VoIP Settlement Clearinghouse for Anonymous Peer Interconnection
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Solution Overview
Problem
The Peer To Peer VoIP operating model lacks a scalable mechanism for implementing the Calling Party Pays business model due to the impracticality of maintaining bilateral commercial interconnect agreements among a large number of RSPs, leading to difficulties in inter-peer access control and accounting.
Innovation Solution
A trusted settlement clearinghouse or Peering Authority is established to authorize interconnection access control and accounting between VoIP networks, allowing RSPs to have a single bilateral agreement with the clearinghouse for interconnect services, decoupling access control and accounting from routing mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If bilateral commercial interconnect agreements are maintained among all RSPs for Peer To Peer VoIP, then access control and accounting can be implemented, but the system complexity and operational burden increase exponentially
Solution Approach 1:
A trusted third party (clearinghouse) is introduced as an intermediary between RSPs to manage access control and accounting. Instead of each RSP maintaining bilateral agreements with every other RSP, they all agree with the clearinghouse which then facilitates secure interconnections, reducing complexity from O(n^2) to O(n) agreements.
Solution Approach 2:
The access control and accounting functions are segmented from the routing functions. The clearinghouse handles authentication, authorization, and accounting separately from the actual call routing, allowing these functions to be managed independently and scaled effectively.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a trusted third party clearinghouse is introduced for access control and accounting, then scalable inter-peer peering is enabled, but additional system infrastructure is required
Solution Approach 1:
The clearinghouse performs multiple functions including authentication, authorization, accounting, and settlement management through a single infrastructure. This multi-functional approach avoids the need for separate systems for each function, reducing overall complexity while enabling scalable peering.
3Ease of manufacture
If access control is integrated with routing mechanisms, then implementation is simpler, but decoupling is needed to enable scalable Peer To Peer VoIP networks
Solution Approach 1:
The system architecture is segmented into separate functional modules: routing functions handled by RSPs and access control/accounting handled by the clearinghouse. This decoupling allows each component to be optimized independently and facilitates scalability.
Solution Approach 2:
The clearinghouse acts as an intermediary layer between routing decisions and access control enforcement. Routing information from RSPs is processed by the clearinghouse which then generates authorized access control lists, separating the routing and access control functions.
Data Source
AI summary
A peering authority or settlement clearinghouse can be used to control access, collect session accounting information, and provide financial settlement of interconnect or session fees among anonymous Internet Protocol (IP) peers or networks. The addition of peering policy criteria, such as price and quality of service, to peer to peer route discovery mechanisms enable a trusted intermediary, such as the settlement clearinghouse, to authorize acceptable interconnection or peering sessions between anonymous IP peers. Any financial settlement transactions which result from the peering sessions may be subsequently executed by the settlement clearinghouse.