VoIP network architectures and impacts on costing

PurposeThis paper aims to describe the effect of VoIP network architectures on the cost modelling of termination rates of VoIP services.Design/methodology/approachThe study investigates and organises the arguments available in the technical and regulatory field related to VoIP networks and services in order to ascertain the possible impact of VoIP techniques, the provisioning of voice features in VoIP networks, and network interconnection issues on the cost of regulated VoIP services.FindingsThe information and analysis reveals how the provision of VoIP services is related to a number of issues that will have an effect on the cost of VoIP termination rates. In particular, the study analyses the impact on a cost model of the components of a VoIP network architecture, the usage factor of network elements, and the traffic volume generated by VoIP applications.Research limitations/implicationsThe issues described in the article can be used in elaborating a cost model for termination rates in VoIP networks. For the present study, no cost model was built, and therefore no quantitative estimations were made of the specific impact of every cost parameter on the termination rates.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study can be used by policy makers, voice operators, and researchers.Originality/valueMost studies of VoIP that are available in the literature address, on the one hand, the costs of corporate VoIP networks and, on the other, the regulation of VoIP services. This article, however, presents a comprehensive study of the most relevant features of VoIP network architectures that should be considered when determining regulated termination rates.