Pipeline Publishing, Volume 5, Issue 8

	This Month's Issue:
	What Now? The Future of Mobile Devices

Understanding Service Assurance
in Next-gen Multimedia Networks

By Michel Leber

Competitive pressure is heating up, and mobile operators worldwide are making the move to Internet protocol (IP) networks to bolster their revenues with enhanced services. As voice becomes increasingly commoditized, providers are scrambling to create new service mixes that provide the “always-on,” interactive communications that people have come to expect from the Internet. The demand for mobile multimedia services like mobile Web, gaming, mobile instant messaging, and video-on-demand is driving a profound network transformation as well as a fundamental change in the mobile business model. The new mobile media landscape is also forcing operators to rethink their service assurance strategies.

Changing Networks and Business Models

While it is clear that mobile operators will eventually move to end-to-end IP networks, they are taking a variety of paths to get there. Some are placing their bets on next-generation networks (NGNs) like voice over IP (VoIP). Others are using NGN as a stepping stone to Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS). And a few daring operators are jumping right into IMS technology. But, regardless of the migration strategy, the reality is that hybrid networks – a combination of circuit-switch, NGN and pre-IMS, session initiation protocol (SIP)-based technologies – will coexist well into the foreseeable future. Operators will have to interwork a multitude of technologies, protocols and network resources for many years to come to ensure seamless service delivery.

The shift from voice to the distribution of multimedia content and applications is altering the traditional telecom business model, as well. The lines between the telecommunication and media content industries are blurring. New players like Google (You Tube), eBay (Skype), and social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter, are moving in to claim a stake in the lucrative, converged multi-service market. As a result, business value chains are becoming increasingly complex. Telecom operators must expand their business model to include new players and partners such as content providers, advertisers, and mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). This new value chain creates new arbitration and service level agreement (SLA) requirements.

Complex Service Compositions

IP enables a new universe of media-rich services and applications. Person-to-person, person-to-content and group services expand the realm of subscriber communication. Interworking applications to produce a multimedia experience requires the orchestration of a staggering array of personal access devices with a multitude of access

While it is clear that mobile operators will eventually move to end-to-end IP networks, they are taking a variety of paths to get there.

technologies and network resources. And, coupling those applications with presence- and location-based capabilities compounds the operator’s challenge.

Beyond Basic Monitoring

Deploying a next-gen network is just part of the battle. Operational excellence, a key differentiator in this service/subscriber-focused business model, is equally important to long-term success. Managing complex, converged networks and services poses technical challenges that are non-existent in the circuit-switched world. New protocols, new network elements and the complexity and variety of services can all have a serious impact on service quality. This multi-service converged environment requires a fundamental shift in focus. Operators need to move beyond basic network monitoring and troubleshooting tools to advanced systems capable of overseeing the customer experience, as well as end-to-end network connectivity and service interaction.

New Performance Management Requirements

The transition from predictable, low-bandwidth voice services to advanced, high-bandwidth data applications dramatically heightens the complexity of network management. The hybrid nature of the network requires operators to support a variety of technologies and interconnections between multiple domains and partners. Each new technology introduces new interfaces and protocols. To deliver mixed services, providers have to support a greater number of network elements to blend real-time services such as voice and video with non real-time applications like presence, availability, and user preferences. Providing seamless service delivery and ensuring quality of service (QoS) in this complex environment requires a flexible hybrid monitoring system that provides a

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