wornout
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VOIP Being Blocked in Mexico Article
Mexico telephone operator under VoIP fire
Published: April 25, 2005, 3:19 PM PDT
By Ben Charny
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
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Broadband customers of Mexico's dominant telephone operator say the quality of their voice over Internet Protocol calls has tanked, with some alleging
that Telmex is engaging in unfair business practices to block VoIP competition.
VoIP, freely available software that lets broadband connections become inexpensive home phone lines, is seen as a major threat to entrenched phone
operators such as Telmex because VoIP users no longer need a local phone service; they can use their VoIP service with any broadband connection
anywhere in the world.
International operators and habitues of the less urbane world of Web forums are venting about the government-owned operator's alleged practices, which
they say include blocking Web sites that VoIP operators use to register new customers and perform a bulk of their customer service.
"We're definitely interested in this situation," said a White House trade official, who asked not to be named. "Telmex has had a long pattern of
engaging in anti-competitive behavior."
In a March report, the White House's Office of the U.S. Trade Representative wrote: "Uncertainty regarding the treatment of voice over Internet
Protocol services in Mexico is cause for concern. Irrespective of the merits of Telmex's ambitions, restrictions on the ability of any entity, foreign
or domestic, to supply VoIP appears inappropriate."
Telmex did not respond to a phone call and an e-mail seeking comment on the situation.
Caller complaints escalate
The Telmex VoIP situation has grown since mid-March, when the company's broadband customers say the quality of their third-party voice over Internet
Protocol calls began eroding to what are now unbearable levels, according to e-mail interviews with VoIP customers who routinely call in and out of
Mexico.
VoIP operators are running into an alleged problem typical in countries where there's one phone company owned by the government--such as Qatar, Costa
Rica and Panama--or privately owned and with enormous sway over regulators. In Mexico, the former government-owned Telmex remains dominant because the
Federal Telecommunications Commission lets complaints from foreign competitors linger without resolution for years; and its recommended enforcement is
rarely meted by the nation's Secretariat of Communications and Transportation, according to the USTR.
Skype spokeswoman Kelly Larabee said the company has confirmed its Web site is being blocked in areas served by Telmex, but said the cause was
unclear.
"We encourage all Telmex broadband subscribers to contact their ISP and demand the open access they pay for," Larabee said. She stressed that Skype
does not know whether the Web site access issue is deliberate, or a temporary glitch Telmex is unaware of.
Show-and-tell
This may be happening because Telmex allegedly identifies VoIP users based on the kind of traffic they send, then chokes their bandwidth to disrupt
the calls, said Brooke Schulz, a spokeswoman for U.S. Net phone provider Vonage. Telmex is also allegedly blocking access to Net phone Web sites,
including that of Skype, the world's most popular VoIP service, Skype says it has confirmed. By blocking the site, Telmex could prevent potential
Skype users from signing up, and existing Skype users wouldn't be able to replenish minutes on their prepaid calling cards or order other premium
services.
"We're working on exercising our options with the U.S. trade representative," Schulz said. "However, because we're not a Mexican company, we have
little leverage with the Mexican regulator. But we're doing everything we can."
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Click on a comment to explore replies (2 total replies - 2 NEW )
VoIP in Mexico Tomas Zyber -- Apr 25
Reported on www.vonage-forum.com for years James Geer -- Apr 25
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bufeo
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VoIP is alive and well in Baja.
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aldosalato
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VOIP problems
I have Iconnecthere.com skype.com and dialpad.com
working very badly in downtown La Paz
Anybody has a suggestion how to fix the problem and circunvent Prodigy monopoly?
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wornout
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We are not having problems here in San Felipe, I think because we are Telnor and not Telmex (well not directly), and that may be why.
I just saw the article this afternoon and remember some folks in Baja Sur were having problems. Its' all about information now isn't it?
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PJC
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| Quote: | Originally posted by aldosalato
I have Iconnecthere.com skype.com and dialpad.com
working very badly in downtown La Paz
Anybody has a suggestion how to fix the problem and circunvent Prodigy monopoly? |
Also, a workaround for VoIP blocking is to establish a VPN to a US router or service provider and run all your Internet services over that, including
VoIP. There is no apparatus that Carlos Slim has that can decode an encrypted VPN packet in mass. It is just a matter of time before a US VoIP company
offers a VPN enabled service.
You will need a better than standard router on your end but your telephone savings will cover that in short order.
Shoot, Shovel and Shut-up!
-- A simple operating practice.
‘Global warming’ has become the grand political narrative of the age, replacing Marxism as a dominant force for controlling liberty and human
choices.
-- Prof. P. Stott
Time was, people warning the world \"Repent - the end is nigh!\" were snickered at as fruitcakes.
Now they own the media and run the schools.
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MrBillM
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Slow Uploads
If you're having problems, the first thing to do is accurately test your Upload speeds. That is the reason for problems on DirecWay. Telmex can
simply slow the Upload speed and do nothing more. They don't need to mess with encryption, etc.
A popular site for testing is: www.testmy.net
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tehag
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voip
Telmex/Prodigy is still deliberately slowing upload speed here in Loret, BCS. Makes VOIP completely useless.
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PJC
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| Quote: | Originally posted by tehag
Telmex/Prodigy is still deliberately slowing upload speed here in Loret, BCS. Makes VOIP completely useless. |
Well, if they are choking upload speeds then a VPN will not help.
Pretty odd that they would do that as it screws with web surfing and file transfers as well.
Shoot, Shovel and Shut-up!
-- A simple operating practice.
‘Global warming’ has become the grand political narrative of the age, replacing Marxism as a dominant force for controlling liberty and human
choices.
-- Prof. P. Stott
Time was, people warning the world \"Repent - the end is nigh!\" were snickered at as fruitcakes.
Now they own the media and run the schools.
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