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Solutions
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POPstar
Clearinghouse Adds Support for Billable, End-to-End VoIP/FoIP Transactions Vancouver, BC – April 25, 2002 – Voice-over-IP providers, especially those using Cisco VoIP gateway devices (2600, 3600, 5300, 5400 and 5800 series), have a new option for international connectivity – secure, end-to-end, settlements-supported global calling. The POPstar Clearinghouse provides global route assignment, gateway authentication, transaction authorization and Call Detail Record generation and reporting for Voice- and Fax-over-IP (VoIP/FoIP) transactions. POPstar also provides wholesale collections services for originating traffic and guaranteed payments to operators of terminating sites. The Clearinghouse has been in extensive use by POPstar’s Enroute Fax server partners since March 2000. The addition of Cisco VoIP gateway devices to the compatibility list fills a large gap in the VoIP marketplace. "POPstar was one of the early pioneers in value-added IP communications services. We are delighted to provide the secure OSP technology used in their innovative clearinghouse service which offers POPstar's customers new profit opportunities without the risks of inter-carrier settlements," said Jim Dalton, CEO of TransNexus, Inc. POPstar is not a traffic carrier or aggregator. Instead, the Clearinghouse provides a secure, low cost settlement service that enables service providers to cooperate in the end-to-end transport and delivery of each others’ VoIP and FoIP traffic, without need for internetworking contracts or onerous “minutes” contracts. Each terminating partner provides local PSTN connectivity, which is used for completing connections to phones or fax machines in their city or region. Security and performance issues are addressed through the use of the TransNexus OSP Nexus™ server. OSP (the Open Settlements Protocol, developed by ETSI, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute) is the de facto standard with many large carriers. Communications with the Clearinghouse are conducted using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), with encryption and “signatures” based on the issued digital certificates. Within the OSP model, each IP gateway device (such as a Cisco AS5300, or POPstar’s VoIP gatekeeper or Enroute Fax server) is assigned a digital “certificate” based on RSA or other PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) technology. This certificate and its corresponding keys and tokens are used to authenticate each device during each Clearinghouse transaction, making it essentially impossible for an originating gateway to place a “free” call, or for a terminating gateway to be paid for fraudulent calls. In operation, an originating gateway requests a route for a dialed PSTN number from the Clearinghouse. Based on a combination of terminating rates and other factors, the Clearinghouse returns the IP address of the “best” terminating gateway to handle the call. Typically this terminating gateway will be in the city or country where the called phone or fax machine is located, so that only a local call is needed to connect from that location; the public Internet is used for the international portion of each connection. Upon call completion, CDRs (Call Detail Records) are sent over SSL links to the Clearinghouse, which generates a single, comprehensive CDR for the respective service providers, and for POPstar’s use in collections and settlements payments. Partners enrolling with the POPstar clearinghouse are not required to commit to any minimum “minutes,” but are assessed a small administrative enrollment fee, and must maintain a credit balance sufficient to cover any calls from their subscribers that require settlements payments to other providers. The POPstar Clearinghouse offers VoIP providers a low-cost, low-commitment, low-risk alternative for achieving global VoIP connectivity, without need to deal with any foreign VoIP carriers – enrollment as a POPstar IP Partner is all that is required. POPstar’s EGK – Enroute VoIP Gatekeeper is an H.323-compatible, OSP-compliant GK that can extends POPstar’s OSP Clearinghouse compatibility to include Cisco and other gateway devices as well as non-OSP devices such as Cisco’s own VoIP gatekeepers. Proxying, NAT, and other options are available. More details about these products are available on the POPstar website. About POPstar POPstar Communications, Inc. was formed in 1998 to develop and market a wide range of messaging products and services. The Company’s current Enroute IP services platform supports both billable Voice- and Fax-over-IP traffic and a suite of unified messaging and communication services. The POPstar Clearinghouse provides end-to-end IP global connectivity for POPstar users. POPstar is a member of the Cisco Service Carrier Community Program. For more information about POPstar Communications, visit http://www.pop-star.net. © 2002 POPstar Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. CONTACT INFORMATION:
Rob Lauridsen-Hoegh,
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