VOIP Telephony Termination for Roaming Cost Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile users incur exorbitant roaming charges when using cellular services outside their native service area, particularly for international calls, due to the premium rates negotiated between carriers.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilizes a Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) telephony system to terminate telephony communications, allowing calls to be routed through a data network instead of traditional cellular channels, thereby avoiding roaming fees by registering mobile devices with a forwarding termination service and using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) for signaling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional cellular service is used outside native service area, then mobile telephony service is provided, but exorbitant roaming charges are incurred
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a VOIP telephony system as an intermediary between the mobile device and the traditional cellular network. When a mobile device roams outside its native service area, instead of directly connecting to foreign cellular networks (which incur high roaming charges), the device connects through a VOIP system that routes calls over data networks. This intermediary approach maintains telephony service availability while avoiding exorbitant roaming fees by using alternative communication pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the traditional cellular voice communication mechanism with a data network-based VOIP mechanism. Instead of using cellular radio channels for voice transmission (which trigger roaming charges when outside native service areas), the system substitutes this with internet protocol-based data transmission. This substitution leverages existing data network infrastructure and pricing models, thereby eliminating or significantly reducing roaming charges while maintaining telephony functionality.
2Loss of energy
If VOIP system is used to terminate telephony communications, then roaming charges are reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal telephony access system that can handle both traditional cellular communications and VOIP communications through a unified interface. The system is designed to work with existing mobile devices and networks while adding VOIP capabilities, rather than requiring completely separate infrastructure. This multi-functionality approach allows the system to reduce roaming charges through VOIP routing while maintaining compatibility with traditional services, thereby limiting the increase in overall system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for terminating telephony communications to a mobile telephony device that is roaming outside of its native service area make use of a forwarding termination service. The forwarding termination service causes the native mobile telephony service provider that provides service to the mobile telephony device to forward incoming telephony communications directed the native telephone number of the mobile telephony device to a forwarding access number. The forwarding termination service receives telephony communications directed to the forwarding access number, and then terminates the telephony communication to the mobile telephony device via any one of multiple different methods. The mobile telephony service provider can be instructed to implement and cancel call forwarding instructions by dialing a special character string on the mobile telephony device.