Full Speed Ahead

The telecom network world is an ever-changing market, with constant technology innovations. Mobile network technology has made steady progress and in the past 15 years has seen 2G, 2.5G, 3G, 3G+ and IMS networks all being rapidly deployed. The industry is swiftly moving towards 4G, LTE (Long Term Evolution) and LTE-Advanced, but the UK is seriously lagging behind many countries when introducing 4G mobile broadband technology or LTE.

A report issued last year by digital policy specialist Open Digital revealed that the delay in adopting 4G or LTE is responsible for more than 37m wasted hours of business time each year. The report says: "The best way forward for the UK now to catch up with the rest of the 4G-capable nations is to go ahead with the mobile spectrum auction as soon as possible. “Any delay will not only cost businesses money in wasted time, but will risk a loss of income if we start to lose ground to other nations, because UK businesses aren't able to deploy the mobile technology and working practices to compete with other nations."

All-IP network
When LTE was conceived, the industry envisaged that a total network replacement would create a worldwide All-IP network. Obviously, these changes would never happen overnight, even if the funds for wholesale replacement were available - which in today’s climate they are not.

The reality is that LTE is being deployed in carefully targeted hotspots to address specific needs, and this is one of the main reasons why the overall uptake of LTE has been slow. Consequently, the network architecture becomes more complex, as existing 3G and legacy networks have to be integrated with LTE technology. Unless comprehensive network interworking solutions are available, the integration process could further delay LTE uptake and deployment.

The challenge facing the industry is the cost of the development and deployment of new technologies and services, but change is a must, even in these difficult economic times, where the pressure to reduce costs conflicts with the necessary expense of innovation. Fortunately today, there are a few options to choose from, and leading the way for multi-purpose applications is ATCA (Advanced Telecommunications Comuting Architecture).

ATCA was specifically designed to accommodate mobile network growth. New markets require the most advanced technologies, while maintaining legacy connectivity. More mature markets require upgrades to retain current customers, and attract new ones, all the while keeping costs low by utilising existing plant to its fullest. ATCA offers advantages to both these requirements; innovation and return on investment (ROI).

As telecom networks nowadays move towards 4G/LTE networks, the mobile landscape is defined by three themes. Firstly, Network Service Providers (NSPs) are building mobile broadband access to the internet; we’re not just in the traditional telephony business any more. Secondly, like it or not, a web of networked economies, nationally and globally, is being spun before our very eyes. And thirdly, the smartphone in your pocket isn’t just a phone anymore; it’s a personal computer. The industry is truly at a crossroads, and looks set to create another page in the history of telecom networks.

These themes are based on high-speed, broadband mobile data networks, and how the build-out of 4G/LTE networks must address this dramatic and continuing rise in mobile data traffic. Studies presented at Mobile World Congress 2011 show that subscribers are willing to pay for a better, richer, faster experience. Higher bandwidth and more content are worth the money and if operators build a more robust network, subscribers will pay.

But while the industry concentrates on mobile data and multimedia applications, telecom operators must not forget that smartphone users still want to use a mobile phone to make voice calls, which is still the major contributor to service provider revenues.
How then will network service providers meet the exploding demand for high-quality, video/data-oriented bandwidth and still provide high quality, reliable, voice, roaming, and text services? Voice over LTE/GAN (VoLGA) is dead and Voice over LTE (VoLTE) is only just emerging, plus it is totally reliant upon IMS for voice calls. So what is to be done? Should the industry hold off fielding LTE and forego new data revenue streams to protect the voice business? Not likely.

It seems the mobile spectrum auction is the best and only way for the UK to catch up with the rest of the 4G-capable nations. Any delay will not only cost businesses money in wasted time, but will risk a loss of income if we start to lose ground to other countries because UK businesses are simply not able to deploy the mobile technology and working practices to compete with other forward thinking nations.