 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
  |
  |
 |
|
Security Industry VoIP White Paper VoIP is a new voice service option being made available to cable subscribers, among others, that typically offers unlimited local, regional and long-distance calling within the United States and Canada and popular calling features at one low, flat monthly rate. Indeed, this service may offer great value to a cable customer and it is instrumental in reducing attrition of the cable company customer base. This service, coupled with telephone number portability, has begun to skyrocket with such great companies as Vonage. However, without understanding the consequences to other services such as alarm systems, cable companies have begun aggressive marketing programs to woo customers away from the traditonal telphone companies onto their VoIP service. In a number of cases, the result of a subscriber converting to cable VoIP has been the inoperability of the subscriber's alarm system. This is for four reasons: 1) First, the actual tone signals emitted by alarm systems and their intended central monitoring station receivers do not reliably and consistently propagate over a VoIP channel. This means your control station is getting signals today but may not tomorrow. 2) Some cable companies will connect VoIP service on the backside of the in-place telephone service, eliminating the "line seize feature" demanded by alarm systems. The result is that, even if the tones were to propagate without distortion, in such a configuration the alarm system could not physically communicate with the central station anyway. The remedy could be a collaborative effect with the Alarm Company working with the Cable Company to rewire and test the "telephone" line connected to the alarm panel. 3) Alarm panels can't sense the loss of the ability to sense a telephone line. The ability should be provided for control panels to "see" a telephone line equivalent, in other words, the presence or loss of cable connectivity would reflect in presence or loss of line voltage and dialtone. 4) Power failures at the protected premises will render the cable modem and any VoIP hardware connected inoperative, even though the alarm panel has its own battery backup. The cable modem and VoIP hardware should be provided with sufficient battery hours backup. Since the cable modem and any attached VoIP hardware is in the path of the alarm system, these devices will also need a source of backup power. Alarm systems help protect billions of dollars of property and millions of lives. The unintended consequence of converting to VoIP is the possibility that an alarm signal for a burglar, fire or other emergency may not be received by the alarm monitoring station, resulting in a serious loss of person or property. We recommend advising your customers who have or may switch to VoIP in the future to make sure the new alarm system works properly. Things you can do to prevent your VoIP problems: 1) Use a Back-Up System such as, AlarmNet & other cellular products. 2) Use Internet Monitoring. We currently provide DMP, AlarmNet, Napco, and Internet Monitoring. 3) Join your local Alarm Association to stay informed. AlarmWATCH™ P.O. Box 81, Hunt Valley, MD 21030 866-500-8808 |
