Nominet plots one registry to rule them all

Nominet, the not-for-profit that runs the .co.uk domain name database, has been awarded the contract to build the new Enum registry. Enum domains will map telephone numbers to web addresses. Enum is designed to get around the problem that few phone keypads have an "@" key, which makes dialling an SIP address for a VoIP call …

[Anonymous Coward]

Overengineering a solution

"Enum is designed to get around the problem that few phone keypads have an "@" key, which makes dialling an SIP address for a VoIP call tricky. "

Well, yeh, I suppose so. Or you could just use the hash key to stand in for the at sign.

Of course, while massively simpler, infinitely cheaper and vastly more reliable, that does have the disadvantage of not providing a completely spurious excuse to set up a bunch of useless registries as part of a power-grab to try and obtain monopolistic control over the emerging VoIP infrastructure.

Which I suggest is the only possible genuine motive for this otherwise utterly pointless charade.

[alex dekker]

Inaccurate article title

The exact opposite of what the article states, in fact!

As for the AC who posted first, if you don't use ENUM it won't affect you, so why cry about it?

[Fazal Majid]

For the UK only

The article does not make it clear, but Nominet will manage the ENUM registry for the UK only.

[Jeff Deacon]

But why invent the wheel all over again?

e164.org (http://www.e164.org/) has been around for ages, doing just this job on a voluntary basis, with worldwide reach for the cogniscienti. All it takes is to choose the right VoIP software or hardware (ie has the facility to do enum lookups) and then get it to do its stuff on every phone call. This plethora of national enum registries is just a nuisance, not a benefit.