What is Choose Your Own Provider (CYOP)?

Choose Your Own Provider (CYOP) is a term that describes the same strategic approach as Bring Your Own Provider (BYOP). Both refer to the practice of selecting a voice service carrier that is separate from your primary communications platform provider.

While the terms are functionally identical, the distinction is often a matter of context:

• BYOP typically implies that a business is bringing an existing and preferred carrier relationship with them when they adopt a new phone system.
• CYOP more often describes the process of actively choosing a new third-party voice provider at the same time a new communications platform is being implemented.

A common scenario for CYOP occurs when a business migrates from legacy technology, like ISDN, to a modern, cloud-based phone system. During this transition, they must select a new provider for their voice services (like SIP trunking) and may choose a specialized carrier that offers better rates or coverage than the one bundled with their new phone system.

Ultimately, whether you call it CYOP or BYOP, the goal is the same: to gain the flexibility to build a best-of-breed communications solution by selecting the ideal platform and the ideal voice carrier for your specific business needs.