WorldNet Glossary.

Listed below are some of the words and phrases commonly expressed within the telecommunications industry. Technological advances create new terms, phrases and acronyms; so keeping up can be rather difficult. We hope you find this resource to be of value.

Access Code
4 or 5-digit prefix that identifies to the Network (BT) which LCR Company is routing the call. The calls are then routed across the BT network to the appropriate carrier for delivery to the number called. These codes are also known as IDA (Indirect Access Codes).

ADSL - Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line
Technology used to utilise the existing copper local loop network, primarily for Internet and data services. Because data can be transferred at a different frequency to voice traffic, existing copper pairs (telephone line) can be used to carry larger amounts of information. The voice signal is carried within the data signal and is then broken out of the data signal at the local operator's exchange and then carried as normal across the voice network. DSL technology is designed for "always on" connection to the Internet or in rare cases for very large corporate wide area networks.

Bandwidth
The range of frequencies a transmission line or channel can carry. The greater the bandwidth, the greater the information carrying capacity of a channel. Usually measured in Bits Per Second.

Call Forwarding
A common feature of business user telephone systems. Call Forwarding allows calls to be diverted automatically to different numbers, for example a mobile phone or a home office number.

Carphone/Car-kits
Car phones are phone permanently fitted to cars. They produce a powerful signal and so they work in some places where mobile phones couldn't be used. Some also provide a loudspeaker and microphone, so both hands are left free to control the car. Car-kits adapt ordinary mobile phones for hands-free use in a car, but allow the phone to be detached for use away from the car.

Carrier
Term given for a network operator.

CLI - Caller Line Identity
CLI (Caller Line Identity) is the presentation of the incoming callers telephone number. This system is available for landlines, mobiles and ISDN and is supported by most telephone systems.

CPS
Carrier Pre-Selection (CPS) allows you to chose which telecommunications provider you want to carry your voice calls - Allowing you to shop around for the service that best suits your needs.

There is no inconvenience involved with CPS, no autodiallers, manual prefixing or PBX reprogramming; you keep your existing number and continue to make telephone calls as usual.

It's ironic that an initiative that has so little superficial impact on the user should in fact be the 'biggest, most important single event to hit the UK voice market since deregulation in 1984'.

But that's the beauty of CPS. It offers the opportunity for true competition in the voice market, without any disruption to your telephone service.

It means you can receive services from different phone companies using your existing BT line. The result? More competition, which should help to cut prices and enhance services, enabling you to pay less for your phone calls. Even if you already use other suppliers telecoms services via your BT line, CPS may provide a more convenient way.

CRM - Customer Relationship Management
CRM software allows call centre agents to access a customers history from the back office customer account packages. Small businesses are now benefiting from the advantages of CRM solutions that integrate with their PC's. The Internet, Email, IVR, Voice and Interactive TV have created a huge shift towards web enabled call centres, opening up a new dimension in offering better and more efficient service.

CTI - Computer Telephony Integration
The term used to describe the linking of a telephone type system with computer technology.

Data Warehousing
The storage of a customer's data away from his own site. Warehousing should be able to provide instant access to back-up data at high speed in case of a disaster on a customer site.

Diallers or Auto Diallers
Diallers are hardware designed to assist in the routing of telephone traffic by inserting a routing code. They are connected between the customer's equipment and the network terminating point. Whenever the customer dials an outgoing call the dialler inserts the appropriate Indirect Access Code. This code instructs BT to route calls via the BT network to the alternative LCR carrier. Diallers can either be mains powered or line powered; and remotely programmable or only locally programmable.

Line Powered Diallers
This term is used to describe any equipment that takes the power it needs to operate directly from the telephone line rather than being plugged in to an electric supply or battery.

Single-line Diallers
This term is used to describe a "dialler" that is used for One telephone line. As with single telephone lines the dialler can have both a phone and a fax machine plugged into it. Each single line dialler has a lead for plugging into the network terminating point socket and two sockets for a plugging in the phone & fax for example.

Multi-line Diallers
This term is used to describe a "dialler" that can carry more than one telephone line. Generally used on PBX systems.

DNS
Domain Name Service/Server. An Internet protocol for relating service names or URLs to an IP address and vice versa. A database of service name and their associated IP addresses is distributed between a hierarchy of Name Servers and accessed (transparently to the user) by the user's local Domain Name Server.

Firewall
A software security system that prevents computers on a network from communicating with another computer network without authorisation. WorldNet uses the latest firewall technology for system protection.

Gateway
An OSI Layer 7 device that performs full protocol conversion between different devices or networks. Routers, which operate up to Layer 3 are often referred to as Internet or IP Gateways.

GPRS
General Packet Radio Service is a way of connecting computing devices using "packet" technology. Rather than having a connection "connected" at all times, packet transmission only uses the network when there is something to send or receive.

Interconnect
This describes both the process and the physical connection between the networks of two network operators. It enables calls generated by customers of one network to be carried on or to reach customers of another network.

IP - Internet Protocol
The signalling standard used to transmit data across the internet and LAN's. IP uses packet switching techniques to send data in small chunks (packet data).

IP Telephony
The use of IP signalling methods to send voice traffic across a data network. Voice signals are broken down into packets and reassembled at the receiving end. This eliminates the need for separate voice and data networks by converging all traffic on one network.

ISVR - International Simple Voice Resale
This is the type of licence a company needs to hold to act as an airtime or fixed line reseller.

IVR - Interactive Voice Response
IVR systems automate routine transactions, such as requests for literature or information using voice recognition or tone keypad operations.

LAN - Local Area Network
Used to describe the type of system used to connect computers together to share files or peripherals within a single building. Computers a linked via Network Integration card to a Hub then to a router and on to the outside world. There are 2 types of LAN. Token Ring and Ethernet. Ethernet is the most widely used.

LAN Telephony
The convergence of voice and data on a LAN, eliminating the need for separate voice and data networks within an organisation.

LCR - Least Cost Routing
The same abbreviation can apply to two different functions. A Least Cost Routing is a network that provides cheaper calls than BT by routing its calls over a number of network operators to get the best deal on each route. Least Cost Routing is used to describe the programming of a PBX with an Indirect Access code so that BT routs calls onto an alternative network operators network.

Leased Line
Lines such as telephone line or fibre optic cable that is rented for exclusive 24/7 use from your location to another location. The highest speed data connections require a leased line.

Local Loop
This describes the copper pair of wires that connects the customer from their network terminating point to the local BT telephone exchange. Because of attenuation (and the expense of amplifiers) the local loop distance is limited to 3 miles or 5 Km.

Modem
A device that transforms a digital bit stream into an audible signal, which is then used to modulate a carrier signal for transmission over the PSTN network.

Network
Any grouping of two or more workstations, printers and other devices that can communicate with each other over some form of transmission medium.

Non-Geographic Numbers:

• Freephone Numbering (0800 / 0500 / 0808)
  The customer who owns the 0800,0808 number picks up all the call costs and often has to pay rental for the number.
• Local call 0845 / 0345/ 0645
  With 0845 numbers, the caller pays the full BT local rate for the call, wherever they are in the UK. The customer receiving the call pays a rental for the number and pays to receive the call (for TCL Customers - Opal do not charge rental for the number but do charge 2p per minute to receive the call). The number rental can be expensive, so moving to us can save the customer money.
• National Call 0870/0871
  The caller pays the full BT national rate for the call, wherever they are in the UK. The receiving customer pays rental for the number and pays to receive the call (for TCL Customers - Opal do not charge rental for the number but do charge 2p per minute to receive the call). The number rental can be expensive, so moving to us can save the customer money.
• Premium Rate (0900 or 0906)
  Customers can select from a range of tariffs, which are tied to particular number ranges. The caller pays for the call (variable rates), wherever they are in the UK. The receiving customer receives payment for the call from the network operator.

Number Portability
In the past customers wanting to move networks to get better tariffs had to change their numbers. This was seen as a barrier to competition. So Ofcom introduced a process to allow the transfer of numbers from the major network operators to other network operators.

PABX or PBX
Private Automatic Branch eXchange. A subscriber owned telephone exchange linked to the PSTN, often over an E1 circuit such as BT's MegaStream.

PIN
Some phones including WorldNet Virtual Call Centre systems, Call Management and other services use a personal identity number or PIN.

POP - Point of Presence
A point of presence normally means a city or location where a network can be connected to, often with dial up telephone lines.

Predictive Dialling
A third party (E.g. WorldNet) CTI application, predictive dialling removes all dialling responsibilities from an agent. Once a call has been completed the software automatically dials the next number on the agents calling list.

Protocol
A set of rules governing the format, timing, sequence and error control of messages exchanged between communications entities within a network.

PSTN
Public Switched Telephone Network. The original analogue telephone network and the UK standard telephone network as provided by BT.

QoS - Quality of Service
Used to provide acceptable voice quality across IP Networks.

Routers
Package that handles the connection between two or more packet switched networks. Routers filter the source and destination addresses of the packets passing through them and decide which route to send them on to.

Server
A network device that provides service to the network users by managing shared resources. The term is often used in the context of a client-server architecture for a LAN. Examples are a printer server and a file server.

Service Provider
An organisation providing a service or services to a client, which may include internet access, web hosting, applications, data storage and many others.

SMS (short messaging service)
Digital phones can receive short text messages (up to 160 characters long), just like a pager. This gives a useful way of sending messages to people, especially when their phones are not switched on. When they next switch on, they are told there is a message waiting.

SLA
Service Level Agreement. A term indicating an agreement between a service or network provider and its customers which guarantees performance: often measured in terms of:

1. time taken to provide the service
2. time taken to restore the service
3. guaranteed end-to-end transmission delay
4. guaranteed packet loss

Soft PBX (Soft Switches)
This is the term used to describe a software application that provides computer server based telephony. Performing similar function to that of a traditional hardware based PBX, Soft PBX's (Switches) offer a range of additional functions such as Voicemail and IVR as well as integration with other server based applications.

Tariff
Each phone user selects a particular scale of charges or tariff when signing a phone contract. Some tariffs have low monthly charges and high call charges. Others have high monthly charges and low call charges. Fixed Line tariffs also define the charges for different types of calls.

TCP/IP
Usually TCP and IP are linked together and referred to as a suite of protocols.

Voicemail
If your mobile phone isn't switched on or you can't get a signal, the phone network can be set to act like a giant answering machine. It records messages and replays them when the phone user calls in to receive them.

VoIP
Voice over IP. A service where voice is firstly digitised, then compressed, and placed into packets for transmission over an IP network. VoIP over the public Internet is likely to be of poor quality due to the number of routers through which the voice must travel; this contributes to significant end-to-end delay. Voice over IP over a managed VPN or an Intranet will generally produce good results and cost savings.

WAN - Wide area Network
A Wide Area Network is an extension of a LAN. The router on the LAN will connect to a Leased line. The other end of the leased line will connect to another Router at a remote site thus joining the two Local Area Networks.

VPN
Virtual Private Network. A managed service offered by a service provider, in which secure connectivity, management and addressing, equivalent to that available on a private network, is provided on a shared public network infrastructure.

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