According to an announcement from Syniverse, LG Uplus recently launched the first service in the world to offer commercial VoLTE service. Using an IPX network belonging to Syniverse, LG Uplus subscribers can have VoLTE roaming on Japan’s KDDI network and in other locations.
Tampa, Florida-based Syniverse Technologies (News - Alert), LLC provides various solutions related to network systems to mobile and landline operators. Settlement and clearing, fraud management software, and interoperability are among the many services it offers. LG Uplus is a mobile telecomm service provider based in Seoul, South Korea.
VoLTE faces some challenges in becoming a technology that nearly everyone uses. A look at the launch of the service by Canadian provider Rogers in April is a great example of the problems found in many VoLTE deployments.
Both parties to a call must use the LG G3 Vigor to use Rogers’ VoLTE service. Certain features like advanced call manager, ringback tunes, and Rogers One Number are not supported. Rogers VoLTE service is not compatible with U.S. roaming, and is not available in parts of Rogers’ service area.
A document produced by Alcatel-Lucent recently stated that policy control, charging and diameter signaling control stand in the way of widespread VoLTE adoption. Older policy and charging rules will not guarantee that the bandwidth needed for the best user experience possible will be available consistently. A mechanism to load balance signaling traffic, known as diameter signaling control, must also be in place.
Syniverse’s IPX network is available to 200 operators in 44 countries, so a good portion of the infrastructure needed to make ubiquitous VoLTE possible is in place and will only grow further. The ability for LG Uplus users to have VoLTE roaming in Japan is a significant step, but all it shows so far is that it can be done.
Lindbergh demonstrated that solo non-stop transatlantic flight was possible, but many years passed before regular non-stop transatlantic passenger service became available through the airlines. In the same way, Syniverse and LG Uplus have shown that VoLTE roaming is possible, but as many providers like Rogers have found, there are still obstacles to overcome before VoLTE is available globally.
Edited by Maurice Nagle