According to the statistics shared by one of the 360 Research Reports, the market size of VoIP Softswitch is projected to reach multi-million US dollars by 2029 (Source). The pandemic COVID 19 had hit this market as well, but now, it has started gearing up. In fact, companies and innovators have started investing heavily in this industry to boost exponential growth at a rapid rate. The VoIP industry is a multimillion dollar industry and Softswitch is one of the parts of this industry. In the Softswitch industry as well, there are multiple types of software switches available in the VoIP industry. In this blog post, we are going to discuss class 4 Softswitch.
We will delve deeper to learn about this solution and future trends of this Softswitch. We will cover the following topics.
So without any further delay, let’s start exploring each of these points.
1. What is a Class 4 VoIP Softswitch?
Softswitch is a software switch, which connects different network instruments in the VoIP industry to complete a telephony network. A class 4 Softswitch solution is responsible for administering signaling, processing media, and transmitting voice, data, and multimedia from source to destination.
It is way more advanced than any VoIP solution, be it an IP PBX system, class 5 Softswitch solution, VoIP billing software, or any other system. This system can manage thousands of concurrent calls, which makes them stand out. Moreover, a VoIP development company that builds customized wholesale Softswitch develops intelligent call routing features and other algorithms to ensure that this switch can intelligently choose the right routing strategy to distribute VoIP traffic and increase benefits for consumers and wholesale VoIP providers, both.
2. What Are The Major Features of Class 4 Softswitch?
Different VoIP Softswitch providers build different types of features to add a competitive advantage to this solution. You will also find an integrated VoIP billing software, fraud detection and management software, etc. All of these inventions take place to provide more competitive and reliable solutions to wholesale VoIP providers. This Softswitch must have standard features for essential wholesale VoIP business functionalities.
Here is the list of those Must Have Features in the Best Class 4 Softswitch Software:
Dashboards:
- It shows different statistics and KPIs to review and monitor performance in real time and historically.
Customer and account management:
- The solution handles prepaid and postpaid customer accounts, including usage details, rate card, subscription, and minutes used.
Call routing strategies:
- The whole business model of a class 4 Softswitch is dependent on routing calls via different carriers and using different call distribution strategies. Thus, this is the most vital feature. The best switch will offer various call routing rules, including least cost, prefix-based, priority-based, and more.
Inbound and outbound traffic management:
- One of the major functions of this VoIP Softswitch solution is to manage and regulate inbound and outbound VoIP traffic to ensure a seamless business model. It enables cheap calling facilities available in the VoIP industry.
Real time monitoring:
- This feature has become necessary to monitor not only the performance of the switch, gateways, routes, etc., but also to keep an eye on different security measures like fraud attempts, hack attempts, and more.
Rate management:
- It is necessary to keep an active revenue model. This may also need your switch to have an integrated billing system, at least, with basic features. The best option can be the integration of a full fledged VoIP billing solution to automate invoicing and billing.
Compatibility:
- This Softswitch solution deals with multiple networks and therefore, there can be different protocols and codes. To continue operations, it is necessary to support all different codes and protocols. Moreover, whenever it is necessary, the software must provide transcoding and protocol conversion.
Reports:
- In any VoIP business, it is a must have feature. The software must show summary and detailed reports to review the value of different key performance indicators.
The aforementioned are must have features. As the market of VoIP Softswitch solutions grows in leaps and bounds, it is necessary to have a reseller management solution in your Softswitch. This can help in boosting business growth manifold as there are multiple businesses running multiple revenue generating networks using your Softswitch.
3. What is The Role of a Class 4 Switch in the VoIP Industry?
This Softswitch solution performs different and essential roles in the IP telephony network such as:
- A class 4 Softswitch solution sits at the pivotal position in the VoIP network. It creates an IP telephony network by connecting with another wholesale or retail Softswitch solution.
- This Softswitch makes it possible to reach international destinations at cheaper rates.
- It can also work as a transcoding and protocol converter solution.
- It manages the traversal of wholesale VoIP traffic from source to global destination at cheaper rates and reliable quality of service.
4. What Are The Major Class 4 Switch Future Trends? How will it Impact The VoIP Industry?
There are so many businesses that rely on VoIP Softswitch solutions and a class 4 switch holds major market coverage. Thus, it is necessary to explore future trends related to this switch and how it would affect the VoIP industry.
Smart Call Routing Features
Call routing has a major role in the wholesale VoIP industry as the rate cards are made up with the use of this feature majorly. Standard call routing strategies are available in almost all class 4 Softswitch software solutions. Having those call routing rules is necessary, but the industry will demand more innovative and never seen before features. For example, the least cost routing feature has been in the industry for many years and it is still holding the same significance. Thus, those call routing strategies will continue to serve the VoIP businesses. In addition to that, the future trends forecast that the need for innovative features will be high. There will be several businesses that will look for smart call routing features to gain a competitive advantage. For example, lossless routing, hybrid call routing, etc. are some innovative features availed of by the top class 4 Softswitch providers.
This will give a new direction to the VoIP industry as now there will be more creative rate cards. Wholesale VoIP business owners will be able to cater to customers with more innovative offerings of smart call routing features.
Real Time Billing
Automated billing is a major component of the wholesale VoIP business because VoIP traffic is massive in the wholesale industry. Moreover, billing is complicated in the wholesale business because of different factors. In the case of standard billing, the wholesale business often faces losses as the business goes into a negative balance. This demands a wholesale Softswitch to have a real time billing feature. The future forecast of this industry demands real time billing to avoid a negative balance.
Investing in real-time billing and similar features will make VoIP businesses more accurate and efficient for the future.
Increased Security Concerns
Security concerns have been in the VoIP industry for several years. Some of the major and popularly known security threats are DoS (Denial of Service), DDoS (Destructive Denial of Service), toll frauds, call tampering, call spoofing, robocalls, and VOMIT (Voice over Misconfigured Internet Telephones). As international calling with class 4 Softswitch software is gaining popularity, it is likely that hackers would come up with more ways to intercept the network. As there are thousands of concurrent calls handled in the VoIP network, the threat is huge and loss can be devastating. The future has some threats and risks associated with hacking, malware, and attacks. This demands better ways to protect the wholesale VoIP business. For example, call spoofing has become one of the major threats in the VoIP industry. Thus, businesses need to implement STIR/SHAKEN certificates.
As the threats increase, the need to manage security concerns will increase as well. The VoIP industry will need to be ready to deal with security breaches. This will demand VoIP business owners to be quick in identifying major threats. On identification of these threats, businesses will also need to find better fraud detection and management software features that deal with all security concerns.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The future lies in smart solutions and features developed using AI technology. AI is paving its way in all industry verticals and reshaping business solutions, then how can a class 4 Softswitch solution stays behind? Artificial intelligence handles automation, process enhancement, customer care, lead generation, problem-solving, and more. The future predictions related to this VoIP Softswitch solution also demand AI based systems.
This is going to affect the VoIP industry heavily as more operations performed by this solution will be automated. Customer care software built with AI features would be necessary to handle customer queries in the wholesale VoIP business. Virtual assistants, chatbots, robotic process automation, etc. may find their way into the improvement of wholesale VoIP business.
5. How to Leverage The Advantage of These Future Trends?
Whether you are already a part of the wholesale VoIP industry or thinking of joining this high profit making segment of the VoIP industry, you need to be aware of the major future forecasts related to a wholesale VoIP Softswitch solution and businesses. Technology inventions are going to be definitive factors in this industry in the upcoming year. Wholesale VoIP service providers must upgrade their Softswitch with better and tech-driven features. Sooner or later, the discussed future trends are going to dominate the wholesale VoIP market as they have already started paving into this industry. Thus, it is necessary for wholesale VoIP business owners to partner with a technology company or one of the best Class 4 Softswitch providers.
The technology company can build sustainable technology and integrate it into the software, providing a competitive and future-proof solution to beat the competition.
Concluding Notes
The market size of every VoIP product is lifting up due to factors like 5G internet, cheap services, easy adoption, etc. Thus, the future of the VoIP Softswitch for wholesale business is also quite bright and its market size will continue to grow. Technology inventions will dominate the market and influence revenue generation. Thus, it is necessary for wholesale VoIP service providers to be aware of the major future forecasts related to a wholesale VoIP Softswitch solution to take the necessary actions to be competitive. Businesses must join a movement for a sustainable and robust wholesale VoIP industry. To be future-ready, use the best Softswitch and partner with the right technology company. This helps providers stay stress-free as their technology partner invests in future-proofing through research and development.
We, ASTPP, are one of the top VoIP Softswitch providers that have benefited several wholesale and retail VoIP businesses with our wholesale and retail Softswitch solution. We persistently release new versions with innovative features like lossless routing, hybrid call routing, real time billing, negative billing restriction, real time monitoring, advanced fraud detection, and more. We can help your business take advantage of future trends in 2023 and in the future with our best in the industry class 4 Softswitch. To know more about this Softswitch, book a free walkthrough demo, and explore how we can help you further, contact us.
