In May 2005, the FCC imposed immediate E911 requirements for VoIP service providers, which gave implied legitimacy to this growing telephony field. In this new ruling, a VoIP service provider, such as Vonage, must support E911 services within a 120-day window. In order to comply with the new regulations, a Voice over IP provider must have their 911 calls placed with emergency services within the caller's proximity, rather than where that VoIP number might be located. Another change to the current 911 services would require providers to automatically file the customer's location in their system, while now this is only an optional feature.

Kevin Martin, the FCC Chairman, said this statement the day of the FCC ruling, "Anyone who dials 911 has a reasonable expectation that he or she will be connected to an emergency operator; this expectation exists whether that person is dialing 911 from a traditional wireline phone, a wireless phone, or a VoIP phone. Today, we take this action to ensure this expectation is met as soon as possible."

Recent cases against Vonage involving failed 911 VoIP calls prompted the FCC to regulate Voice over IP service providers. The agency hopes to avoid similar situations when VoIP users could not connect with emergency personnel.

Higher costs for VoIP providers?

If the VoIP provider is a start-up company that has offered low-cost deals to customers, they may face higher short-term costs while finding their own E911 solution. However, in the case of Vonage, the largest independent VoIP provider, or in the case of the cable companies offering digital voice, implementing these new regulations should not be as costly. In fact, Vonage has reached agreements with two former Bell companies, SBC Communications and BellSouth, to buy access to their E911 infrastructure. This summer, Vonage will implement an opt-out system to have new Vonage customers signed up for 911 services during their registration process, in order to meet the FCC's 120-day time limit.

The FCC passed down the funding for E911 services to the states that already collect a monthly 911 customer service charge. Under the new plan, states will be responsible for collecting these fees.

Several technical and financial hurdles exist for the Voice over IP service providers before all of them can find a reasonable E911 solution. However, Vonage is setting a good example of how to implement the FCC regulations within a reasonable time frame without overburdening the consumer with extra costs.