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Sipgate's basic residential service to close from 31/12/2014 |
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#1 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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Sipgate's basic residential service to close from 31/12/2014
For anyone who has a Sipgate.co.uk this may interest you: http://www.ukvoipforums.com/viewtopi...f=9&p=956#p956
Looks like you have until 31/1/15 to port your number out or lose it!
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#2 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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There's also this link: http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/voi...-31122014.html
As of this morning it appears sipgate are now allowing registrations again - a change of heart maybe? I hope so! |
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#3 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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Quote:
There's also this link: http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/voi...-31122014.html
As of this morning it appears sipgate are now allowing registrations again - a change of heart maybe? I hope so! I got nothing on my two accounts and if I go into an Incognito window and hide my ID from Sipgate I’m still being offered a free number on signing up. I’m sitting and waiting now and just hope this remains a rumour but I’ve had a quick look around and DrayTel looks the likely candidate to get my money should Sipgate regrettably fold its residential business. |
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#4 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 1,520
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Apparently they've changed their minds - which is good news!
http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/voi...=6#Post4377689 |
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#5 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Surbiton
Posts: 1,925
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I am using a Sipgate residential account with London landline number so I am glad that they are not closing this service.
Recently I was looking round at possible alternatives though just out of curiosity. I came across http://tel2.co.uk who offer a zero monthly and pay-as-you-go package that includes one free 020 3 London geographical number. That would be OK for me if I needed to change. Unlike Sipgate they don't offer free numbers for other geographical locations though. The other problem of course is that if you start using a number and giving it to your contacts you don't want to find it gets withdrawn a few months down the line. Voipfone give you a free 0560 number which is regarded as landline for most call charges but is not as attractive as a geo number. I think they offer those for a small monthly fee. Then there is freespeech.co.uk who give a free 0844 number which again is not ideal. What everybody needs to be doing is telling all their friends to stop using PSTN numbers altogether anyway, especially the mobile numbers. They are such a rip-off when we all now have unlimited internet access so readily. We should all be using SIP addresses as we do with email addresses. It is free audio and video calling to anyone on an open protocol. |
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#6 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 5,187
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Quote:
We should all be using SIP addresses as we do with email addresses. It is free audio and video calling to anyone on an open protocol.
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#7 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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Indeed, if you want a reliable VoIP service then it comes with a cost.
VoIP is never really truly free to offer, while VoIP to VoIP calls don't pass through a PSTN switch there are still costs involved - Hardware, bandwidth and electricity to name a few. Those costs work out a lot cheaper that traditional PSTN's and as for 999? what issues? Most allow calls to be made to the 999 service now. Power failure could prevent a call to 999 but then if your battery runs flat on your mobile? I don't know anyone who uses a corded phone any more - DECT all the way these days, again power failure = No 999 calls. I'm glad sipgate have had a change of heart, if they can't sustain the service for free charge £1 a month for a UK number or something. |
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#8 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 5,187
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Quote:
as for 999? what issues? Most allow calls to be made to the 999 service now.
Power failure could prevent a call to 999 but then if your battery runs flat on your mobile? I don't know anyone who uses a corded phone any more - DECT all the way these days, again power failure = No 999 calls. |
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#9 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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Quote:
Not so much that it won't work, but VoIP numbers can't give a location for the caller, so don't meet the official standards for emergency services. There's usually small print somewhere saying "you can call 999, but we won't guarantee it will work as you expect". If you have a London VoIP number which you use from, say, Glasgow, it can cause confusion.
You dial 999 and the verified name and address pops up on the screen of the emergency dispatcher. Any disclamier is mandatory as VoIP hardware can be disabled or simply turned off. There are very strict guide lines any VoIP provider offering 999 access has to meet and abide by. |
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#10 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 5,187
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Quote:
This is not so, you have to register a name and address against the phone number which is verified before any 999 cals can be made. (Your VoIP provider does this)
You dial 999 and the verified name and address pops up on the screen of the emergency dispatcher. Any disclamier is mandatory as VoIP hardware can be disabled or simply turned off. There are very strict guide lines any VoIP provider offering 999 access has to meet and abide by. |
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#11 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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Quote:
True, but there's no requirement for you to actually be at that address. I've used a Sipgate phone with a N. Ireland number when I've been in California. If I'd dialled 911 from there the 'registered' address would have been useless. Even if I'd used it in London it wouldn't help. That can't happen with a fixed line, and even with a mobile they can usually be localised at least to a cell tower.
A VoIP provider get's in serious trouble if the 999 system is abused or misused and they can have total access revoked to the 999 services. I would fancy my chances at giving a better location inside a business or residential address than on some b road out in the middle of nowhere. Access to a local cell tower is pretty useless in an emergency as in most cases the coverage can span for miles. Credit and debit cards are also used to confirm both identity and address of individuals, police turn up on at the wrong address - well whoever has the number in their name as well as the VoIP provider get the backlash of that. A VoIP provider can and will terminate your account in some cases too. I have had 999 access revoked in one case when I used a VoIP account outside the UK, detected via the IP address. Once I was using it within the UK again I had to click the magic button to register for 999 access again. (although this does not appear to be standard practice) As for using sipgate.co.uk and having 999 access, dialling 911 wouldn't work as you would need to dial 112 or 999 as your account is UK based. Even though your accessing your sipgate.co.uk account from within the states and via a broadband connection state side - your traffic is still going through the UK PSTN network. So any emergency calls pass th the UK emergency services. This is kind of taking the the thread off topic now so I shall bow out.
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#12 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,633
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The mobile networks are fairly concerned about 999 on their femtocells / signal boxes, too, they all require you to tell them where the unit is being used and to update the address if it changes, I guess because 999 will locate the phones connected to the box as being at the registered address.
Not sure how it works with WiFi calling though |
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#13 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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This came up on Twitter 4 hours ago but don’t panic they said it’s temporarily, I hope.
https://twitter.com/sgUK_Status/stat...64168033628160 |
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#14 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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Quote:
This came up on Twitter 4 hours ago but don’t panic they said it’s temporarily, I hope.
https://twitter.com/sgUK_Status/stat...64168033628160 Basic residential available again.
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#15 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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Yea we know see post 4 lol
Or did they once again stop new registrations?
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#16 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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Quote:
Yea we know see post 4 lol
Or did they once again stop new registrations? ![]() That said had I not read this thread in the first place I would not be any wiser anyways of any rumoured close down of the service.
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#17 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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The plot thickens as this statement has just appeared on their Twitter page..
“Registrations for sipgate basic are currently unavailable while we prepare our new residential service.” Anyone know what their “new residential service” maybe? http://twitter.com/sgUK_Status/statu...50758905999360 |
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#18 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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I doubt they have even started overhauling sipgate basic, they intendid to close the service. As such they stopped new registrations and started informing some customers that the service would be closing.
Then they changed their minds and allowed new registrations again. Now they stop new registrations and say its because a new service is coming - maybe they intend on charging for the service instead of getting rid of it completely. Either they will scrap it after all or they will start charging customers. Be interesting to see what the end result will be. |
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#19 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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Sipgate now have a countdown counter for when we will see the new residential scheme.
31 days and 18 hours as of now, https://secure.sipgate.co.uk/user/preregister/ |
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#20 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Swansea, UK.
Posts: 2,469
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Well it's up and running again but nothing appears to have changed. It's the same as before! :/
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#21 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: The City and County of Bristol
Posts: 2,621
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Does seem like its back to the old norm but the countdown clock still has a day to go so I wonder what’s going on there.
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