12.3. ISN, ITAD, and freenum.org

Finally we get to the cool part of this chapter.

The biggest shortcoming of ENUM is that it uses a numbering system that is not under the control of any Internet numbering authorities.^[139] The freenum.org project solves this problem by utilizing a numbering scheme that is managed by IANA. This means that a formal, globally valid, nongeographic numbering system for VoIP can be immediately and easily implemented without getting mired in the bureaucracy and politics that burden the E.164 numbering system.

^[139] More to the point, perhaps, is that E.164 numbers are controlled by far too many organizations, each one subjected to different regulations, and having goals that are not always compatible with the concept of global, free VoIP calling.