Imagine you and your spouse are having dinner, when they suddenly collapse. Unaware of what is happening, you run to the phone to dial 911 only to find you have no signal. How could this happen? You use an Internet phone, but you paid for a full year and should have service.

This could have been the case for subscribers of SunRocket’s VoIP service when the company went out of business Friday without alerting its 220,000 customers. Customers of SunRocket paid a set $199 for a year of unlimited calls. It is unclear if those that paid will be credited.

The disappearance of SunRocket is a hit to both the independent telecommunications industry as well as progressive Internet technology. The sudden disappearance of SunRocket will result in new rules and regulations formulated by the US government to prevent this type of service loss without warning or explanation in the future. This may place independent VoIP providers like Vonage at a disadvantage to the large telecommunications companies. Cable providers currently account for most of VoIP users, and could push for laws that eliminate the independents.

The exit of SunRocket also hinders progressive Internet technology. SunRocket and Vonage were the pioneers of the VoIP field, and provided Internet phone service for years before the big telecom companies got into the game. People may be more skeptical now to work with emerging technology providers for fear of a repeat of the SunRocket scandal. The addition of legislation could move beyond just VoIP and create new rules for other types of businesses on the web. This could prevent other independent cutting-edge technology companies from even getting off the ground. Just ask SunRocket customers if they if they will think twice before signing up for new Internet services.