Northland Launches VoIP in Carolinas
Highlanders (N.C.) and Clemson Tigers (S.C.) Get SIP System
CT’s Pipeline
March 2, 2005
Mid-sized systems are proving that they can get into this game fast enough and without busting the budget...
cableworld.com
Cutting-edge technologies such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) are not reserved for the most powerful operators. Mid-sized systems are proving that they can get into this game fast enough and without busting the budget.
A case in point is Northland Cable Television, based in Seattle, WA, and rated the 18th largest system in the country with more than 315,000 homes passed. The company recently launched VoIP service in its Clemson, SC, and Highland, NC, systems (roughly 8,000 and 2,500 subscribers, respectively) and is about to launch in Corsicana, TX. The company is rolling out VoiceLine, a SIP-based system by Net2Phone. Opting for a turnkey solution allowed the company to launch quickly with low start-up costs, according to Jack Dyste, senior vice president at Northland.
“We were able to launch in our smaller markets with no headend costs,” he said. “Capital costs under this platform are strictly limited to multimedia terminal adapters. We went into trials with Net2Phone last August and finished on February 1.”
SIP’s Advantage
Dyste said the company insisted on a SIP-based VoIP platform because of its advanced features compared to PacketCable. Chief among them is the Virtual Phone Number, in which voice service is ported to another telephone anywhere in the country, enabling free service to relatives.
Other features include E911, online account management and email notification of voicemail.
Mike Pastor, president of Net2Phone Cable Telephony, said the company designed its VoiceLine product with the small-to-medium cable operator in mind. Running off a centralized switching platform at the company’s home base in Newark, NJ, the system offers a low-cost solution to operators who want to enter the voice market quickly.
Advantage, cable
“We’re able to support multiple cable customers from individualized switching platforms, so economies of scale are achieved for operators of this size,” he said.
Pastor added that within the United States, Net2Phone is focusing almost exclusively on the cable market for voice communications.
“Cable has very strong customer relationships, true last-mile facilities into the home, and they can bundle services and provide greater overall value and discounts to the customer,” he said. “Over time, as they deploy IP into the home, they will start to merge voice, video and data applications that are much more challenging–both technically and economically–for traditional copper wire.” |
