The SIPconnect Technical Recommendation is an industry-wide, standards-based approach to direct IP peering between SIP-enabled IP PBXs and VoIP service provider networks. This website and Forum promotes the SIPconnect initiative,  and input for future versions is supplied through this Forum.

Benefits

The implementation of the SIPconnect standard benefits many participants in the delivery of voice communications.

For end users in the small business or large enterprise, SIPconnect eliminates, or greatly reduces, the need for a costly gateway at the end user's site.  In addition, new features from the service provider or the IP PBX vendor will be delivered more quickly.

For VARs and Interconnects, the SIPconnect compliant service provider will handle the complexity associated with connecting the SIP Trunk to the legacy TDM world.  This eliminates the need for a lot of integration and troubleshooting work and allows the partners to focus on other, revenue generating activities.

For Equipment and Software Vendors (Application Servers, IP PBX Vendors, SIP Proxies), SIPconnect greatly reduces the time and resources required to verify interoperability in the network.  This single item, interoperability, currently drains many man hours from the services and equipment providers that could be better used creating new and more exciting features.  This in turns reduces the amount of revenue that could be realized from those new features.

The SIP Trunking Service Provider that uses SIPconnect SIP trunks realizes higher revenue streams much more quickly.  Network services are rolled out more rapidly, greatly reducing the time to revenue for new services and features.  In addition, the service provider can greatly reduce the time and staff required to complete interoperability testing.

History

The SIP Forum began working on SIPconnect subsequent to the initial release of the SIPconnect Interface Specification in February, 2005 based on a proposal submitted by members of the SIPconnect initiative. The SIP Forum created the "IP PBX and Service Provider Interoperability Task Group" on July 15, 2005 to continue this work. 

In September, 2007, the SIP Forum launched the SIPconnect Compliance Program.

View the SIPconnect Compliant Announcement here.

The SIP Forum reached an important milestone in January, 2008 as it formally ratifies version 1.0 of the SIPconnect Technical Recommendation with the unanimous approval of the SIP Forum Board of Directors and announces the formation of the SIPconnect v.1.1 Task Group.

The formal adoption by the SIP Forum Board of the SIPconnect 1.0 Technical Recommendation is based on recognition that the recommendation has been through credible peer review, including broad membership and significant community review, that it is stable and is well-understood, and that it is believed to have resolved known design choices.

To read the full SIPconnect 1.0 Ratification Announcement, please click here.

To download the ratified SIPconnect Technical Recommendation Version 1.0, please click here.

Work on SIPconnect 1.1 has begun! The SIP Forum has created a depository of SIPconnect 1.1 Documents, which currently includes submissions from Avaya, Broadsoft, CableLabs, Cbeyond, MetaSwitch, Microsoft and Siemens, as well as v.00 through v.15 documents and the current merged ballot sheet, and will be the location of other member contributions as they are made available.

Please click here for the SIPconnect 1.1 Document depository.

For More Information

Learn more about the SIPconnect specification by looking at:

• The SIPconnect Overview
• The SIPconnect FAQ
• The SIPconnect White Paper
• The SIPconnect Technical Recommendation
• SIPconnect 1.1 Effort
• SIPconnect 1.1 Document Repository
• SIPconnect Compliant Program Overview
• SIPconnect Compliant Product and Service Listing
• Become SIPconnect Compliant