Verizon Business Offers Carriers With IP-Only Networks Better Way to Complete Calls to Public Networks

SAN JOSE, Calif. - The number of VoIP residential users in the United States is expected to reach over 40 million by 2010.*  That's up from approximately 10 million people in 2005.

As the number of VoIP callers increases, Verizon Business is helping other carriers meet the demand with Carrier IP Termination Transport, the latest addition to the company's wholesale voice-over-Internet-protocol (VoIP) portfolio. Carrier IP Termination Transport carries VoIP calls between IP networks and the public telephone network.  For carriers with IP-networks only, the new service has distinct advantages.

Carrier IP Termination Transport allows long-distance voice calls to be terminated around the world when the call originates as non-IP but is converted to IP. By connecting to the Verizon Business global network via Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), carriers with IP-based networks need not convert the IP call to time division multiplexing (TDM) for final routing to the public telephone network.  As a result, callers can make calls to locations inside and outside the United States, leveraging the Verizon Business' robust domestic and international network reach.      

"As VoIP services become more and more mainstream, our wholesale customers are adding VoIP to serve their end-users," said Jim Tyrrell, vice president for business voice products for Verizon Business. "When you combine the Verizon Business global network with IP functionality and the low cost, you create a powerful combination to serve this market."

Carrier IP Termination Transport joins the Verizon Business Wholesale VoIP product suite, which includes Carrier IP Termination SIP and SIP Gateway Services. The Carrier IP Termination SIP offering enables wholesale customers to economically terminate IP-originated calls to the public telephone network.

SIP Gateway Services are available in three service configurations:

• Inbound Complete - Verizon Business can provide a new number or can port an existing telephone number, which enables the end-user to receive calls from anyone who dials that number.

• Two-Way Local - Provides the same functionality as Inbound Complete plus enables outbound local calling including emergency calling support and access to local directory assistance and operator services.
• Two-Way Complete - Takes advantage of Verizon Business' robust local and global network, allowing wholesale customers to offer competitive local and long-distance calling plans to their customers.

* according to IDC,  May 2006

About Verizon Business
Verizon Business, a unit of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), is a leading provider of advanced communications and information technology (IT) solutions to large business and government customers worldwide.  Combining unsurpassed global network reach with advanced technology and professional service capabilities, Verizon Business delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world.  For more information, visit www.verizonbusiness.com.

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