Tuesday 20 October 2015

Can we use VoIP in india and how we can prepare our apartment cabling for this ?

I will answer the 2nd part of the question first because its in our hand. 

In US, their are many Over-the-top VoIP providers like Vonage, RingCentral, PhonePower, Skype, Jive, etc. Apart from these companies providing smartphone, Tablet and PC apps, they also provide fixed terminals like:


  1.  A VoIP phone - an IP Phone usually powered by PoE ( made by Cisco, Linksys, Grandstream, Polycom, etc). This needs a RJ45 data port at each location, and possibly, an electrical socket nearby if PoE is not feasible.
  2. An VoIP Analog telephone adapter (ATA) which usually accepts an RJ45 data port as input and has two ports for connecting regular POTS analog phone terminals

VoIP maybe delivered in OTT fashion i..e, it will come on your Broadband connection, or it can be even offered by Telco (business connection) in which case it may come like IPTV service on a separate LAN port of ONT. All you need for using such a device is a data port at the device location and the option to connect to either your home network or to the special ONT Port.

To answer the second part, please note that presently, In India,  regulatory framework is restrictive of VoIP services, possibly in order to protect the incumbent long distance voice operators from loss of STD/ISD revenue. In particular VoIP Gateways are not allowed to be put inside India to bypass STD/ISD toll. As such all foreign based VOIP server services are illegal to use in India, TRAI treats VoIP as a service different in scope, nature and kind from real-time voice as offered by Telcos and long distance carriers. However as a consequence only the following type of VoIP or Internet telephony is allowed in India:

  1. PC to PC Voip Call within or outside India
  2. PC/IP-Phone/Adapter to a landline/mobile abroad (The gateway in this case is outside India)
  3. PC/IP-Phone/Adapter connected to ISP with static IP calling similar device inside or Outside India (again an IP-IP call)

Their is also no number (E.164) allocation strategy for VoIP as given to fixed line voice, GSM or CDMA voice. ISPs are forbidden from putting E.164 to IP address mappings as recommended by IANA is forbidden. This ensures a different quality of experience than using regular landline or mobile phones. To summarize VoIP does not have a level playing field in India as in US, especially when interconnect with legacy voice networks are concerned.

Things however may change in future, but the time-frame is not determinable. Owners can however prepare infrastructure upfront as highlighted above to be ready for this eventuality.

UPDATE October 2018: The Indian Government has relaxed regulations (6 months back) allowing the use of VoIP or Wifi by all Telecom services license holders (their own or other providers's network). As such both VoWifi/Wifi-Calling and VoIP are now feasible in India if launched by a telecom license holder like BSNL, Bharti, Tata, Vodafone, Idea or Reliance. BSNL WINGS is now the first usable VoIP service in India with seamless connectivity to all landlines and mobiles and works on any Wifi and any Cellular bearer /transport technology. 


- Suman Kumar Luthra @ APRC-P3 Telecom Sub-committee

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