Buy and manage virtual phone numbers (DIDs)

Sellers list local, mobile, toll-free and other virtual phone numbers (DIDs) in the DID marketplace. You buy a number, point it at your SIP or SMPP server, and receive calls or SMS on it.

Before you start#

• Add funds to the account you'll bill the number to. The setup fee and first recurring fee are charged at purchase.
• Create an account if you don't have one. If it has an IP address, the purchase page fills in your SIP or SMPP endpoint from it.

How do I find a number?#

1. Go to DIDs → Market View.
2. Enter a Number Prefix, Country or Description. At least one of them is required.
3. Narrow the search if you like with Seller, DID Type (National, Mobile, Toll Free or Special), Local Requirements (Any or Local Only) and Capabilities (Voice, SMS, Video, Fax). Voice is ticked when you first open the page, so SMS-only numbers are hidden until you untick it.
4. Choose how many Results Per Page and click Search DIDs. Clear Filters resets the form.

You'll see each number's Voice Rate, SMS Rate, Recurring Fee (per month, quarter or year), Setup Fee, Capacity, type and capabilities. A KYC badge means you must provide documents before the number works. Numbers of type Special appear as Grey. When a seller has scheduled a price increase, the number is listed a second time as " YYYY-MM-DD" with the prices that apply from that date. Anonymous sellers show Anonymous; clicking it opens a message to them.

With Local Requirements set to Any and Seller empty or Nexmo, the search also includes numbers from the Nexmo inventory, listed under seller Nexmo. They always carry the KYC badge.

Click Download N DIDs to save the results as a CSV file. If nothing matches, the page offers to place a back order.

How do I buy a number?#

1. Click Buy on the number.
2. On Confirm Purchase, check the DID Details: Setup Fee, Recurring Fee, Voice Rate, Increment (billing interval), SMS Rate and Seller.
3. Under Routing Configuration, enter where TelecomsXchange delivers traffic. The fields depend on the number's capabilities, and each one shown is required:
   • for a voice, video or fax number, SIP Endpoint (Primary), in the format sip:user@domain:port, and optionally SIP Endpoint (Secondary);
   • for an SMS number, SMPP Endpoint, in the format smpp:login:password:number@host:port;
   • a number with both capabilities needs both.
4. Choose the Billing Account. The list shows each account's balance.
5. Click Complete Purchase.

The setup fee and the first recurring fee are charged at once, and the number's DID Settings page opens. You also get a "TCXC DID purchase Notification" email, and so does the seller.

If the billing account uses another account's balance, the fees come from that balance. The balance plus credit limit must cover both fees. In Payment History the charges appear as "Setup Fee for DID " and " charge Fee for DID ".

What if the number needs documents (KYC)?#

Numbers with the KYC badge show a VERIFICATION ALERT on the purchase page. The number is billed immediately but activated only after the seller approves your documents. The setup fee and recurring fee are non-refundable.

The seller can ask for:

• Address Proof
• LOA (Letter of Intent)
• Passport/ID Card
• Company Articles of Incorporation
• anything listed under Other Notes

After you buy, send the documents to the seller, for example through Messages, or click Get Verified (KYC) on Purchased DIDs to open the online verification form. When the seller marks them verified you get a documents verified email, and Documents Verified is ticked in the number's DID Settings.

How do I change where a number is routed?#

1. Go to DIDs → Purchased DIDs (the page is titled My DIDs). Filter by Number Prefix, Country or Description if you have many numbers.
2. Click ⋮ on the number's row and choose Edit DID.
3. In DID Settings, change Point to SIP (Primary), Point to SIP (Failover) or Point to SMPP. Tick SIP DNS SRV to use DNS SRV for the SIP host; then leave the port out. The DID Information block above is read-only.
4. Click Save Settings. Return to DIDs goes back without saving.

You'll see "DID entry has been updated."

Purchased DIDs lists each number with its Fees, Next Bill date, Billing Account, Seller and Routed To. Click the info icons under Fees and Routed To to see the rates and the endpoints. A Price change badge on a number shows a coming price increase and its date; hover over it to see the new prices.

How do I update or release many numbers at once?#

1. In DIDs → Purchased DIDs, click Download All DIDs (or Download N DIDs for the filtered list). You get a CSV file of your numbers.
2. In the first column, Upload Action, enter:
   • EDIT to change the number's routing. Then fill in Pointed To SIP, Pointed To SIP (secondary) and Pointed To SMPP in the same formats as on the purchase page. The columns the number needs (SIP for voice, SMPP for SMS) must be filled.
   • CANCEL to release the number.
   • Leave it empty on numbers you don't want to touch.
3. Choose the file under Upload DID File and click Search DIDs.

You'll see "DIDs have been uploaded." If any row has an error, nothing is changed and you get the file back as numbers_upload_errors.csv, with the error at the end of each row.

How do renewals and cancellations work?#

• Reminder: about 7 days before renewal you get a "Phone Numbers Renewal Reminder!" email from rates@telecomsxchange.com, with a table of the numbers, their renewal dates, cost and account balance, the total cost and a Recharge Balance button. Each number is included once per billing cycle.
• Low funds: when a renewal is due within 14 days and the account's balance plus credit limit won't cover its numbers' recurring fees, you get a "TCXC DID Auto Unsubscribe Notification!" warning with a Top up balance button.
• Renewal: on the Next Bill date the recurring fee is charged (" charge for DID " in Payment History) and the number is renewed for another month, quarter or year.
• Price changes: when a seller changes a number's price you get a "TCXC DID Rate Notification! DID: " email with the new recurring fee, call and SMS prices, billing interval, capabilities and the date they take effect.
• Cancel: in DID Settings, click Release under Cancel Number. There is no confirmation step. You'll see "Unsubscribed successfully". The number is released at once, its routing and document verification are cleared, and the seller gets a "Number Cancelation Alert" email. Fees already paid are not refunded.

DIDs → Subscription Logs shows your purchases and cancellations as DID Number, Seller, Action and Timestamp. The action is subscribe for a purchase, manual_unsubscribe for a release and balance_unsubscribe for an automatic unsubscribe; renewals are not logged. Filter by DID Number and Seller and click Search Logs.

What if the number I need isn't listed?#

1. Go to DIDs → My Back Orders and click Place New Back Order.
2. Fill in Prefix and Quantity (digits only), Country (as spelled in the market) and Network, and tick the Features Required.
3. Describe your need in Explain DID Use Case.
4. Click Submit Back Order.

You'll see DID Back Order Confirmed: "Thank you, the order has been placed. We will contact you shortly." The TelecomsXchange team is notified and sources the numbers from sellers; you aren't charged for back orders. Your requests are listed in My Back Orders with their Date, Prefix, Country, Network, Capabilities, Quantity, Notes and Status (Pending or Completed). Orders are typically processed within 24 to 48 hours.

What if something goes wrong?#