - 04:20 PM

Hi

Quote:

NOW about structure of the VoipUser services: - someone wrote it's not possible to forward/switch 833 to landline, because it is free - and why not? at first you switch 844 to mobile (I presume), so it's not balanced as landlines are cheaper

in simple terms, We can route a 0844 to any number that costs less than the revenue we get from the 0844. You mention mobiles, we can only route to a limited number that fit the above criteria.

Quote:

- I do not understand why VoipUser shouldn't work as Betamax for instance. How do they generate income I'm not sure, but having a credit I can phone (landlines) FREE up to 5 hrs per week, this is a kind of switching/forwarding to landline phones.

Simply put we dont. They take a "credit" from you and do charge for some routes, and those routes make them a profit and from that they pay for the "free" routes.

Ian

Reply from dibsmft on Dec 30, 2008 - 04:31 PM

iNUM at present can be viewed a s substitute for a SIP URI - it can be dialed on a phone as it is numeric and will be carried by many SIP networks free of charge. Whenever a SIP call is passed to a PSTN (traditional) phone network there is charge made by the PSTN carrier. The charges vary a lot and can be very low (<.5 US cents /min) or very high. While Voipuser will handle the iNUM call free it cannot be passed on to a PSTN number without a charge. Mobivox passes iNum calls on to PSTN (~ 2 cents/min to the UK).

Betamax gives you "free" call time for a fee. The "free" countries are usually ones that can be connected very cheaply. At wholesale rates you can connect in the USA voip-PSTN for a very long time for 1 Euro. So the Poland - USA leg of the call goes via voip on the internet ("free" as you already pay for internet access) and the USA-> PSTN leg cost very little. Of course it will cost you "nothing" if the call is made voip - voip.

The big advantage of iNUM is that if you know a persons number and you are logged into Voipuser or call using a local number then you can call the persons iNUM and it will ring their phone wherever they are connected with the internet (you do not even need to know who the voip provider is or which country). When (and if) the regular PSTN landline/cell phone companies will connect the iNumbers you will be able to call them from a regular phone. The iNum is meant to be a world number (the 883 is like a country code) while the 0844/0870... numbers are UK numbers (844 is a area code not a country code). Whether or not they can be reached from a normal phone in another country depends on whether the phone company chooses to route the numbers.

Reply from czerwonykrasnal on Jan 02, 2009 - 10:44 AM

unfortunately when I submitted entry, forum was out

so today only in short I'd like to inform you that it is NOT working at all

it seems also that similar problems have othwr users (other then Voipuser users), as I found desperate posts in different places (of other networks)

I checked today trhough access number once more - the same result:

- you can reach iNUM access numbers in different countries, but you are NOT able to connect to iNUM - it seems the machine is not reacting

I tried all options 00883, 0883, 883, even +883 (through Gizmo), also in US and Canada I tried 011883, 01883, 1883 - no results (using, phone, Gizmo, and whatever)

As of today this very good idea of INUM is a complete disaster

at this point I'd like to ask if ANYONE ever connected to iNUM and in what way (also what exactly inserted before 883, because this is not so clear)

pity that someone made a PR action for INUM which could result in discrediting this function/service completely - because the worst thing is to offer something which is NOT functioning and frustrate from the very beginning potential users

:o)

Reply from dean on Jan 02, 2009 - 10:54 AM

Sounds to me like Gizmo are not routing correctly and the US/Canada network you're using is not routing them (probably at all).

It's working fine for me for SIP to SIP calls. Getting full international PSTN connectivity will take a while. iNUM is a slow-burn project - it won't come together overnight.

In principle it's a good thing, and that's why we're supporting it and inter-operating. As I understand the current position there are over a million iNUM numbers issued. When it reaches a critical mass point, there'll be more pressure on the regulators to ensure routing.

Reply from ianplain on Jan 02, 2009 - 11:05 AM

Hi

I have just tesed the UK access number and dialing direct from voipuser and both work as expected.

As you are in Poland use the polish access number 48223982688 then dial the inum number . 883510009863246 will get you to our echotest.

Ian

Reply from dean on Jan 02, 2009 - 11:16 AM

Quote:

Can anyone tell me how Inum is different to something like SIPBroker, or do they do the same sort of thing?

SIPBroker is in effect a SIP proxy that is peered with a lot of providers and uses ENUM (actually a custom parallel lookup variation on ENUM written by Martin) to route to all of them from it's servers.

iNUM has an official e164 range allocated to it which it seeks to pursuade the PSTN operators to route to.

So you can think of iNUM as a type of e164/ENUM gateway.

You can think of SIPBroker as a big ENUM server with a SIP frontend.

They overlap, but the PSTN number range is why they're different.

SIPBroker are working with iNUM. As are we. We're also working closely with SIPBroker/Voxalot and all of us are personal friends, along with FWD and other "open" SIP based networks.

There needs to come a point where all of these systems start to make sense in the way that they all integrate into a coherent service/network. Until we know exactly what form that will take, VoIP User is taking the view that we need to support everything. That's partly biased by the fact that we're here (VoIP User) to experiment.

iNUM is not yet a prime-time service. It will not be until the incumbent telco's in major continents start to route there. They won't do that unless there's a critical mass and consumer demand, so it's a chicken and egg situation. I see the involvement of us, FreeWorldDialup, SIPBroker/Voxalot etc as construction of part of the egg. There's a long way to go yet.

SIPBroker is primetime and an excellent service. Several of our users "front-end" their VoIP User SIP account with SIPBroker to get the benefit of additional routes without having to prefix dial with network codes.

iNUM should probably buy SIPBroker as that would in one stroke integrate much of these disparate services, but I'm not sure whether Martin is up for selling.

Goto page 1, 2  Next

Voip User Forum Index » The World of VoIP » VoIP News