Time Warner Links With MCI, Sprint for Voice Over Internet Calls

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGACJ1710OD.html
Time Warner Links With MCI, Sprint for Voice Over Internet Calls
By Heather Hollingsworth
Associated Press Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - A cable company will be offering Internet-based phone service to millions of homes across the country, a major assault on the local phone industry. <snip>

While other cable companies sell phone service in selected markets, this is the first time "voice-over-Internet Protocol" technology will be offered by a cable company with a presence in many states. In September, New York-based cable TV operator Cablevision Systems said it would offer Internet phoning by year's end to all 3 million of its customers - in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. <snip>

The technology will let Time Warner customers make calls with their regular phones, but the calls will travel as packets of data over the cable line that feeds into the house, rather than going through the phone wire. <snip>

Time Warner's cable and high-speed data customers in Portland and Raleigh pay $39.95 for unlimited local, in-state and domestic long distance calling. Customers who don't receive other Time Warner services pay $49.95 a month for phone service. <snip>

The Mike Maloy show ran into an intresting question. He was getting lost of e-mails from all over the world. But no phone calls. He then opened up the phones for foreners only. And he got zero calls. But lots of e-mails telling him that for some resone, they could not connect.

It took a canadian to find a way around this block by using a voice-over-internet connection.

I used to install hi-speed internet and VoIP service for a large carrier that is based out of Overland, KS. The problem with VoIP is that if there is a power outage, then you lose your phone.. that simple. You need a router for the service to work, and unfortunately, the router requires a source of power. We would go on these installs, and have to explain to the customer that it might not be a bad idea to retain their land line from the ILEC in case there was an outage. Looks good on paper, but still lots of bugs to work through.

But so to for the phone compnay. It is just that in the phone companyes case, back ups have been installed into the system. For one, the phone system works on the fraction of the power as other systems. Each phone line only rings with a 24V DC spike, but actualy trafic rests on a millavolt modulation.

And placed throught the system, are reguler power generators and battery back up systems that can support the phone grid should the main power fail.

To my knowlage, the IP backbone has made no such consideration for such relability. It might be something we will want to think about in the fucher however. With a little work, the IPback boan can be made a lot more relaible.

The POTS (plain old telephone service) uses a local current loop, the exact same technology that Bell used when he first invented the phone. The local loop is battery-powered not for power backup but because the circuit only works with batteries. Also, the ring signal is 24 volts AC, not DC. If you run DC through one of those old phones with an electromechanical bell it won't ring steadily, you'll just get a single ping (the sine wave from tha AC signal makes the clapper oscillate).

As for the power issue, routers take so little power that a cheap UPS can keep one running for several days.