SIP Trunking Service Overview
SIP trunking services are rapidly changing the way businesses communicate by offering increased flexibility, cost savings and value added service features. Unlike traditional telephony, where bundles of physical wires are delivered from the service provider to a business, SIP trunking service allows businesses to replace traditional fixed Public Switched Telephony Network (PSTN) lines with PSTN connectivity via the SIP trunking service provider through the Internet.
Business VoIP and SIP Trunking
Many businesses today are already using VoIP for internal communications on their Local Area Network (LAN). In this scenario, VoIP is only being used to communicate as a one-to-one replacement for traditional wireline telephony. Calls made outside of the LAN use the traditional PSTN gateway. This results in lowered administrate expenses for calls made internally. However, significant savings can be achieved when businesses expand their capabilities beyond their LAN.
SIP trunking services require three components which include (1) PBX, (2) edge device that can handle the traversal of SIP traffic and of course (3) a SIP trunk from an ITSP.
PBX, IP PBX Hardware
The PBX is typically an IP-based PBX, communicating with all endpoints over IP, but it may also work with a traditional digital or analog PBX as long as SIP trunking connectivity is available.
Edge Device
The edge device is a component that can be a firewall with complete support for SIP or an edge device connected to the firewall which handles the traversal of the SIP traffic.
ITSP SIP Trunk
The Internet Telephone Service Provider (ITSP) provides the connectivity to the PSTN for communications with both mobile and fixed phones.
The Features and Benefits of SIP Trunking Service
There are many advantages to deploying SIP trunking services including greater savings and efficiencies. SIP trunking services eliminate the need for BRIs (Basic Rate Interfaces) and PRIs (Primary Rate Interfaces). SIP trunking services provide increased bandwidth utilization by delivering both voice and data over the same connection. SIP trunking services eliminate the need to purchase excess lines in blocks of 23 (T1) or 30 (E1). With SIP trunking service, you are also able to gain access to multiple providers which increases your redundancy. Lastly, SIP trunking service reduces the need for additional investments in hardware such as gateways or line cards.
