AICC Continues to Tackle VoIP Initiative
VoIP Information Needed From You 

      The Alarm Industry Communications Committee (AICC) recently attended a meeting sponsored by the House Energy and Commerce Committee, along with representatives of the VoN (Voice over Internet) Coalition, Vonage and representatives of the cable television industry. 
      The meeting was part of a two-year effort by the AICC to create an initiative ensuring that VoIP operators are required to notify their consumers of the steps needed to preserve alarm services if the customer chooses VoIP phone services. In a number of cases, the result of a subscriber converting to cable VoIP has been the inoperability of the subscriber's alarm system, which can have serious consequences. 

      At the conclusion of the meeting, all the groups present were asked to meet and develop a consensus on the best ways to inform consumers of the potential interruptions of their alarm services as a result of switching to VoIP phone services.       

      The AICC has recommended that the VoIP provider notify the consumer at the time of number activation that if they have alarm services, the consumer needs to have their alarm company test their system, notify their alarm company when VoIP service is activated and install a 24-hour battery backup for customer equipment.
       Both the representatives of the VoN coalition and of Vonage contended that they were not really aware that alarm service interruption was a real consumer issue. The AICC, which is composed of representatives of the Central Station Alarm Association (CSAA), National Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA), the Security Industry Association (SIA) and major alarm companies and manufacturers, believes that it is - and is attempting to collect the data to prove it.
      In order todocument the extent of the problem by providing statistical information on the number of customers having issues with VoIP and whether or not the consumer is receiving proper notification (and, if so, from whom), a survey has been developed to provide a much clearer picture of the size and extent of the problem.
       If you are concerned about alarm service failures as a result of customers migrating to VoIP phone services, the AICC is requesting that you take the time to make a record of the service interruptions that you are experiencing.

      "The ultimate goal is for us to have legislation that requires the VoIP providers to inform their customers that they should contact their alarm company to make sure their alarm system is tested to make sure that it works properly," Louis Fiore, chairman of the AICC and president of L.T. Fiore Inc., said. "VoIP providers don't want anything that will make a potential customer hesitate or get in the way of the sale. They don't want to admit that it is an issue, but we feel that it is - and we would like to gather the data to prove it."
      "We are not trying to create contention between the alarm industry and the cable industry or VoIP providers; we just want to insure the proper installation of VoIP and make sure that that all alarm signals are received by alarm monitoring stations. The more data we get, the better off we are. Thus, it is vital that everyone participates."      

      Data will be collected for the months of January, February, and March 2009. Please e-mail your monthly responses to Celia Besore at communications@csaaul.org. Please send your March responses no later than April 15, 2009. Please be assured that no company's individual information will be shared and that only aggregate data will be presented. For further information on VoIP from the CSAA, visit www.csaaul.org/SecurityIndustryVoIPWhitePaper.doc.