Hosted VoIP provider Alteva (News - Alert) and about a dozen of its peers have banded together to ensure and advertise, under a single name, their high quality of service, Alteva CEO Bill Bumbernick told TMCnet today.

 

The group is also working to create “a peering environment that expands the capabilities of HD voice and video call,” he says. And it sounds as if the effort also may involve leveraging the combined members’ size to get better deals for SIP peering with companies not in the group.

 

Bumbernick would not allow TMCnet to publicly disclose the names of the other member companies, but said that an announcement about the group is planned for this fall, likely following the BroadSoft (News - Alert) Connections 2009 event planned for Oct. 25-28 in Scottsdale, Arizona. He explains that many of the group’s original members got to know one another through such BroadSoft events, but adds that the group isn’t limited to BroadSoft users.

 

“We believe that a rising tide raises all boats. So the more we help each other and push the industry forward,” he says.

 

“By bringing quality companies together with quality services we can debunk some of the fly-by-night operations that bring up crappy services and then damage the reputation of the industry,” he says. “It’s about bettering the industry.”

 

As for the peering aspect of the group’s work, Bumbernick says there are companies out there that offer SIP peering services to carriers, but when you get into peering for profit, you create a relationship that has a lot of restrictions around it. But when peers have a common goal, he adds, “it’s very open.”