ENUM delegation and number allocation possible in the (0)780 range from May 17, 2005

Press release dated 15 April 2005

In December 2004, Austria was the first country worldwide to launch commercial ENUM operations (Electronic Number Mapping). This will now be followed by the operational availability of an ENUM-based number range, another step toward bringing the young and dynamic VoIP market to life. "The availability of the 0780 number range will make it even easier to launch attractive ENUM applications, and that will certainly get the ball rolling in this market,“ says Robert Schischka, managing director of enum.at.

ENUM delegation of (0)780 numbers to begin on May 17

The delegation of (0)780 numbers for ENUM purposes will begin at enum.at on May 17, 2005, at 12:00 noon. Numbers will be allocated on a "first come, first served“ basis. In order to ensure an equitable process, access to the registration system will be subject to bandwidth limits. All registrars will therefore have the same chance of registering the desired telephone numbers, regardless of their technical connections or equipment.

"The (0)780 number range was created by RTR in the Communications Parameters, Fees and Value-Added Service Ordinance of May 12, 2004, and is dedicated specifically to the use of convergent services. Numbers in this range can be reached from the Internet and conventional telephone networks, and the numbers are linked to the corresponding ENUM domains. Calls from conventional networks are routed via gateways, which perform ENUM queries to determine the Internet addresses at which the subscribers can be reached,“ comments RTR's Managing Director for Telecommunications Georg Serentschy on the purpose of the (0)780 numbers.

What benefits do (0)780 numbers deliver?

In contrast to "normal" (i.e. geographical) numbers in the fixed-link network or location-independent fixed-link numbers in the (0)720 range, the numbers in the (0)780 range are not specifically bound to the provision of telephone services; interoperable data services between the telephone network and the Internet also fulfill the legal terms of use for this range.

In this way, communication service providers which operate exclusively on the VoIP market can quickly and easily offer customers telephone numbers and ENUM domains which can be reached from the conventional telephone network. In the process of registering a free ENUM domain, the corresponding telephone number is requested and then assigned to the communication service provider by RTR. As the allocation of the ENUM domain – in contrast to other number ranges – is a prerequisite for number allocation and use, it is not necessary to check (i.e. validate) use authorizations in ENUM delegation.

For conventional network operators, on the other hand, the possibility of routing calls via the internet is an attractive prospect in terms of costs.

Connections between Internet subscribers with different operators can be set up directly via the Internet using ENUM throughout the world, without requiring bilateral agreements or being routed through the "normal" telephone network (PSTN).

The open definition of uses for these numbers is likely to produce a wide variety of new and innovative services for retail consumers.

For more information on ENUM, go to http://www.rtr.at/enum.