Insights

Implementing New Call-Routing Technology: A Q&A with ANI Networks

May 21, 2019

Investing in and implementing new technology can be both exciting as well as challenging – there are countless risks to consider. When ANI Networks was looking for a more affordable way to gain access to locally stored routing data for Toll-Free, they were highly interested in finding a solution that allowed them to bring Toll-Free routing data in-house. They decided to implement RouteLink, a solution developed by Somos to provide authoritative Toll-Free routing data that helps identify the lowest available cost routing alternative to deliver a call. ANI recognized the benefit of real-time visibility for Toll-Free call routing as well as RouteLink’s ability to increase efficiency and save money.

When it came time to deploy the new platform, ANI’s internal programming team leveraged Somos’ thought leadership to ensure a streamlined implementation, one that resulted in delivering the project over a month ahead of schedule! Recently, Ryan Karnas, Director of Product Management for Somos, sat down with Jeanne DiPuccio, Senior Director of Wholesale Services at ANI, and Ken Linder, Lead Programmer at ANI, to learn more about their journey towards launching RouteLink for their customers.

Somos: Thank you first and foremost for taking the time to sit down with us to take a deeper dive into your RouteLink journey. Let’s kick the discussion off with a brief overview of the role ANI plays in the telecom industry. For those readers who may not be familiar with your company, we’d love to hear more about the services ANI provides.

ANI: Thanks, Ryan. ANI Networks has been in the industry since 1989 and has been a Resp Org since 2005. Over the last 30 years, we’ve committed ourselves to providing world class service for all of our customers, no matter how big or small they may be. ANI offers a host of services including Toll-Free Origination & Termination, 1+ Termination, Switched services, as well as Toll-Free & Landline texting. As the telecom space continues to evolve, ANI’s strategic objective is to anticipate where the market is heading and to be on the forefront of new solutions that will enhance the overall experience for everyone involved in the call. Our business plan is built on ensuring our customer’s sustainability in the marketplace, for today and for the future.

Somos: For the longest time, you relied on a costly third-party to help you route your Toll-Free calls. How did you decide that bringing Toll-Free routing data in-house was the right approach to helping ANI meet critical business and technical challenges?

ANI: We, at ANI, know that Toll-Free means business and consider it one of our most important service offerings. From providing comprehensive Responsible Organization (Resp Org) services to retail, enterprise, carrier, and switchless wholesale customers, we manage every aspect of our customer’s valuable Toll-Free assets – specifically Toll-Free call routing. It’s of the utmost importance to us that we provide the fastest, cheapest and most direct route to complete a call. By adding RouteLink to our service portfolio, we’ve greatly increased efficiencies; while saving money and minimizing latency.

Somos: Can you tell us more about your RouteLink journey and specifically what your implementation process looked like?

ANI: Our RouteLink implementation project started in mid-2018. What began as a priority C project was soon upgraded to priority A in fall 2018. A major game-changer in our implementation journey was the release of the RouteLink Application Programming Interface (API) in October 2018. The new API streamlined the process by using the JSON format to distribute routing data. This upgrade was instrumental in simplifying our integration and speeding up our deployment. The API made our implementation seamless, quick, and smooth!

Somos: Any final words for other Resp Orgs thinking about adding RouteLink to their services portfolio?

ANI: RouteLink has provided ANI with the data we need to offer our customers shorter call routes, faster connection times for calls, and a direct path to delivering a Toll-Free call. With the drastic reduction in kickbacks that RouteLink has offered us, we’re able to give customers a better, cheaper, and more efficient solution for completing Toll-Free calls. The RouteLink interface is really straight forward, which makes it easy to dive right in. Equally amazing was Somos’ high-level of customer support – they were by our side every step of the way and always available to provide immediate and concise assistance.

To learn more about ANI Networks, visit their website at www.aninetworks.com. 

Ready to learn more about how RouteLink can help cut out the middle man and get you straight to authoritative Toll-Free routing data? Click here.