Not really an operational question, but an engineering question non-the-less. This may also not be the most suitable forum, but there is a large brain trust here that can probably answer my questions. We are looking at a business plan to launch a large VOIP carrier globally. My questions are: 1: Does it make sense to scatter nodes around the globe to limit latency on intraregional calls? If so how many? We were thinking about 7 placed at strategic points around the globe. 2: Is a softswitch architecture preferred to a proxy server/Media Gateway (Vonage) only type architecture? 3: What protocols should be used for firmware upgrades to ATA devices? We are thinking HTTPS or SFTP, or HTTP if those aren't available on selected devices. I am trying to stay away from TFTP for security reasons. 4: Anyone have any vendor recommendations? We currently use Metaswitch for our Softswitch, but I'm not sure it would be the best choice for a large scale deployment although I am going to research it. 5: Should I work with large wholesalers (L3, GX, etc) or try to penetrate markets in some other way? 6: Are there any wholesalers (DID Origination) outside of the US that anyone knows of? Sorry to have so many questions. Many of these I already have ideas on the answers however I acknowledge there are far smarter people than myself in the world. So I figure it's a good idea to ask and get opinions from others before I make a final decision. Shane Shaneowens<at>dna-communications.com