VoIP services are booming, at least at the wholesale level, for 360 Networks, which today announced the addition of Dallas to its wholesale offering. Editor-in-Chief Carol Wilson spoke with Nick Reifschneider, the company’s VoIP services product manager.

On 360’s wholesale VoIP offering: We started this about two years ago in September 2006, when we launched a wholesale VoIP service. We already had an IP network, and we had all the access systems in place with Qwest [Communications] and a couple of other carriers. We launched services with about 500 rate centers.

On the growth of that wholesale VoIP offering: We have been expanding it to include other parts of the Western United States, with Verizon, CenturyTel, Embarq and AT&T. We launched Southern California, Iowa, Nebraska and (today) we added Dallas.

On target customers: We have WISPs [wireless ISPs], we’ve got the cable company MSOs and other wholesalers that aggregate services, and we have the larger VoIP service providers, with large residential services and enterprise services, also click-to-call companies, faxing companies and IVRs [interactive voice response] providers. We have a broad range of customers; we don’t have just a single niche that we deal with.

On 360’s goals: In the western US, our goal is to be the predominant provider of VoIP services, not just in volume but in depth. We have the largest coverage in each state – that’s our goal. It will take a while, but we’ll get there. Chicago is one of our next markets, then Northern California.

On the process of adding markets: We have interconnect agreements with the large service providers, so we are able to go into the states. But with each LEC, there are different requirements. AT&T in Texas had some very strict 911 requirements. We already have a 911 service. But in Texas, AT&T requires us to use their service. So dealing with each LEC’s nuances takes time.