What is a SIP trunk?

Organizations implementing enterprise voice technology must typically choose between SIP trunking vs PRI phone service. Each technology connects an on-premises PBX to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), but each technology offers its own advantages and disadvantages.

If you’re unfamiliar with the details of a SIP service, here’s a short primer on “What is a SIP trunk?” that covers the basics along with the benefits and drawbacks of an SIP trunk service.

What is a SIP trunk phone service?

SIP is short for “Session Initiation Protocol”, a set of standards that enables voice communication to be routed over the Internet instead of traditional physical telephone lines. A SIP trunk creates virtual telephone extensions that enable users to place and receive calls on any device, including desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones as well as traditional telephone equipment.

What is a SIP trunk service’s greatest advantage?

With virtual SIP lines, organizations can eliminate the expense of installing and maintaining physical telephone lines. Calling costs are much cheaper for local, long-distance and international calls. SIP trunk services provide greater reliability through redundancy, as traffic can be rerouted to another number or trunk group when a service outage occurs. And SIP trunk telephony enables users to take advantage of Unified Communications solutions such as audio and video conferencing, simultaneous ring, instant messaging, presence, and more.

What is a SIP trunk service’s biggest drawback?

Quality and security are thought to be the biggest disadvantages of a SIP trunk. Because traffic is routed over the public Internet, calls may be subject to network interference, packet loss and jitter, and security may be compromised by the risks that threaten other Internet traffic.

What is a SIP Trunk phone service from Spectrum Enterprise?

Spectrum Enterprise SIP Trunking connects an IP PBX to the PSTN over a privately-owned fiber IP network. Our SIP solution can scale across multiple configurations and is compatible with most IP PBX vendor makes and models.

What does SIP trunk service with Spectrum Enterprise offer over other providers?

Spectrum Enterprise SIP Trunking provides a more reliable and secure voice solution where voice traffic is not routed over the public Internet, but over our wholly-owned fiber network instead. Additionally, Spectrum Enterprise SIP Trunking provides dedicated bandwidth for voice calls, so voice traffic does not compete for bandwidth with network data services.

What is SIP trunk reliability and availability with Spectrum Enterprise?

24/7/365 proactive monitoring and industry-leading service-level agreements (SLAs) that guarantee 100% uptime¹ help to ensure reliability and continuous availability of voice services.

What are other SIP trunk benefits?

Spectrum Enterprise SIP trunking also provides a Trunk Services Portal that enables secure access to usage details and reporting capabilities. Business continuity is ensured through Alternate Routing capabilities that redirect calls to other locations in the event of a service disruption. And Trunk Overflow services help to meet business demands by rerouting overflow calls.
 

Learn more about “What is a SIP trunk?” from Spectrum Enterprise.

¹100% uptime SLA guarantee applies only to Dedicated Fiber Internet, Secure Dedicated Fiber Internet, Ethernet Services, Cloud Connect and Enterprise Trunking..