Dsti/iccp/cisp(2007)2/final
Box 3. Initiatives on NGN
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Box 3. Initiatives on NGN
Some of the major operators in the OECD are already in the process of shifting their networks to NGN. Telecom Italia’s complete migration to NGN aims to increase efficiency, resulting from the reduction in ongoing capital expenditure due to network simplification and a reduction in operating expenditure from the reduction in the number of central offices, elimination of traditional switched networks and resolution of obsolescence issues, as well as greater automation of maintenance, provisioning and reliability. It is foreseen that Telecom Italia’s plans to implement a “full-IP” network and to introduce fibre in access networks will bring about a reduction in network operational expenditure requirements, estimated to be over EUR 1 billion. 29
BT’s 21 Century Networks project should be fully rolled out across the United Kingdom by 2011, thus phasing out the traditional PSTN. BT has already developed an international IP-based network reaching 160 countries by the end of 2007. The shift to all- IP networks aims to transform the core business processes and the fundamental product propositions of all layers of the network and all elements of the supporting architecture, and should allow the company to save more than EUR 1 billion per year in operational expenses. 30
In the Netherlands KPN is implementing an all-IP infrastructure, and plans to start installing FTTH in new residential areas by the second quarter of 2007. In its 2006 Annual Report KPN anticipated that main distribution frames should be phased out and that by 2010 a wide range of non IP-based services will be discontinued, which would lead to closing between 1 100 to 1 300 local telephone exchanges and would result in a significant reduction of staff costs. In addition, the reduced technical housing requirements due to the shift to IP, will allow the unlocking the value of non-core assets for an amount estimated to be around USD1 billion. 31 KPN’s transition towards next generation networks is driven by the need to take advantage of technological innovation, compete with new entrants in the fibre market – such as Citynet, Versatel, Essent, or Tele2 – and reduce the cost of the company’s infrastructure. 32
telephone service and a guaranteed bit rate video service. They plan to extend these services, by March 2011, to all areas where fibre access is currently provided. In the United states Verizon has deployed a fibre-to-the-premise project passing 9.3 million homes at the end of 2007 in 1 600 cities. The target for homes passed by the end of 2010 is 18 to 20 million. Current offers include a 50 Mbps downstream service and symmetrical offers in some areas. Although the shift in the migration to all-IP networks is taking place at different paces in different countries, several operators in the OECD area have already updated their transport networks, and are now dealing with NGN at the local access level. Solutions embraced by fixed operators may also increasingly support IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), to enable fixed-mobile convergence. 33
For the moment the most common services provided through the new networks are the provision of PSTN/ISDN emulation services, i.e. the provision of PSTN/ISDN service capabilities and interfaces using adaptation to an IP infrastructure, and video on demand (VoDs). At the same time the business world is showing an increasing interest in new NGN-enabled services and applications. Companies are migrating their Time Division Multiplexing switches to IP in order to enable integrated applications for specific industry-based functionalities and purposes. 34
IMS standard. 35 For the moment two services have been standardised under the IMS protocol, Push to Talk over Cellular (PoC) and Video Sharing. 36 Prominent telecommunication network equipment suppliers are actively supporting the take up of IMS and some of them are implementing IMS strategies and commercial IMS products. 37 IMS is seen as the enabler for the migration to next generation networks of mobile operators and therefore for the implementation of fixed-mobile convergence. No evident killer application has currently emerged, with many operators focusing on one specific service: voice. Facilitating the use of voice applications, enabling users to handle their calls easily between fixed and mobile networks, and to receive calls wherever they are, is fundamental for the take–up of the service. Operating in an IMS environment would allow a seamless handover from WLAN (fixed) to mobile during calls (Voice Call Continuity). In order for real-time voice calls to be offered seamlessly between the circuit switched domain and the Wireless LAN interworking with IMS architecture, the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) 38 is
DSTI/ICCP/CISP(2007)2/FINAL
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currently working to develop the appropriate Technical Specifications to define this functionality as a standard 3GPP feature. The study by 3GPP of the standard is underway. 39 In the meanwhile, fixed-mobile converged services have been launched by some mobile operators with access to fixed networks, using a different standard – Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) 40 – allowing users to seamlessly switch from fixed to mobile networks (see below, paragraph on Fixed Mobile Convergence). In addition, increasing competitive pressure on mobile carriers is coming from the IP world. Thanks to the availability of dual-use devices and Wi-Fi hotspots, service providers – such as Skype, Google, and others – are able to offer on the market a host of new services for mobile users in a very short period of time. This rapidity constitutes an important comparative advantage, which in some cases provoke the reaction of mobile operators (and manufacturers), tending to limit the services and applications users can access from their mobile handset.
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