Overview

Although this book has focused on comparing softswitch solutions to legacy Class 4, Class 5, and private branch exchange (PBX) architectures, the reality is that softswitch solutions are something entirely new and should not be compared to legacy systems on a port-for-port or feature-by-feature basis. The brave new world of telecommunications is based on the Internet Protocol (IP) and offers voice as one of a multitude of services. The telecommunications infrastructure in developed economies will evolve from legacy to converging to converged networks. Capitalism dictates that entirely new infrastructures will rise to compete with legacy architectures for a share of the multibillion dollar international telecommunications market. Given that softswitch solutions are cheaper, smaller, simpler, and more convenient to use, they will be the platforms of choice in gaining those market shares.

This book, in addition to providing an overview of the progression from legacy to converged networks, has addressed the chief objections to softswitch and Voice over IP (VoIP) technologies that center on scalability, reliability, quality of service (QoS), signaling, and features. Despite the fact that softswitch technologies are entirely new, it is necessary to describe softswitch in comparison to legacy Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) architectures. Like any other technical issue(s), no problems exist, only solutions that a talented engineering team can build into their network. Unlike legacy telephone networks, softswitch offers a modularity of interoperable components that enable service providers to "mix and match" to build a network that meets their goals. Table...