Can we use our own ATA ?

Internet access discussion, including Fusion, IP Broadband, and Gigabit Fiber!
9 posts Page 1 of 1
by rschaezlein@msn.com » Fri Sep 28, 2018 6:21 am
Thinking about switching over to a VOIP account since my DSL uploads are 1mbs or less :-(. I have no problem renting the modem so Sonic will maintain Tech Support for it, but the ATA rental seems like an expense I could eliminate since it's basically a passive converter needing no tech expertise to maintain. Is it possible to purchase my own and have it incorporated into my Fiber-VOIP account? Is it fairly "idiot proof" to do?
Thanks!
by liamo » Fri Sep 28, 2018 2:41 pm
The ATA we supply is required on all of our IPBB products at this time, but if you prefer using your own VoIP solution you can. You will still need to keep our ATA however, as it can not be opted out of.

If you are upgrading to our fiber and want to use your own VoIP solution you can but we do not supply an ATA for our fiber lines.
Liam O.
Sonic Community & Escalations Specialist
by danielg4 » Fri Sep 28, 2018 8:54 pm
liamo wrote:If you are upgrading to our fiber and want to use your own VoIP solution you can but we do not supply an ATA for our fiber lines.
Does this mean you are now willing to provision/disclose SIP credentials over fiber? It would be trivial for you to do so as a "Labs/Unsupported" feature, because spoofing the supplied ATA's credentials with a SIP client worked great on FTTN.
by dane » Fri Sep 28, 2018 9:09 pm
No, we manage our own equipment, and our handoff is always POTS RJ11.

-Dane
Dane Jasper
Sonic
by danielg4 » Fri Sep 28, 2018 9:38 pm
dane wrote:No, we manage our own equipment, and our handoff is always POTS RJ11.

-Dane
Yeah, I'd recommend rethinking that, like IPTV before. It would add quite a bit of value.
by dane » Fri Sep 28, 2018 9:54 pm
danielg4 wrote:
dane wrote:No, we manage our own equipment, and our handoff is always POTS RJ11.

-Dane
Yeah, I'd recommend rethinking that, like IPTV before. It would add quite a bit of value.
Supporting customer-supplied VoIP equipment presents security challenges, and adds complexity for an organization like ours, for a feature that a tiny group of customers might like. Today we've really got to focus our limited software and network team efforts on expanding our fiber network and improving our processes and tools for scaled-up gigabit fiber service delivery.
Dane Jasper
Sonic
by mcjamil2 » Wed Nov 07, 2018 4:11 pm
Hello Dane. As always, thank you to you and your team for providing such great customer service. Sonic remains the best ISP out there. And I'm super excited that you folks are focusing on providing FTTP access; I would pay good money to get that in my condo complex in Fremont, CA. I'm currently on an bonded FTTN connection.

I would like to get some clarification on this topic as well.

I can understand that the ATA represents a capital cost that Sonic would want to recover. But I don't understand why I'm charged for this on an on-going basis beyond that cost (or some finite multiple to cover overhead of provisioning/built-in cost of support, which I assume for VoIP issues is minimal). Let's say the box costs Sonic $50. I'd expect to pay Sonic $50 or some number over that (e.g., $70) as a one-time payment. If the box fails, I'd ask for/pay for a new one.

Why make me pay that indefinitely? Are there ongoing costs associated with providing VoIP service? If so, I'd be better able to think of this as I'm paying ~$7 not for equipment rental but for phone service that just happens to be handled via VoIP.
by marin » Thu Nov 08, 2018 5:01 am
I would go one step further and question the practice of requiring people to have an IP-based Landline to begin with. Our household has been without a landline for years and we have no interest of adding and paying for something we don't use or want. The same is true for many people and it has been requested frequently, yet Sonic does not want to offer Internet alone. To me, that is similar business practice as the big cable companies and their bloated TV packages.

Which is what keeps me from signing up with Sonic again.
by forest » Thu Dec 06, 2018 1:49 pm
danielg4 wrote:Does this mean you are now willing to provision/disclose SIP credentials over fiber?
+1 for this. I quit POTS equipment ages ago, and I'm not going back. Until Sonic lets me use my own SIP equipment, the compulsory phone service and associated fees are nothing but an ongoing reason to resent Sonic. (Probably not the kind of sentiment you want to foster among people whose influence has brought Sonic customers and bolstered Sonic's reputation over the years.) If you were to open up SIP access, the $150/year in phone service fees would be less onerous, since I would at least have a use for it. The resentment would be replaced with appreciation and evangelism.

Suggestion to minimize support costs: Just make it a "labs" feature with no device-specific support. You have customers who are more than competent with VoIP, and are probably willing to share their knowledge with other customers. If only a tiny group of customers are interested, the support burden would be tiny anyway.
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