A recent Federal Communications Commission (FCC) statement on VoIP suggests that the government will insist on E911 regulations for wireless VoIP (wVoIP). These regulations would be intended for use in emergency situations in order to identify a 911-caller's exact location. While the wireless VoIP phones do not currently offer E911, the FCC seems like it will insist that wireless VoIP phones adopt to these regulations. Wireless VoIP devices could be held to E911 by as early as July 1, 2006. The FCC's comment leaves a number of privacy questions concerning wVoIP technology unanswered. The FCC's statement hints that the government could go so far as creating a roster of every WiFi access point in the US, causing concern among many privacy advocates.
For more on the FCC and wireless VoIP:
- go to this story from CNET