Analyzing ENUM Service and Administration from the Bottom Up: The addressing system for IP telephony and beyond

ENUM creates many new market opportunities and raises several important policy issues related to the implementation and administration of the ENUM database and services. ITU’s recent World Telecommunications Policy Forum 2001 dealt with the emergence of ENUM as an important numbering issue of IP telephony. This paper prepares some important emerging issues of ENUM administration and policy by taking an empirical research approach from the bottom up. We will identify potential key ENUM services, and estimating the size of the service market opportunities created by the availability of PSTN-IP addressing and mapping mechanisms, particularly in the context of IP telephony. Also, we analyze the possible administrative models and relationship scenarios among different ENUM players such as Registry(ies), Registrars, Telephone Service Providers, ENUM Application Service Providers, etc. Then, we will assess the effects of various administrative model architectures of ENUM service by looking at the market opportunities and motivations of the players. From the empirical findings, we will draw the implications on transactions among different kinds of ENUM service providers. Finally, the results of the model analysis will be used for the discussion of policy related issues around the ENUM and IP telephony services.