FCC may mandate 911 VoIP emergency calling

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is expected ask commissioners at the agency's May 19 meeting to require VoIP service providers to begin delivering 911 calls to the appropriate public safety answering point (PSAP) by September. Such a relatively short deadline would send many VoIP providers, particularly smaller companies, scrambling to find ways to meet the FCC's mandate. Martin's proposal would reportedly give VoIP providers 120 days to implement 911 or shut down. Martin's proposal looks similar to last month's ruling by the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), which gave Canadian VoIP companies 90 days to implement emergency phone services.

For more on the FCC's possible VoIP 911 mandate:
- go to this story from TelecomWeb

PLUS: Vonage talks up its 911 deal with Verizon. Article