David Birnbaum wrote:
I think perhaps we're using "interconnection" differently.
Yeah; perhaps connection to ILEC tandems should be deemed Interconnection with a capital I. :-) A lot of ITSPs that don't actually touch the LEC side of things don't know this, so, you're absolutely right. Peering is exchanging traffic with another carrier in some sort of bidirectional settlement arrangement explicitly for that purpose (analogous to settlement-free IP peering, but not necessarily settlement-free as we know - recip. comp. and all that), and access is buying origination or termination from another carrier. Access is really what ITSPs as well as CLECs buying inter-LATA LD from IXCs do. If you're a VoIP provider and buy VoIP or TDM trunks from a CLEC, you're buying access; you're not on horizontal footing with them, you're not a "peer" - you're a customer. Peering, I think, should be reserved for CLECs that connect to each other for the purpose of passing traffic directly and getting around the Bell tandems.
However, if you want to connect directly to the tandems for the purposes of owning number blocks, registering an LRN, porting numbers natively, etc. there is no way to do that with IP.
Well, it depends on what is meant by "directly." One could argue that there's nothing "indirect" about taking SIGTRAN from a third party. You still signal ISUP and/or TCAP, just over IP. The only difference is that the physical A-links aren't coming to you and that your point codes are physically homed somewhere else. The switch CLLI and the accompanying LRNs and number blocks and so on are still pointing to your equipment; you can port numbers natively, do LNP dips natively, etc. It's just that there's a network element in the middle doing some protocol conversion.
If you peer with another carrier who does the IP/TDM interconnection at the tandems on your behalf, you are still beholden to the actual CLEC that owns your numbers. To me, that's the true difference (which is both technical as well as regulatory) between a CLEC and a facilities-based reseller.
I agree. There is a whole pile of things you have to do and facilities you have to own and operate as a CLEC that you do not have to as an ITSP/reseller of an underlying carrier. -- Alex Balashov Evariste Systems Web : http://www.evaristesys.com/ Tel : (+1) (678) 954-0670 Direct : (+1) (678) 954-0671