Ofcom presses for VoIP services to give 999 access

VoIP providers must allow users of their service to dial 999 in emergencies by the first half of 2008, according to proposals published by the commications regulator Ofcom.

The regulator stated that any voice over IP (VoIP) service that allowed users to make calls to ordinary phone numbers must also offer access to 999. It said that it wanted to ensure that users of mainstream VoIP services do not suffer as a result of trying to dial 999 using a service that does not offer them access.

Ofcom said that if users had to then locate an ordinary landline or mobile phone, they might be delayed by minutes in getting through to emergency services, which, it claimed, could prove critical.

At present some VoIP service providers, such as BT and Vonage, already allow people to access the emergency service through VoIP phones. For other VoIP providers, Ofcom estimated the cost of allowing their users to call 999 would cost around ninety pence per household per year.

According to the regulator, it consulted various bodies about regulating VoIP services and several respondents including government departments and the emergency services, voiced concern about possible harm that could come to VoIP users who are unable to contact 999 using that service.

As a result of the consultation, the regulator put in place in March this year a code of practice that requires all VoIP providers to make it clear to consumers whether or not their service includes access to emergency services. It also put on record that it intended to carry out further work to determine whether to require certain VoIP providers to offer access to emergency services.

The code of practice would continue to apply under the proposals published today.

The deadline for responses to the proposals from interested parties will be 20 September. The consultation, along with accompanying research, can be found here.

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