Fixed Mobile Convergence: UMA --> IMS/VCC
Hi Frank,
>> VCC vs. UMA: Two Technologies or Two Different Services? -- I recently sat through a webinar that generally spells out the nuts and bolts of how these features work behind the scenes, although it might be viewed as a sideways approach to the subject, since it actually dealt with the implications of IMS vis a vis VCC and UMA. From Telephonyonline.com
telephonyonline.com <<
That really is an excellent webinar that positions UMA as a standardized 1st generation (1st phase) approach for GSM carriers that allows them to implement IP based voice-centric services using converged cellular/WiFi devices while the Voice Call Connectivity (VCC) of more data-centric IMS completes standardization in IMS R'7 and is subsequently matured and then commercialized. It cleared up some questions for me about whether or not IMS/VCC were competitive or complementary, and its a recommended listen for anyone interested in the general subject of Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC).
I'll (hopefully) comment further and attempt to answer (or at least provide my opinion and maybe indulge a rant) on some of the questions on "parallel universes" and interoperability you raised in a separate post -- and perhaps others here might comment or opine on them in the interim.
Related to this discussion, the one year old article below previews Cingular's planned evolution path for FMC at least as it existed at that time, and before AT&T modifies them <g> or ratifies them ...
>> Cingular's Got Big FMC Plans
Dan Jones
Unstrung
CTIA Wireless (San Francisco)
09.29.05
unstrung.com
Cingular Wireless LLC is pushing ahead with fixed mobile convergence (FMC) plans, Unstrung has learned, and it could become the first GSM-based carrier to offer integrated services across cellular, fixed-line, and WLAN networks in the U.S.
Cingular is looking at first adding fixed mobile convergence services with unlicensed mobile access (UMA) technology, but eventually it plans to tie all of its networks together using IMS technology when it upgrades its wireless data networks to broadband speeds, sources say.
UMA allows subscribers to move between cellular and WiFi networks outdoors, and a fixed line indoors, with just one phone.
The long-term plans include rolling out a high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) upgrade to its network. Cingular has said that it expects to implement the high-speed 3G upgrade across most of its network in the U.S. by the end of 2006.
Overall, Cingular is planning a unified network architecture that can support a range of IP-based services for both packet- and circuit-switched networks, and employ a range of different wireless and fixed access mechanisms. This involves a major software upgrade at the network core and requires better performance across the entire cellular access network before it can be fully implemented. This is why many analysts and industry figures don't believe that full IMS implementations will be in place before 2007 or 2008.
Cingular's plan is to have a mobile phone with a UMA client and a SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) client on board. The UMA would handle the moves between the cellular network and public access hotspots. When the user gets home, the UMA client hands off to the SIP client, which enables voice over the wired network. The phone acts like a cordless unit with a wireless LAN connection between the handset and a base unit that is plugged into the PSTN.
Such a service could allow Cingular and its fixed-line parents -- BellSouth Corp. (NYSE: BLS) and SBC Communications Inc. (NYSE: SBC) -- to offer some fairly sophisticated fixed/mobile bundling options to potential subscribers.
Astute readers will note that Cingular's FMC strategy is very similar to the "Fusion" project -- formerly known as "BluePhone" -- being developed by BT Group plc (NYSE: BT - London: BTA) on the other side of the pond.
Indeed, as Roger Entner, VP of wireless telecom at research firm Ovum Ltd. notes, Cingular has joined the BluePhone consortium, a group of vendors formed in May 2004 to develop the technology for BT Fusion. It is led by Alcatel (NYSE: ALA; - Paris: CGEP:PA) and includes Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERICY), Lucent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LU), and Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT).
"I think they joined too late to influence much of the decision-making process," Entner notes.
But Cingular's membership of the group reinforces the notion that the carrier will use UMA as the basis for its initial FMC strategy, since this is the path BT and the consortium have already laid out.
UMA was initially devleoped by startup Kineto Wireless Inc. but has garnered fairly widespread industry support from infrastruture vendors and handset makers -- including Alcatel, Motorola, and Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) -- over the last year.
"They’re moving fast on this now," says one source working with the company, adding that Cingular wants to edge out T-Mobile USA, which has looked at a similar strategy but hasn't forwarded it yet.
But Cingular's major rival in the U.S. cellular scene, Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S), still claims it will be first with a fully integrated FMC system in the U.S.
"We've had IMS underway for some time and hold the lead in North American implementation," a Sprint spokesman says. ###
Here's a few more on the general UMA subject in chronlogical order dating back to February of this year ...
>> UMA Steps Up
Dan Jones
Unstrung
02.13.06
unstrung.com
Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT) and Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) unveiled mobile phones that can switch calls between Bluetooth, cellular, and WiFi networks today at the 3GSM show in Barcelona, Spain.
Even though enterprises would like to be able to roll out such dual-mode handsets, businesses may be slow to adopt these devices, according to Ellen Daley, a principal analyst at Forrester Research Inc.
Motorola showed off the Motorola A910 handset to be sold by BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) as part of its Fusion fixed/mobile convergence service in the UK. The phone is expected to be available in the third quarter of 2006.
Nokia's rival 6136 handset, which uses a clamshell design, is due on the market in the second quarter of 2006.
What these models have in common is that they are among the first fixed/mobile convergence devices available for business users and well-healed consumers to buy.
Both phones use a technology specification called unlicensed mobile access (UMA) to switch between different networks without dropping calls. The technology is appealing to operators because it allows them to maintain control of the call by tunneling the data back over a WLAN or Bluetooth network to a gateway on the operator's network, which processes and forwards the call data to the circuit or packet-switched mobile core.
UMA was first pioneered by startup Kineto Wireless Inc., but has clearly started to trickle into the mainstream.
Evidence indicates strong corporate demand for dual-mode handsets. "We did a survey last year and found that companies had a pent-up demand for dual-mode devices," says Daley of Forrester. "There's a perception out there that employees are walking the corridors talking on cellphones when they could be using company infrastructure to make that call."
There are, however, a number of factors needed to fall into place before corporations can seriously look at equipping employees with dual-mode devices.
Companies will have to upgrade their voice-over-IP systems, buy expensive new handsets, and quite possibly redesign their wireless LAN networks.
That said, don't expect to see many businesses move to dual-mode handsets until next year. ###
>> Who Will Buy Dual-Mode?
Dan Jones
Unstrung
04.13.06
unstrung.com
The first big wave of dual-mode cellular-WiFi handsets looks set to arrive any day now. Manufacturers such as Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK - message board) displayed prototype handsets at the recent CTIA Wireless show, while European carriers such as France Telecom SA (NYSE: FTE - message board) say they will offer the handsets to subscribers when they become available.
This leaves one nagging question -- who exactly will buy these new devices? Enterprise users that Unstrung has been speaking to tend to view these devices as promising technology but not something that they need to sign up for right away.
Part of the point of such devices is to save enterprise users money by exploiting existing infrastructure for cost savings. “We’re still a couple of years out from that.” reckons Jolean DeKort, telecommunications manager at multinational ink manufacturer Flint Ink, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, adding that she hasn’t yet seen any “clearcut data” on the savings to be realized by deploying dual mode phones.
That’s not to say companies aren’t interested in the technology as it matures. “Once they release a product that can really work with the enterprise PBX, which supports VOIP and IP telephony, then there will be a true cost saving, but I haven’t really seen that yet,” DeKort tells Unstrung
Part of the issue for device makers is that many users are still busy putting in the infrastructure that will allow them to actually offer employees such services. “It’s just too soon,” says Shawn Eveleigh, senior systems administrator at Oakville, Ontario-based water treatment technology firm Zenon Environmental. “We’re just starting to implement VOIP on our network now.”
It is possible that well-heeled consumers will buy into the dual-mode concept. In-Stat/MDR is predicting that worldwide, consumer VOIP subscribers using wireless IP phones will grow from 2 percent currently to 73 percent in 2009. Typically, the appeal of VOIP now is that it is cheaper than using traditional phones and services. But Parsippany, N.J.-based research firm InfoTech isn’t expecting the cost of dual-mode prices to dip to the $400 level until 2008 at the earliest.
This, of course, won't stop vendors from pushing on with these devices. Most of the early handsets are based on unlicensed mobile access (UMA) technology, which allows calls to be switched between cellular and WiFi networks. The technology appeals to operators because it allows them to maintain control of the call by tunneling the data back over a WLAN or Bluetooth network to a gateway on the operator's network, which processes and forwards the call data to the circuit or packet-switched mobile core.
The first UMA handsets from Nokia are expected in the U.S. this year. ###
>> BT & T-Mobile: No Convergence
Dan Jones
Light Reading
September 29, 2006
lightreading.com
T-Mobile USA has denied reports that it will enter into a partnership with BT Global Services to offer fixed/mobile services in the U.S.
Reports out of the U.K. this week claimed BT and T-Mobile USA would partner to launch a converged service in the U.S. enterprise market.
"Information about T-Mobile and BT has been inaccurately reported," a spokesperson for T-Mobile tells Unstrung. "The only agreement we have with BT is a roaming agreement for hotspot users."
This doesn't mean that the U.S. operator isn't moving ahead with its own FMC plans. T-Mobile USA is expected to launch its long-anticipated FMC service very soon. "Any day or week now," says analyst Roger Entner at Ovum Ltd. .
T-Mobile would be able to utilize its widespread network of WiFi hotspots in any such deal. The operator now has 7,836 locations in the U.S. Unlike many of its cellular rivals, the operator largely owns its WiFi network, rather than relying on third-party networks.
It appears that T-Mobile will be the first major operator in the U.S. to offer a cellular- and WiFi-based FMC service. The company is using unlicensed mobile access (UMA) technology, which is favored by some carriers because it allows them to maintain control of calls on the WiFi network. (See UMA Steps Up.) Some enterprise users are still leery about buying into the technology.
Cingular had been working with UMA technology for its initial FMC trials. The operator is working to develop convergence services based around an IP multimedia core (IMS). This likely means that the operator will start to roll out services later than T-Mobile, since it is still working on implementing IMS technology. Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) is also working on an IMS-based system. ###
Bottom line is that UMA as an early sttep in FMC is now commercially available stateside -- albeit in 'beta' or 'pilot stage' and not yet on a national scale. Progress none the less.
Best,
- Eric - |
