IMS, FMC and Unified Communications

By Richard "Zippy" Grigonis
The relationship among today's three hottest communications concepts is both complex and subtle. Their symbiotic relationship, however, ultimately creates something that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Unified Communications (News - Alert) (UC) is essentially a business solution enabling all of your communications-related productivity tools (voice, voicemail, fax, email, instant messaging, document sharing, etc.) to be accessed via one interface by whatever device you happen to be using (desktop PC, laptop, mobile phone, etc.). Since some of these devices are portable, it's expected that a user on the move can take applications and calls-in-progress along, accompanied by the kind of uniform, sophisticated call control one encounters on a corporate PBX (News - Alert). This takes us into the world of Fixed-Mobile Convergence (FMC). As one crosses the enterprise boundary into the outside world, this transition can be done in four ways: 1) manually push a button to transfer a call to a mobile device, 2) extend PBX and desktop features to the mobile phone, 3) seamlessly transfer communications in progress from one network to another using a dual-mode phone or similar technology relying on VCC (Voice Call Continuity) concepts envisioned and specified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), and 4) in the case of UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) championed by Kineto Wireless, extend mobile features and calls embedded in IP packets through local WiFi (News - Alert) access points to inside the enterprise, so that voice calls can be handed off between Wireless LANs and mobile cellular environments (in particular GSM).

Achieving all of this demands that some considerable cooperation occur among the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network), the public Internet and the PLMN (Public Land Mobile Network). Ideally, a single service architecture should exist so that applications can be easily developed that integrate with corporate billing and operations support systems (OSS) and which can be deployed over both wireline and wireless networks. This "umbrella" technology is IMS.

That's why Stratus Technologies (News - Alert) early on got their Stratus Converged Personalized Services (CPS) in gear, which allows you to increase revenue without requiring massive changes, or investments, within your network. CPS gives subscribers the ability to access any data and use any service from any device over any network. Stratus CPS redefines mobile convergence to include voice and data routing, content unification, personalization and integrated messaging. All of these can be implemented in your existing network, providing an evolutionary path to IMS that can be timed to your specific business needs.

Stratus Converged Personalized Services consists of four key areas: 1) Converged Routing: Delivery of voice, data and video to a subscriber utilizing any device connected to any network; 2) Converged Content: Centralized storage of content with replication to any device connected to any network; 3) Converged Messaging: Centralized storage of voice, video and text messages with access from any device connected to any network; and 4) Converged Personalization: Centralized storage of subscriber profile with provisioning for any service using any device connected to any network.

Back in 2006, Stratus did a deal with LongBoard — later called Persona Software — so that they could offer LongBoard's SIP standard-based software for seamless handoff of voice calls between cellular networks and 802.11 (WiFi) networks. The IMS-compatible client/server software enables a dual-mode handset to support ubiquitous voice services across WiFi and cellular networks using one telephone number. Stratus further enhanced the product's capabilities by providing SS7 and IN connectivity, as well as complete systems integration services. The complete solution is fully 3GPP IMS compliant.

Indeed, the combination of IMS, VCC and dual-mode phones yield the slickest transition between networks, and Nokia has made an major foray into the field with its Nokia N Series and E Series devices that support both GSM and WiFi. The impressive Symbian (News - Alert) OS-powered Nokia N95 smart phone, for example, has a 5-megapixel camera, integrated GPS, and WiFi.

Nokia's quad-band GSM/UMTS/WiFi-equipped E61i and E65 are also interesting in that they are conceived as business devices that will integrate with corporate telephony systems. The E61i, with its 2 megapixel camera,

can also integrate with email systems. It an enhanced keyboard which includes new NAVI and "One Touch" keys. Both devices come with Nokia's (News - Alert) new Intellisync Mobile Suite 8.0 platform.

The even more impressive Nokia E90 Communicator is a mobile phone laden with multimedia and PDA functions. VoIP calls are supported over WiFi "g" networks. The device runs the Symbian 9.2 OS and has a complete QWERTY keyboard, GPS navigation system, MP3 player, and 3.2-megapixel digital camera with flash and autofocus. Its email support includes POP3, IMAP4, and SMTP standards and users can access both personal and corporate email accounts easily, and edit attachment documents and spreadsheets right on the phone.

Indeed, dual-mode smartphones from Nokia (such as the Nokia E61i) were used recently by XO Communications (News - Alert) and Sotto wireless in their trial of an FMC solution for businesses in Seattle. Called Unwired Office, it combines XO's nationwide IP networking capabilities with Sotto's all-in-one wireless and office phone communications service to form an integrated fixed and wireless service on a single platform with one smartphone that can be used in the office or outside of it for voice, email and Internet access as well as optional IP desk phones.

Dual-mode devices are also part of Nortel's (News - Alert) solution. FMC and dual-mode technology are fascinating for some people who travel because most FMC solutions are based on providing a single number for all communications. However, having multiple numbers is sometimes desirable, if for example, you want your TV or refrigerator to have a number for some reason. Nortel's solution happens to be able to manage "one number" schemes, as well as multiple number offers. Nortel's FMC strategy features the CS 2000 IP Multimedai Softswitch (PacketCable 1.X compliant) and/or IMS/PC2 and AS 5200 (PacketCable 2.0 compliant) at the heart of the solution, allowing the many commercial-grade calling features to be introduced into an FMC setting.

Getting Apps on the Road

A number of vendors have taken a careful, studied approach to exploiting IMS, FMC and UC.

Take Tango Networks (News - Alert), for example, a major provider of seamless enterprise fixed-mobile convergence solutions. Alastaire Westgarth, CEO and President of Tango Networks, says, "We first publicly displayed our Release 2 product in 2007. We have subsequently moved on to Release 4 and through that evolution we picked up our IMS component. The key thing that we think is differentiating or critical about what we do in the FMC space is our architectural approach. We build what we call a 'hybrid' architecture. We have a component that hooks into the carrier network, which can be an IS-41 carrier network, a GSM network, or an IMS network. Or the network can be a combination of these kinds of networks. Someone could have deployed a classic WIN or GSM CAMEL [Customized Application for the Mobile network Enhanced Logic, a standard for Intelligent Networks for mobile communications networks worldwide; GSM equivalent of WIN, the Wireless Intelligent Network] type of architecture and is migrating over to an IMS architecture, and they can have some of the Tango-based subscribers on the legacy network and some of them on the new IMS network, and yet the same equipment can be used to serve both simultaneously."

"In addition to this component in the carrier network," says Westgarth, "we have a component that connects into the enterprise network. It's a standard Intel (News - Alert) motherboard-equipped, Linux-powered appliance called the Tango Abrazzo that can, if necessary serve multiple PBXs. We are partners with most of the major PBX vendors, such as the Nortel, Avaya, Cisco, Alcatel, and we're starting to work with other PBX vendors such as Siemens (News - Alert) and some of the Asian manufacturers. When we partner with the PBX vendors, our component that installs in the enterprise deeply integrates into the PBX. This enables us to use the features of the PBX. We don't emulate these features, we don't remake them at all. We actually use them."

"So we have a component that fits into the carrier network that allows us to know what's going on with the user's mobile phone," says Westgarth, "and then the component in the enterprise network works in such a way so that we allow the enterprise-based PBX features to be completely and seamlessly available on the mobile phone, as they are on a desktop phone, regardless of whether the mobile phone is inside or outside the building."

"This technology allows us to use on-net routing for a large enterprise," says Westgarth, "So if an enterprise has locations in say, New York and London, and their desk-to-desk calling is over tie trunks [a communication connection between extensions of a private telephone system, typically two PBXs], now an employee's mobile phone has access to those facilities without any change in behavior by the end user. The end user makes a phone call and if it's appropriate to go over the corporate on-net tie trunks, it will do that. It's an opportunity where they can save significant long dollars right there. One of our partners, TI, pointed out to us that on-net calling is 30 to 100 times cheaper than calling onto the general PSTN. So there's a significant efficiency and cost-savings that's possible."

"Because we know where the mobile phone is situated," says Westgarth, "we don't 'trombone' calls all over the network [Tromboning is when RTP media traffic originating at a certain point follows a path out into the network and back to a destination close to where the RTP traffic originated, taking a path similar to the "shape" of a trombone.] Instead, we deliver the call to the mobile phone, if appropriate, via the closest local center. Thus, the call can tail-end hop-on and tail-end hop-off the mobility network over the most appropriate and direct geographical route."

Getting Everybody Involved

"Because our architecture enables us to have a presence in both the carrier and the enterprise," says Westgarth, "and makes the experience seamless for the end user, all of the stakeholders are now part of the solution. If you look at a pure VCC dual-mode solution, you must use a specific device and it's carrier-centric. A proprietary dual-mode solution, in an enterprise, cuts out the carrier. So at the end of the day, someone in that ecosystem is pulled out of the puzzle. We believe that to have FMC as a seamless, value-add experience, you've got to have all of the stakeholders involved. You've got to involve the carrier. After all, they've spent billions of dollars building RF networks. You've got to have the enterprise represented too, since it's their local network and it's their users. The user must have an easy and seamless experience. If you ask the user to do unusual things, such as overdial or run multiple applications on smartphones, or change their phone when they don't want to, or they can't use their Blackberry, or Razr, or iPhone (News - Alert), you're going to get some very odd user behavior. You may have great services deployed, but no one will want to use them. So our premise is that you must have all three stakeholders involved: the carrier, enterprise, and user."

"When we first introduced our product, it only connected to GSM and IS-41 WIN and AIN-type networks," says Westgarth, "Then we brought in the IMS software component that fits seamlessly beside the existing legacy system. We then discovered that very little real IMS has been deployed. But we also found that most of the major carriers and many smaller ones have some deployment, or are only formulating services that have a path or evolution to IMS. So we go into a carrier and have in some cases hooked up to their IMS network and in other cases we've told them that when that network is available and ready they can use the same equipment without any additional cost."

Westgarth continues, "We even have a customer that runs an IMS network by using legacy triggering, which is even more interesting. They literally have WIN triggers sitting on top of an IMS core — a very unusual architecture. But we don't care about that, since it's irrelevant to what we do. We go to the carriers and say, 'To you what we do looks like standard GSM, IS-41 or IMS.' To the enterprise we say, 'Our technology works with your standard PBX interfaces, but it's customized to the way you do business'. Again, we're trying to make it as seamless and easy as possible to all the stakeholders."

"Our hybrid architecture also allows for the fact that, if you go to a carrier," says Westgarth, "and you ask them if they want to be able to be involved in all of the policy and the routing that sits on these various PBXs, they get scared. They don't want to deal with dial plans and policy down at every single enterprise, because each enterprise has unique demands, and things can get very complex. However, with our architecture, all of that is removed from the carrier's concern, because it's already sitting inside of the PBX. It's just being used by the hybrid architecture put in place by Tango."

"Because of the richness of the IMS architecture, you can offer greater efficiencies, thanks to such things as mobile-to-mobile calling," says Westgarth, "These are enhanced with IMS. IMS is not necessary but it's available and it does make the experience more efficient. We offer FMC services to the enterprise from the carrier for any mobile phone, even a dual-mode phone."

Openness is a Good Thing

NextPoint Networks resulted from the merger of NexTone (News - Alert) Communications, Inc., a software-centric session border controller and session management provider, and Reef Point Systems, Inc., a mobile access universal convergence gateway provider. NextPoint (News - Alert) Networks provides secure and intelligent IP-based connectivity solutions that connect devices to networks, and networks to networks, enabling voice, data, and video sessions to flow, efficiently, securely and reliably. Service providers and enterprises worldwide use NextPoint's IntelliConnect system to manage technical complexities, optimize business economics, and remove partnership hurdles. NextPoint serves wireless, wireline and converged operators and works with the systems integrators and network equipment providers to ensure interoperability and integration with traditional and next-generation platforms.

Aaron Sipper (News - Alert), Director of Field Marketing, says, "We don't play in the UC server or applications environment at all. We play more on the access edge of the network — the user-to-network access side, as well as network-to-network access components on the interconnect side. We normalize how users get onto the network, in particular the following functions: sometimes you look at the applications that operators are going to deploy, and certain things are pre-IMS and certain things are already IMS-capable. So not everything is IMS-capable. Some operators want the flexibility to choose certain apps that may be delivered through a non-IMS mechanism and some are pushed to an IMS system. So having a normalization function in the network is critical, which involves things such as normalizing how you get on the network. Let's say you're coming onto the network off a femtocell or macro network or perhaps you're coming off of a WiFi or WiMAX (News - Alert) network. It shouldn't matter what the network is even though the networks can be protocol-specific, and the security, authorization and authentication is different regarding each model. Fortunately, we can normalize and therefore simplify how users get onto the network."

"We can achieve that today because we're IMS-compliant on our gateways," says Sipper. "We do interworking functionality between the IMS core and the user access component. An example of this is how we work with Alcatel. They OEM our gateway and they basically build a product they all the ABN, or Access Border Node. Alcatel integrates their P-CSCF software directly onto a platform. So suddenly they have control of how users get authorized and authenticated on the network in an IMS fashion, or in a non-IMS fashion. And it provides for applications to be IMS-compliant to the handset or the PC or whatever device they choose."

"The next level of capability set that we're going to introduce involves the integration of the Session Border Controller [SBC] into the whole mix," says Sipper. "It's important to get a hand on how sessions get managed in the network. And again, whether it's a voice or data session, it doesn't matter. Initially, a lot of what moves through the network is voice. But now that the network and systems must do SBC-related functions such as routing, prioritization of session calls, transcoding, and everything that you would associate with our former NexTone technology, we can integrate everything and suddenly what was complex can be made simple for operators, especially when it comes to UC services in the context of IMS and FMC. Suddenly we bought into the aspect of convergence and we have all of the pieces there to really help the normalization functions for session management and controlling how users get on and off the network."

"As far as IMS is concerned, our view is that its still quite early to talk about IMS," says Sipper. "Even though our product line is ready, we realize that many products still don't interoperate with each other. The year 2008 will be a very significant year for getting IMS components to interoperate. In fact, this year, amongst the various types of interop events that are going on, the MSF [MultiService Forum (News - Alert), a global association of service providers, system suppliers and test equipment vendors committed to developing and promoting open-architecture, multiservice Next Generation Networks (News - Alert)] will demonstrate the first intercontinental handset-to-handset call purely through IMS components."

"From a unified communications perspective," says Sipper, "the types of services that are going to be deployed will be specifically geared toward businesses, as opposed to individual users, because operators don't really have all the pieces yet, they can own deployments in a small context, and I think where it will benefit the operator most is in a business sense. But they can't deploy on a wide scale since they're limited in terms of scope and interoperability for the moment.

"As far as FMC is concerned, that's just starting to pick up some steam in terms of its use in the enterprise," says Sipper. "It's interesting. IMS is an overall umbrella framework, but UC is more a business-type solution and FMC is still very much in the lead venture realm. So things aren't quite perfectly aligned yet, in my view. They're all very promising technologies, and when they come together, you'll be able to do some impressive things. However, operators already know that dual-mode phones are going to cause a headache for them, with the biggest headache being something that's the last thing they would ever want to do — giving all of the control over to the enterprise so they can be in charge of how they use their mobile devices. If the mobile operators have a great strategy or solution for capturing traffic on the WiFi leg, however, and maintaining and hosting the services through IMS or UC, then suddenly they're now in control of things and can enhance the technologies as they see fit. That's where the promise comes in: what services and capability sets can be delivered to the enterprise environment, making the services as 'sticky' as possible, thus reducing churn."

"If you look at what's going on in the handset business, the iPhone has demonstrated that handsets are much easier to use, they look and feel more like PCs," says Sipper. "In fact, in December of 2007, 60 percent of all North American web traffic over the mobile networks was generated by iPhones, which only make up 2 percent of the handset market. And now HTC (News - Alert) is making the first mobile device to run Google's Android suite of software, which is pushing a totally open platform that enables anybody, including the enterprise space, to develop custom applications that they can install on their devices. That should be a wakeup call to the network operators. I think the operators should exploit Android (News - Alert) to develop and deliver IMS components in the handset that tie back to and are tightly coupled with the network core, and thus provide value back to the end user in the form of unified communications services."

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