What Exactly Do You Get from a SIP Service Provider?

If your organization wants to modernize its phone system with SIP trunking, you need to evaluate potential service providers. Comparing providers can be confusing, as they all offer different terms, plans and features.

A SIP provider is a company that offers SIP trunking services to customers on-site or in the cloud. Organizations usually rent one trunk with many channels and add or remove channels as needed to meet demand and manage costs. A service provider may use services from a voice carrier to sell to customers. Alternatively, they can be both a service provider and a voice carrier. Let’s look at some of the key features to look for in a SIP provider.

What Voice Carrier Tiers Mean

It is important to understand how SIP service providers are divided into tiers. This affects the service level you will receive. Voice carriers fall into one of three categories – Tier 1, Tier 2 or Tier 3.

• A Tier 1 is a large carrier that owns its infrastructure and runs a network with a direct connection to the Internet.
• A Tier 2 is smaller and typically has a peering agreement with a Tier 1 carrier, which means a Tier 2 essentially piggybacks on a Tier 1 network.
• A Tier 3 tends to be a specialty or niche provider that works through a Tier 2 or sometimes a Tier 1.

When evaluating SIP service providers, look for one that is a Tier 1 carrier or works directly with a Tier 1. Why?

Voice quality.

The SIP service provider is responsible for ensuring that calls are clear. A Tier 1 carrier sends data over the Internet at the highest speeds. Their goal is to have almost no packet loss. Since it owns its infrastructure, a Tier 1 service provider usually offers better service. This means they deliver high-quality voice calls consistently. Alternatively, Tier 2 and Tier 3 carriers require peering with network handoffs. This can increase latency and might not be as reliable when a network failure occurs.

How a Point of Presence (POP) Helps to Ensure Voice Clarity

A point of presence, or POP, is a carrier facility that provides access to the internet. Ideally, the voice carrier that provides your service has PoPs spread across many regions to help reduce latency. In general, the closer customers are to the POP, the lower the latency, which results in clearer voice calls. Understanding the POP quantity and location is an important element in determining a voice carrier’s capabilities.

Why Scalability Is Important

SIP trunking scalability is tied to the ability to dynamically allocate bandwidth across multiple channels. When a SIP channel is idle, the bandwidth is freed up for other uses, which may be voice, internet browsing, email or some other task. This resource pooling and the ability to shrink or grow on demand offers significant flexibility. If additional channels are needed, the service provider can provide them very quickly upon request, with no need to make physical changes to equipment. Because of dynamic allocation, bandwidth can be purchased in smaller increments and helps control costs.

Costs and Billing

A customer should expect to pay monthly charges to the SIP service provider for SIP trunking fees, calls and bandwidth. There may be a setup charge, similar to an “installation” fee. Many customers pay to move their old phone numbers to the new system or buy new numbers. Certain quantities of calling minutes are often bundled into the monthly recurring bill which can be a more efficient alternative to buying minutes on an a la carte basis, plus it provides certainty for budgeting purposes.

There is also the cost of phones to consider, which you can lease through a service provider or purchase on your own. Some organizations either require or prefer desk sets, which can quickly escalate costs depending on the number needed. To keep costs low and support mobility, a trend nowadays is toward softphones. A softphone is an app you install on a computer or mobile device to make and receive calls over SIP. The app provides an interface much like any phone but also offers chat, texting, video conferencing, visual voicemail and more. It also protects the device owner’s privacy by presenting callers with a work phone number rather than a personal number. From an IT perspective, a key benefit of softphones is that you can avoid costly technology refresh cycles.

The Foundation for VoIP and UC&C

SIP trunking is the foundation for modern methods of business communications. As enterprises evolve their communication platforms, it makes sense for enterprises to embrace VoIP and UC&C, given the general reliance on mobility and the recent workforce shifts to work to home. To get the best value, choose a Tier 1 carrier or provider. They should offer high voice quality and reliable service. Look for one that has dynamic bandwidth allocation and is available 24/7 to help with any issues.

Are you ready to evaluate SIP service plans and providers? Use our checklist as a guide.

This content is provided for informational purposes only and may require additional research and substantiation by the end user. In addition, the information is provided “as is” without any warranty or condition of any kind, either express or implied. Use of this information is at the end user’s own risk. Lumen does not warrant that the information will meet the end user’s requirements or that the implementation or usage of this information will result in the desired outcome of the end user. This document represents Lumen’s products and offerings as of the date of issue. Services not available everywhere. Business customers only. Lumen may change or cancel products and services or substitute similar products and services at its sole discretion without notice. ©2020 Lumen Technologies. All Rights Reserved.