SK Telecom unveils ‘5G Smart Office’ at press conference
‘One-size-fits-all’ doesn’t fit the mobile network of the future, experts insist
Prysmian secures a project for a turnkey submarine telecom cable system in Chile
Continual and HERE Technologies collaborate to improve connected mobility
Next Generation of Inflight Connectivity Ever Closer as Seamless Air Alliance Announces Major Progress
KT ‘5G Era KT VR/AR Business Direction’ Press Conference
ProLabs presents roadmap to 400G at LINX 103
HUBER+SUHNER joins NGMN Alliance as partner to meet the challenges of the impending 5G future
Fasttrack brings NetFoundry technology to the Philippines
Emtelle Introduces 24 FIBRE Bundel to Double Operators’ Capacity
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China Mobile selects InfiNet Wireless solution to connect remote 4G base-stations to its core network
InfiNet Wireless, the global leader in fixed broadband wireless connectivity, has been selected by China Mobile to overhaul its network used to connect its remote 4G base stations across the Xinjiang province. To help the world’s largest mobile phone operator deliver optimum capacity over long distances, InfiNet Wireless has deployed its industry-leading XG 1000 Point-to-Point (PTP) solution to ensure seamless connectivity between base stations spread across the country. With zero downtime reported to date and no disruptions due to adverse climate changes, the XG 1000 infrastructure has already provided China Mobile with the flexibility to operate multiple services simultaneously, including voice and data transfers across its legacy 2G and 3G networks, as well as its newer 4G platform. Featuring two Gigabit Ethernet ports and an SFP fibre interface as standard, coupled with the support of multiple standard and bespoke data transfer protocols, the selected solution is able to provide major cost savings to China Mobile by eliminating the need for additional converters and third party interfaces. After successfully conducting a number of Proof of Concept trials (PoC's) in various challenging environments, China Mobile worked closely with Xinjiang Yingsheng Information, InfiNet's partner and a key Chinese integrator, to ultimately select the InfiNet Wireless XG 1000 solution due to the solution's greater performance, immunity to radio interferences and very low latency. It has since deployed the XG 1000 across 16 major cities in the Xinjiang province, including its capital, Urumqi, and a number of more rural areas. Future plans are already currently being defined between all parties to integrate the new PTP solution across the entire infrastructure. “The InfiLINK XG 1000 is the most powerful PTP solution available on the wireless market today, and was found to be far superior to competitor's offerings during benchmarking activities undertaken by China Mobile,” said Kamal Mokrani, Global Vice President at InfiNet Wireless. “Specifically designed by our R&D teams to deliver high-capacity performance over long distances in both LOS and NLOS conditions, whilst maintaining the extremely low latency figures, the XG 1000 family was perfect for this project and this is further demonstrated by the service provider ordering even more links from us to plug a major gap in its backhauling network layer. The vast mountainous areas of the Xinjiang province were also an ideal setting for an entirely wireless platform based on our solutions - a satellite-based alternative would simply not have been able to meet China Mobile's requirements, whilst a fibre-based solution would have been extremely expensive to deploy, if at all possible." With its proven best in class spectral efficiency of up to 14bps/Hz, its consistent performance, high processing power and ability to seamlessly deliver connectivity across distances of over 100 km, the InfiLINK XG 1000 offers a high capacity of up to 1Gb/s, is highly reliable and meets and exceeds all mission-critical expectations of even the most demanding service providers. “We are always ready to implement the most complex of solutions and we have continued to prove this through our latest project with InfiNet Wireless. Working very closely with China Mobile, we selected the industry-leading XG 1000 solution after intensive cooperation with InfiNet to find the best solution. Easy to install, configure and manage, the wireless PTP solution was a major technology upgrade from the previously installed microwave technology and was a cut above the competitors who also took part in the PoC phase of the project. We are delighted to be working with InfiNet and to provide a solution to enable China Mobile, offering them the best connectivity they can possibly have access to today. We look forward to working on the future plans to continue expanding and maintain connectivity across China,” added Mr Wang Songtao, General Manager at Xinjiang Yingsheng Information.
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Fixed Wireless is going from Rural to Urban with Netcomm's new indoor 4G LTE Regidential Gateway
NetComm has today launched a new self-install CAT 18 - 4G LTE Residential Gateway that will allow network operators to activate more Fixed Wireless customers faster and more cost-effectively. Fixed Wireless uses the mobile network to offer Fixed Broadband services and can be offered everywhere an operator has coverage, but the cost of supplying and installing an outdoor antenna can make delivering the service uneconomical in some cases. To solve this problem, NetComm has created a new indoor Fixed Wireless CAT 18 - 4G LTE Residential Gateway that is easy for the customer to install and yet still ensures optimal performance in locations with good signal reception. Having both the option to install an indoor or outdoor device will significantly increase the potential market opportunity for operators. In remote locations, where the distance between the base station and end-user equipment is large, outdoor antennas are needed to ensure optimal link budgets. In locations closer to the base station, the indoor device can offer a very effective alternative. “The biggest challenge when rolling out a Fixed Wireless network is making sure the solution can be deployed cost-effectively at scale,” said Els Baert, Director of Marketing and Communications at NetComm. “We have spent a lot of time and effort working towards solutions that don’t only give operators the best performance but can easily be installed. This results in lower activation costs for operators and the ability to get customers connected faster.” The CAT 18 - 4G LTE Residential Gateway uses the same technology as its outdoor counterpart. This results in a reduced number of qualification and testing cycles for the introduction of this new device given that the outdoor version has already been approved in the network. The CAT 18 - 4G LTE Residential Gateway looks like a standard residential gateway, providing Wi-Fi, voice and Ethernet connectivity in the home, but instead of having a wired input, it uses a SIM card to connect to the 4G LTE network. It has a powerful dual-band 11ac Wi-Fi network allowing end-users to connect to multiple Wi-Fi devices, such as tablets and notebooks, simultaneously. The device also features voice capability, making it the ideal all-in-one device for homes and small businesses. With Fixed Wireless looming as a major use case for 5G, NetComm’s new self-install technology could help operators connect a very significant number of new customers to Fixed Wireless services faster and more cost-effectively. “There are millions of customers around the world who still don’t have access to fast, reliable broadband,” says Baert. “By making a Fixed Wireless connection much easier and more cost-effective, we are really opening up the Fixed Wireless market for operators and the arrival of 5G will add further exciting opportunities for these operators in the Fixed Wireless space.” The CAT 18 - 4G LTE Residential Gateway will be ready for testing Q1 2019 and will be presented at the Broadband World Forum in Berlin, October 23 – 25, 2018.
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Vancouver Conference to Deliver Global Perspective on the Future of the 5G Ecosystem
The Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance - which drives and guides the development of all future mobile broadband technology with a focus on 5G – is bringing together the mobile industry to discuss the future of this emerging ecosystem to a global audience at its 7th Industry Conference & Exhibition 2018. Taking place at the JW Marriott Parq in Vancouver, Canada from November 6 – 8, the conference, supported by TELUS, will gather some of the world’s top operator and industry CTO’s to gain a perspective on the future of mobile broadband. The conference also offers a unique networking platform and world premier demonstrations of 5G systems and solutions. Peter Meissner, CEO of NGMN, said: “We are excited to be coming to Canada to further uncover the future of 5G connectivity and what it means for the world’s networks. We have a fantastic line-up of speakers and many opportunities to network with industry professionals. The conference will offer viewpoints, insights and an outlook from Telco, IT and Vertical Industry executives and thought-leaders. This is a must-attend event for anyone interested in the future of 5G. The 2 days are set to be some of the most informative for the industry this year.” The event will begin on the evening of the 6th with a welcome reception hosted by TELUS. The next morning will offer an introductory pre-conference session on highly relevant and challenging topics led by NGMN’s cooperation partners. This will be followed by keynotes, including speeches on the future of 5G standards, value propositions, 5G architecture, field deployments and user experience. Our opening speakers for the following sessions are: 5G Value Proposition: Darren Entwistle, CEO, TELUS 5G Platform Delivery: Stephen Howe, CTO, Bell Canada 5G Applications for Vertical Industries: Andrea Calvi, SVP Technology Evolution & Innovation, TIM Building Blocks for 5G Architecture: Mike Irizzary, EVP&CTO Engineering & Information Services, US Cellular Key 5G Component Security: Ibrahim Gedeon, CTO, TELUS A highlight at the end of the second day will be 5G Tests, Trials and Experiences from First Deployments presented by NGMN Board members.
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Continual and Vodafone collaborate to research and improve mobility experience
Continual, today announced that it has been collaborating for the past two years with Vodafone Ireland (Ireland’s total communications provider), and Vodafone Group (Vodafone’s international division), in a far-reaching project to analyze and improve the experience of subscribers travelling on roads. Vodafone Ireland identified road experience as one of the first areas where optimization solutions using big data and machine learning techniques would yield very noticeable improvements for its customers, and hence became an area of focus for Vodafone Ireland. Vodafone is also actively preparing for the launch of 5G services internationally, and this connected mobility intelligence is helping Vodafone to prove the feasibility of accurately controlling the quality of service for Connected Cars, a pre-requisite towards the journey of Autonomous Cars. The research program has yielded a unique set of predictions relating to the numbers of customers using particular routes in Ireland, along with a measure of the data volumes and call minutes they consume, and accurate quality of experience metrics. The technology has been validated using extensive lab and field testing in Ireland with the backing of Vodafone Group internationally, and has proven the improvement in voice and data performance delivered in the roads where applied. “Vodafone’s success has been built on its forward thinking and willingness to explore technology innovations,” said Max Gasparroni, Head of Networks, Vodafone Ireland. “Collaborating with Continual to exploit cutting-edge technologies such as AI, Big Data, and Machine Learning has enabled us to take a further step forward on the journey towards 5G and associated compelling use cases. In addition, it reinforces our market leadership in delivering high quality communication experience for driving- and passenger-subscribers”. “Vodafone Ireland continuously invests and researches technologies to perfect the experiences of its subscribers under mobility conditions,” said Omer Geva, President of Continual. “We have been able to provide them with a powerful and innovative tool that not only measures network experiences and demonstrates real and dramatic improvements, but also predicts subscriber communication patterns in mobility”. Continual will be presenting highlights of the collaborative research with Vodafone at Telco Data Analytics & AI Europe on 30 October –1 November 2018, and at Telco Data Analytics & AI USA on 28 –29 November in San Francisco.
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Amdocs partners with Fortinet and Versa Networks to deploy pre-integrated, extensible orchestration solution
Amdocs (NASDAQ: DOX), today announced its collaboration with Fortinet, a global leader in broad, integrated and automated cybersecurity solutions, and Versa Networks, innovator of a next-generation software platform that integrates cloud, networking and security services, to launch a new multi-domain, service provider SD-WAN, SDN and NFV orchestration packaged solution. Amdocs NFV orchestration is integrated with Fortinet’s advanced security services, the Fortinet Security Fabric and Versa Networks’ SD-WAN platform to empower service providers to securely offer their business customers the ability to rapidly and efficiently spin up and spin down virtual network functions (VNFs) across customer premises, data centers and the cloud. The solution can be easily integrated with any operations and business support systems (OSS/BSS), enabling service providers to quickly deploy and monetize their managed SD-WAN and security services, while reducing deployment and operational costs. The packaged solution enables service providers to offer their customers Fortinet’s full range of advanced security services and deliver comprehensive threat protection by leveraging the capabilities of the Fortinet Security Fabric, which provides broad visibility, integrated threat detection and automated response to address today’s sophisticated cyberthreats. Fortinet VNF, which can be deployed at customer premises, data centers or public cloud, allows service providers the scalability to offer new revenue-generating services to enterprises of any size, small or large. Service providers can provide a flexible range of advanced security services, including application control, intrusion prevention, anti-virus, web filtering, mobile security, industrial control and sandbox services. The Versa Networks’ Cloud IP platform enables partners and customers to deliver managed SD-WAN and SD-Branch service offerings for the WAN Edge. Versa’s SD-WAN integrates networking with full contextual policy management, analytics and infrastructure automation in a single software platform that can be deployed as a uCPE, bare metal or virtual, on-premises or in the cloud. “Amdocs and its Open Network ecosystem partners, Fortinet and Versa Networks, are transforming service providers from the proprietary hardware networks of today to open software-centric networks that leverage cloud and IT technologies,” said Angela Logothetis, CTO of Amdocs Open Network. “Our SD-WAN solution reduces the time and risk of launching SD-WAN services, and delivers agility, automation and scale in SD-WAN operations, ensuring faster time-to-market, quick monetization, and differentiated customer experience. Together, Amdocs, Fortinet, and Versa Networks enable service providers to enhance their competitive positioning by transforming the business WAN-edge with software-defined networking, advanced security services and end-to-end orchestration, offering scalability and flexibility through managed SD-WAN and value-added services. The solution embraces Amdocs’ microservices architecture and is delivered under best practices such as DevOps and CI/CD for faster and continual enhancements of the services.” “As service providers look to transform their networks to satisfy evolving customer requirements and demand, they’ve also come to expect their vendors to deliver flexibility and to seamlessly work with best-of-breed solutions,” said John Maddison, SVP of products and solutions at Fortinet. “The Fortinet Security Fabric’s open ecosystem and ease of integration with complementary technologies and services helps meet the most demanding customer requirements while providing better security and lower total cost of ownership. We’re pleased to work closely with Amdocs as a Fabric-Ready Partner to offer our joint customers the option to leverage Fortinet’s broad portfolio of advanced security and networking solutions, including Fortinet SD-WAN.” “Refreshing the legacy WAN router estate at scale requires a seamless, automated platform for accelerating multiple deployments of a managed SD-WAN service, while lowering the total cost of ownership, simplifying implementation and enabling enterprise WAN-edge transformation,” said Atchison Frazer, Chief Marketing Officer for Versa Networks. “Our partnership with Amdocs delivers these benefits and more by enabling our service provider partners to provision on the fly, from one console, the full stack of Versa VNF services spanning cloud connectivity to network security to SD-WAN.” Please visit Amdocs stand #A10+A13, at SDN-NFV World Congress 2018, The Hague, Netherlands, from October 8-12.
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InfiNet Wireless to introduce Record-Breaking Spectral Efficiency solution for IoT applications
InfiNet Wireless, the global leader in fixed broadband wireless connectivity, will showcase its record-breaking spectral efficiency solution at GITEX Technology Week, Dubai, UAE to be held from October 14th to 18th. Addressing the increase in Internet of Things (IoT) applications and the rising number of connected devices requiring more reliable bandwidth, InfiNet's brand new 5 GHz Point-to-Point (PTP) solution, the Quanta 5, has been specifically designed to offer the highest spectral efficiency available in today’s wireless marketplace. Overcoming many challenges such as eliminating interference in noisy radio environments and delivering more Mb/s in less radio spectrum, the Quanta 5 is able to operate in sub-zero temperatures as well as extremely hot conditions, ensuring at all times, that the data is transmitted reliably and delivered across large distances. On display on stand Z2-C8, the solution is based on the latest Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology designed entirely by InfiNet's R&D teams and is ideal for the transmission of high-resolution video streams, the provision of Internet and Intranet access, and for backhauling all types of traffics whether generated by a Wi-Fi access point or a service provider's 4G/LTE base station. “We’re already deploying IoT solutions in both industrial and consumic markets worldwide, as well as relieving many bottlenecks caused by a huge surge in demand for fast, high-quality mobile data connectivity. All these new and extra gadgets, devices and applications adopted by consumers and businesses alike are simply of no use to anyone without the behind-the-scenes infrastructure to provide them with the desired connectivity. This is where we come in,” said Kamal Mokrani, Global Vice President at InfiNet Wireless. “Based on valuable feedback we gathered from our customers across the globe, we have identified a niche for a cost-effective and high-capacity PTP solution to operate in licence-exempt frequency bands. People should no longer have to make compromises between data quality, speed and cost. Leveraging our advanced SDR wireless breakthroughs, we are now able to deliver a range of carrier-grade and even quicker to deploy and install solutions, like the Quanta 5.” The Quanta 5 boasts a considerably higher performance compared to previous platforms, making it ideal for any service provider considering the launch of new applications and services aimed at catering for current and future 5G / IoT requirements. An all-in-one package to enable operators of all sizes to quickly deliver high-capacity premium services to their corporate clients, to interconnect their network nodes wherever they are located, or simply to provide internet connectivity to end users, the Quanta 5 can also be deployed as part of a wide area network (WAN) to connect remote locations to the main control and operations centres. Other solutions on display alongside the Quanta 5 will include the latest generation of the field-proven InfiLINK XG product family. Available in new frequency bands, the InfiLINK XG is the ideal solution for unlicensed and licensed backhauling in multiple bands such as 2 GHz and 3 GHz for legacy WiFi/WiMAX replacements, or 4 GHz and 6 GHz which are licensed frequencies depending on specific countries. Building on these capabilities, the InfiLINK XG 1000 doubles the capacity of the previous XG platform up to 1 Gbps. By supporting two non-adjacent 40 MHz channels instead of a single 80 MHz channel, the XG 1000 can provide connectivity over distances in excess of 60 km, delivering unparalleled reliability and scalability to meet both current and future demands. Mokrani added: “With the launch of Quanta 5, and many other innovative solutions which we will be launching very soon, we are pushing the industry to its limits and can now offer an even more unique and stronger value proposition for our customers and partners. My team and I look forward to sharing our expertise and discussing our latest innovations and success stories from around the world with visitors at GITEX.” Visitors of GITEX 2018 can find InfiNet Wireless in Zabeel Hall, Stand Z2-C8
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Broadband World Forum 2018: Zyxel to unveil next-generation broadband solutions
Zyxel Communications will host the worldwide debut of its brand new next-generation solutions at this year’s Broadband World Forum – empowering service providers to meet the demands of security-conscious, WiFi-demanding and bandwidth-hungry customers, while minimizing costs and churn. Zyxel’s new Home Cybersecurity solution enables leading expertise from the security industry to be combined with Zyxel’s Customer Premises Equipment (CPE), providing protection for all connected devices within the home. At the event, Zyxel will demonstrate how the solution uses enhanced features such as safe browsing, anti-tracking, content filtering and parental control protections for homes to eliminate online threats. Also new to Zyxel’s portfolio is its latest 11ax WiFi portfolio – providing 4-8 times faster WiFi speeds – and its AI-powered WiFi analytics solution which eliminates WiFi glitches and increases customer satisfaction by helping service providers find and fix network issues remotely. “As technology continues to advance and more bandwidth-hungry devices and applications find their way into the hands of subscribers, service providers can no longer provide basic connectivity,” said Allen Lin, Vice President at Zyxel Broadband EMEA Business Unit. “With our brand-new offering, we are empowering service providers to go beyond broadband and deliver the secure, exceptional user experience consumers crave, whether they are in the home, a business or on the move.” Designed to deliver true 10 Gigabit services to the home, Zyxel’s new 10G PON end-to-end solution will also be showcased at Broadband World Forum. This overcomes challenges in delivering increased bandwidth services such as 4K streaming, HD TV and Virtual and Augmented Reality. The Optical Network Terminals (ONT) are highly interoperable with third-party Optical Line Terminals (OLT), offering service providers more flexibility in choice. Solidifying its role as an LTE expert, Zyxel will also exhibit its comprehensive portfolio of LTE products for indoors, outdoors and on-the-move. Zyxel will exhibit at D107, Hall 21b, at Broadband World Forum 2018, which takes place at the Messe, Berlin, Germany, from Tuesday, October 23 to Thursday, October 25.
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New Deliverables From NGMN Suggest Principles to Build End-to-End Solutions for A Connected 5G Future
The Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance - which drives and guides the development of all future mobile broadband technology with a focus on 5G - has published its three deliverables on 5G Extreme Requirements entitled “Operators’ views on fundamental trade-offs”, “RAN Solutions”, and “End-to-End considerations”, respectively. Compiled by the Alliance’s 5G Extreme Requirements task force, the papers aim to highlight what implications and trade-offs related to the delivery of new 5G services are relevant for mobile network operators. Ilaria Thibault, task force lead and Principal Researcher at Vodafone commented: “We are very excited to reveal the findings of the outcome of the Extreme Requirements task force, which was to really strike at the heart of what needs to be assessed before the world embarks on advanced 5G services. This work quantifies and analyses the coverage impact of delivering new extreme 5G services (Ultra-reliable and Low-latency – URLLC) for the radio access network with a theoretical analysis, system-level simulations, and field trials. End-to-end deployment guidelines for meeting extreme requirements at a service level are also provided. Among these guidelines, techniques such as path redundancy and new transport-layer protocols are discussed to improve end-to-end latency and reliability. For latency-critical services, interworking between the Non-3GPP processing delays and 3GPP processing delays has been assessed.” CEO of the NGMN Alliance Peter Meissner added: “Our task force has highlighted several key challenges that are crucial to the future of 5G connectivity and how the industry needs to adequately deal with these. Consequently, this year’s NGMN Conference & Exhibition will see us run a special session where operators are set to share results from their 5G tests, trials and first user experience. Our aim is to uncover the new use cases of 5G and how they will be leveraged in the next few years.”
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Interworking Between LTE & LMR Systems is Essential For Critical Communications, Says ETELM
As demand for high speed mobile broadband and smart data services is rapidly increasing, interworking between new broadband services and traditional mission critical radio systems is essential to ensure equivalent or better services are provided in terms of mission critical performance and coverage. Improved data services must be in addition to traditional mission critical voice, not a replacement. Speaking on the opening day of Critical Communications World MENA – the largest Middle East and North Africa event dedicated to critical communications – ETELM’s International Sales Director, Paul Ward, emphasised the importance of merging the benefits of LTE with traditional mission critical technologies, so that the users can be assured of enhanced performance by retaining current mission critical features with additional high speed data services. 3GPP and TCCA are doing some excellent work introducing mission critical standards into LTE, and also providing inter-working standards for gateways to legacy systems. It is essential that full mission critical voice functionality is retained as users start to introduce LTE broadband data services. However, gateways will always have limitations in terms of inter system functionality and support, so ETELM have overcome this by fully integrating it’s TETRA system to the standard LTE Core network – recently we have successfully tested our TETRA basestation at ETSI/3GPP’s plugtests and have demonstrated our TETRA eNodeB connected to different LTE Core networks and to different eNodeB equipment vendors. Our 4GLinked system provides a single network solution for LTE and TETRA. There are many advantages in using both LTE and TETRA technology together, said Ward. “TETRA is widely deployed and has been a proven technology for 20 years with millions of subscribers in operation globally in public safety, transportation, oil & gas, and many other mission critical applications. It works in lower bands so has good coverage and networks cost less to deploy. However, LTE allows much more data bandwidth and opens a new world for applications. Ward also highlighted that traditional UHF technologies have a much wider footprint than LTE – vitally important in terms of availability for emergency services. Coverage improvement techniques commonly used within LTE, such as beam forming, are not suitable for group calls as used in mission critical situations so the costs of providing equivalent coverage to meet these needs would be a serious challenge for any private LTE network. So for many users it is essential to have the possibility of full integration to different technologies to provide more cost efficient, wide area coverage in less populated areas in addition to broadband services. He continued: “An integrated solution is a new approach to interconnection. By allowing TETRA and LTE to interwork in a unified way, the integration is not limited to the application layer and for optimum performances and maintainability, base stations from both technologies are connected to a single core and a single database. All the switching intelligence is centralised and both technologies appear at the radio level. In addition, all interfaces such as MCPTT are standardised applications over LTE.” Ward summarised the benefits of this approach, including how it provides financial benefits of one single network, an optimised solution for technical performances, an answer to operational challenges, and is operationally fit for hybrid solutions. He then described the results achieved following deployments of ETELM’s 4GLinked solution, which was designed to integrate TETRA and LTE in a single core, single database solution. “Following our drive to fully integrate broadband and narrowband technologies, ETELM developed our own range of LTE basestations. Our LTE eNodeB and PicoCell are developed for mission critical users and optimised to maximise coverage. Ward summarised how mission critical users can realise an enormous amount of benefits should they adopt an integrated solution as opposed to an interconnected solution. Benefits included “centralised management, improved PTT set-up times, reduced recurring costs, interoperability and compliance, improved network performance compared to multiple networks, unlimited inter-technology communications, extended life of legacy user equipment and network security.”
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The Fast-Paced Communication Needs Of The Rail Industry Require An Integrated Approach To Be Applied, Says ETELM
New LTE mission critical standards, established by 3GPP, are providing a major opportunity for the rail industry to benefit from the latest secure broadband voice and data services, says Nicolas Hauswald, Sales & Marketing Director for ETELM. Speaking on the first day of Innotrans, the largest event in the world dedicated to the rail transport industry, Hauswald explained how LTE provides an exciting opportunity for railway operators to provide a single unified network for operational and maintenance services. This single solution would include passenger information applications, CCTV, traffic management, ticketing and other services. Hauswald described how this will help railway operators to optimize services, reduce infrastructure costs and provide new revenue streams. Hauswald said: “It is crucial that communications within the transport sector involve advanced mission critical voice and data services along with the integration of other applications including signalling, dispatching and passenger information. This is where mission critical LTE becomes so important in meeting these communication requirements, as it provides the perfect solution for transport communications as LTE offers higher speed mobile data services and mission critical voice services. “Whilst traditional narrowband services offer a secure network solution for voice and data, the capacity of the data is limited and the integration to high bandwidth services is a challenge for traditional narrowband LMR systems,” he continued. The solution, explained Hauswald, is both broadband and narrowband connecting on a single LTE EPC core. “New LTE standards for mission critical voice, data and video have now been internationally approved, so the timing for mission critical LTE is perfect. LTE is great as it offers a single network solution, allowing integration with advanced broadband data services.” Hauwald described how a single, secure communications backbone, for both trackside and station communications, is a suitable approach for railway systems. LTE allows all systems to be integrated into a single eco-system capable of supporting communications now and in the future, rather than having numerous systems that require individual maintenance and support methodologies. He added: “A new model for railway operators needs to be implemented, this could be a model to provide a private solution with additional consumer services or to outsource the mission critical operational services to a mobile network operator that will benefit from the additional consumer services onboard and in stations.” ETELM developed their 4GLinked, the most advanced hybrid solution based on LTE and TETRA communications services, to meet the communications needs of the transport sector. The solution is based on international standards for transmission networks based on the LTE core. 4GLinked provides seamless communications between both technologies, allowing them to operate over a single, fully distributed network. ETELM is also following the definition of Future Railway Mission Critical Standards (FRMCS). FRMCS is based on LTE and will be an improved, next generation standard after GSM-R. Nicolaus Hauswald of ETELM will be available for interviews at Booth 418, Hall 4.1 at Innotrans on 18 September 2018 in Berlin, Germany.
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InfiNet Wireless makes outdoor broadcast breakthrough in Estonia with ‘pay as you grow’ offering for live events
The screening of live and non-interrupted high-profile events on communal screens in Estonia has been made possible thanks to InfiNet Wireless’ brand new and cost-effective wireless infrastructure for STV. STV is a telecommunication company based in Tallinn and operates in large Estonian cities, delivering advanced broadband services to hotel chains, shipping companies and other enterprises of all sizes. To help with demands for faster connectivity at live events, InfiNet Wireless has deployed a major broadcasting platform, designed mostly on its InfiLINK 2x2 Point-to-Point solutions, to transmit live data streams between Rakvere, in Northern Estonia, and two other nearby towns. The solution deployed was designed in such a way as to mitigate known high levels of interference and deliver high-quality video feeds to a number of remote and strategic locations. STV's customers are now able to upgrade their viewing packages and pay only for their selected services, thanks to the company's ‘pay as you grow’ approach which is designed to cater for ever-changing consumer demands, ultimately avoiding locking them for services they do not necessarily need nor require. Today, STV is able to offer a number of additional revenue-generating services, such as customised video streaming for all types of events as well as video-on-demand. The success of this new wireless platform was once again demonstrated during the FIFA World Cup 2018 Final when STV organized a special broadcast of the match between Croatia and France in the Pae park, Lasnamäe, using the latest InfiNet Wireless technology to deliver live and high definition video streams. This event was broadcast live, with zero downtime, ensuring an enjoyable sporting experience for the hundreds of football fans who gathered to watch the final game of the tournament. "Sports events are essential communal viewing and activity for families and friends, and this project has delivered invaluable outdoor entertainment to Estonia. The new delivery platform we have selected and deployed will provide us with the means to strengthen our presence as a solid and reliable service provider with a clear focus on broadcasting future outdoor events,” said Alexey Belkin, Chief Network Administrator at STV. “Thanks to the reliability and high performance of InfiNet's solutions, we can now avoid interruptions and disruptions that cause headaches to viewers and operators and focus our efforts on meeting and exceeding the demands of our growing customer base.” Along with its well-proven scalability benefits, the InfiLINK 2x2 Point-to-Point (PTP) family of solutions guarantees a throughput of up to 300 Mbps, features the very latest in MIMO technologies (Multiple Input – Multiple Output) and boasts advanced dynamic frequency selection algorithms (known as Instant-DFS) to mitigate radio interference and ensure zero downtime in the delivery of any data or video services. In addition to the PTP units deployed, a number of Qmxb base stations have also been used in the new network, offering STV the latest in beam-steering technology to ensure an error-free solution when operating in unlicensed frequency bands and reaching a capacity of up to 240 Mpbs per sector. The relationship between InfiNet Wireless and STV only started earlier this year when STV faced a number of unforeseen challenges in delivering full customer satisfaction due to increasing demands for its premium services in densely populated areas. The overlay infrastructure deployed by InfiNet Wireless has ensured that STV can indeed continue to deliver all its current as well as new services via its new broadband wireless platform, reliably and without any delay. “The deployment of this new broadcast platform based on our InfiLINK 2x2 family of wireless solutions means that STV is now able to deliver highly reliable broadband connectivity to viewing customers, no matter where they are located in the country,” said Kamal Mokrani, Global VP at InfiNet Wireless. “The overall experience has proved so successful to all parties involved that a number of our latest Qmxb base stations have been subsequently deployed across many hotels in Estonia to keep travelling fans up to date on the progress of sporting events of all types.”
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HomeGrid Forum member devolo launches G.hn-based devolo Magic
HomeGrid Forum’s newest industry member devolo, a leading provider of powerline networking solutions in Europe, will showcase its new ‘devolo Magic’ range of G.hn-based, Gigabit-capable Wi-Fi products at IBC2018 in Amsterdam. devolo’s products – which offer the best of both the Wi-Fi and Powerline worlds – will be displayed as part of fellow HomeGrid Forum member MaxLinear’s presence at IBC2018, which takes place at RAI Amsterdam from 13 to 18 September. The two companies recently partnered for an innovative new line of G.hn powerline products for carriers. They enable a double-digit increase in data rates compared to current technologies and are optimized for very low latency and packet loss to serve demanding applications such as IPTV and online video gaming. Dr. Len Dauphinee, HomeGrid Forum President, commented: “The devolo team are true innovators, focusing on support for high-performance applications including whole-home Wi-Fi and IPTV. G.hn is a highly reliable in-home technology capable of meeting today’s requirements. We are immensely proud to have approved these devices at the HGF and I’d urge anyone attending IBC to visit MaxLinear’s stand to see what this partnership has produced.” The HGF-approved devolo Magic range uses second-generation G.hn chips for the first time. The chips provide a significant increase in performance and improve stability and range. The new devolo Magic adapters can handle line lengths of up to 500 metres, allowing them to easily convert any power socket into a high-speed internet access point. Heiko Harbers, CEO of devolo AG, said: "Using Powerline as the backbone technology offers huge potential as the signal does not get blocked by ceilings or walls. With this new Powerline generation based on G.hn architecture, we are advancing into an entirely new performance dimension.” Currently the fastest Powerline products on the market, it is particularly effective for the use of video applications. Transmission of multiple 4K and up to 8K videos is easier and the products can also deal effortlessly with virtual reality applications and maximum-speed online games that take considerable amounts of data to run. As well as this, cloud-based applications for customers working out of home offices are also more stable and secure. Harbers continued: “All devolo Magic series adapters offer top-level Mesh-Wi-Fi, coming equipped with new and improved functions. ‘Fast Roaming’ ensures all Wi-Fi clients, such as smartphones and tablets, are always connected to the strongest hotspot. This is especially important when people move from room to room with their mobile devices. “Config Sync” allows the router’s Wi-Fi configuration data to be transferred with ease to all access points.” In addition, the devolo Magic series’ new ‘Airtime Fairness’ feature processes the requests of fast Wi-Fi clients at higher priority. This prevents older devices, which may require more time for a download, from creating Wi-Fi bottlenecks. Integrated “Band Steering” ensures all clients are automatically assigned to the best wireless channel and the optimum frequency. devolo Magic 2 WiFi is a high-end model, equipped with two Gigabit LAN ports and fast IEEE 802.11ac Wi-Fi with Mesh functionality. devolo Magic 2 LAN offers one Gigabit port for connecting smart TVs, streaming boxes or gaming consoles to the network with an Ethernet cable. MaxLinear will display the devolo Magic G.hn products as part of its IBC showcase at Stand MS28 in Hall 15. For more information on HomeGrid Forum.
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New report confirms Fixed Wireless Access will widen broadband market, increase competition, drive down costs
The advent of 5G, additional spectrum and advances in network equipment and CPE are transforming the fixed wireless access from a ‘last resort’ broadband option into a viable competitive alternative, according to a new report by Mobile Ecosystem. However, for operators looking to take advantage of the new opportunities to leverage mobile assets, the report – titled The Business Case for Fixed Wireless Access and commissioned by NetComm – also warns that considerations need to be made regarding making sure the service offered can compete with traditional Fixed Broadband services. Providing a detailed analysis of the business case for fixed wireless access in different scenarios, the report highlights there is an opportunity for Fixed Wireless Access in most markets although not all in the same way. There is not one solution that fits all, it claims. “Even with all the spectrum, technology and policy elements coming together to create the opportunity for fixed wireless to become part of the mainstream broadband mix, there is no one-size-fits all solution,” said Mark Lowenstein, Managing Director at Mobile Ecosystem and author of the report. “The business case for FWA varies not only from country to country but literally by city and neighbourhood, with key factors such as the existing fixed broadband situation, the status and cost of fiber-based solutions, population density, topography and available/planned spectrum capacity all coming into play.” Focusing on developed country markets, primarily in the U.S., Canada, Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand, the report compares 5G mmWave and 5G/LTE sub- 6 GHz based options. It also compares the fixed wireless access option to Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) and Fiber-to-the-distribution point (FTTdp) solutions, plotting Capital Expenditure (CapEx), Operating Expenditure (OpEx), Customer Premises Equipment (CPE), and installation variables against key market factors such as density, spectrum breadth and depth, and topography to develop a revenue model. For dense urban markets, the report highlights that mmWave provides a good alternative, especially where there is only one fixed broadband provider and where FTTH is underbuilt or costly to install, such as many cities in the United States. Until recently, wireless could not physically or economically offer a viable alternative to fixed broadband access, but this is about to change, the report concludes. In lower-density urban/dense suburban scenarios, the expected availability of 3.5 GHz spectrum is expected to make fixed wireless access viable in sub-6 GHz spectrum for both 5G and LTE in a number of markets, especially where there is decent density and an operator can achieve 40% or greater penetration of households. The opportunity for fixed wireless access in low density suburban / rural market is more case-by-case, the report continues, and is most compelling where the existing fixed broadband infrastructure is sub-par or lacks a compelling roadmap. “Careful consideration also needs to be taken when it comes to CPE as it is an integral part of the overall solution and needs to ensure the speed, reliability and support required in Fixed Broadband, unlike mobile broadband,” continued Lowenstein. “AT&T in the U.S. and NBN in Australia both provide examples of major operators that have rolled out fixed wireless access in rural areas, while Verizon’s planned launch of fixed wireless access over 5G mmWave spectrum is potentially game-changing and being closely watched by the industry.” “Fixed wireless really is going to be a significant opportunity. Although these are early days, we will see a move to see it become a viable alternative that can benefit even more customers and businesses. We believe that it will increase competition and will start giving consumers more choice everywhere. This is not going to just be limited to rural areas,” said Els Baert, Director of Technology Strategy at NetComm, a leading developer of Fixed Wireless CPE devices. “But the report is spot-on when it says there is not a one-size-fits-all approach – that is exactly why we work closely with operators to develop solutions that meet their needs,” added Baert. “We have more than 10 years’ experience in building Fixed Wireless CPE and have developed a range of best practices to ensure that the solution can compete with traditional fixed broadband services. Through the framework the report provides for operators and other ecosystem players the considerations needed to assess whether FWA provides a viable option for broadband in their geography, market situation, or context, we are confident many operators will see fixed wireless as a significant opportunity as we enter the 5G era.” To read the full report, visit: www.mwca2018.netcommwireless.com The findings of the report will also be discussed in more detail during a Power Hour at Mobile World Congress Americas which takes place at the Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC), in Los Angeles, from Wednesday, September 12 to Friday, September 14. NetComm Wireless and Mobile Ecosystem will host the power hour in Theatre E, Concourse Hall, on Friday, September 14 at 10.30am.
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T-Mobile and Nokia ink $3.5 billion, multi-year 5G network agreement
T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS) and Nokia today announced a landmark $3.5 billion agreement to accelerate the deployment of a nationwide 5G network. Nokia will provide T-Mobile with its complete end-to-end 5G technology, software and services portfolio, assisting the Un-carrier in its efforts to bring its 5G network to market for customers in the critical first years of the 5G cycle. "We are all in on 5G," said Neville Ray, Chief Technology Officer at T-Mobile. "Every dollar we spend is a 5G dollar, and our agreement with Nokia underscores the kind of investment we're making to bring customers a mobile, nationwide 5G network. And together with Sprint, we'll be able to do So. Much. More." As part of the agreement, Nokia will help build T-Mobile's nationwide 5G network with 600 MHz and 28 GHz millimeter wave 5G capabilities compliant with 3GPP 5G New Radio (NR) standards. "Nokia and T-Mobile will advance the large-scale deployment of 5G services throughout the United States," said Ashish Chowdhary, Chief Customer Operations Officer, Nokia. "This is a testament to our companies' strong and productive working relationship, one which has produced several important technological milestones in recent months, and which now allows us to make 5G a commercial reality." 5G promises to enable faster speeds, massive connectivity, decade-long battery life for sensors and super-responsive and reliable networks for customers. This will unleash on-demand virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) experiences, driverless vehicles, medical monitoring, advanced industrial automation services, and so much more - all requiring ubiquitous low latency connectivity. T-Mobile will leverage multiple products across Nokia's end-to-end 5G technology, software and services portfolio, including commercial AirScale radio platforms and cloud-native core, AirFrame hardware, CloudBand software, SON and 5G Acceleration Services. Using 5G, Nokia and T-Mobile will develop, test and launch the next generation of connectivity services that will cover a wide range of industries, including enterprise, smart cities, utilities, transportation, health, manufacturing, retail, agriculture and government agencies.
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How effective is 4G coverage in UK cities?
Competitive network analytics vendor Teragence and telecom research and consultancy firm STL Partners are working together to explore how the data generated by Teragence's Crowdsource 2.0 methodology can be used to help guide telco strategy. The two companies plan to produce a set of charts on a regular basis, giving insights into mobile networks and their usage patterns. The first of these charts depicts a new way of looking at 4G usage in metropolitan areas, and yields some surprising results. Looking at subscribers on the four main MNOs in the UK (Vodafone, EE/BT, O2 and Three) in Birmingham, Leeds and London, the chart compares the aggregate percentage of total connected time that was spent on 4G. Unlike conventional statistics that show 4G coverage by numbers of subscribers reached, these figures are based on the length of time that real users spend connected to 4G while they are within these metropolitan areas. The 'time on technology' analysis for STL Partners was conducted during the first half of 2018, by calculating the percentage of 4G measurements in the total measurement pool in a given city, regardless of the location of those measurements. This means that if, for example, two measurements occurred in the same location, they were treated as two discrete measurements, not a single one. This metric differs from a geographic coverage percentage as it aligns more to where people spend their time, rather than where they might just pass through. Across all three cities, the time spent by Vodafone and EE users on 4G was almost equal, while O2 and Three usage lagged somewhat behind. However, for all four networks the figure was proportionately lower in London than in either Leeds or Birmingham. As intuitively contradictory as this may sound, it does make sense: London probably has near to 100% 4G geographic coverage (i.e. 4G is available in virtually every location), but at the same time the high demand for mobile bandwidth is forcing a significant portion of users to fall back onto 3G capacity. In fact, the Teragence analysis shows that for all operators, prevalence of 3G connectivity is highest in the centre of London, rather than the suburbs. This ties in with a recent report on fixed broadband speeds (https://ig.ft.com/gb-broadband-speed-map/), which highlights that, while high-speed broadband infrastructure is fairly ubiquitous in areas such as London, the actual service is pretty dismal, driven by the high level of demand that is continuously competing for the available bandwdidth.
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CITIC Telecom CPC Boosts European Business Networks with Unique SD-WAN Offering
CITIC Telecom International CPC Limited (“CITIC Telecom CPC”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CITIC Telecom International Holdings Limited, today announced the launch of its SD-WAN solution, branded as “TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid,” across its European network as part of a global solution. Designed to address the needs of today’s distributed enterprises for more flexible, open and cloud-based WAN technologies, TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid is a Software Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) solution that virtualizes the topology of enterprise network infrastructure, integrating multiple access technologies (including private WAN networks, mobile networks, and Internet links) into a single active-active hybrid WAN that can be easily orchestrated, while maintaining excellent Quality of Service (QoS) and network resilience. “Modern enterprises need modern infrastructure,” said James Halberstadt, CITIC Telecom CPC’s European Managing Director. “Legacy fixed WANs cannot efficiently or effectively cope with the digital transformation demands of modern business. Multiple application deployment and operational models, short lead times and challenging Service Level Agreements for mission critical services that are now deployed in private and public cloud require a new hybrid SD-WAN approach.” Amplified Enterprise Agility TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid supports TrueCONNECT™ Premium QoS and is the ideal solution for mission critical and traffic heavy applications, which will automatically be assigned optimal network resources (such as MPLS paths) for a more seamless and responsive end-user experience. Addressing the multi-cloud topologies of modern enterprises, TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid enables elastic cloud-to-cloud interconnectivity, securing all private and public cloud connectivity (for all applications and transport methods) between branch offices, remote sites and larger corporate data centers. By offering breakthrough flexibility, security, efficiency, and management ease, compared to traditionally routed enterprise WAN architecture, TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid helps enterprises achieve hybrid WAN connections, while greatly simplifying enterprise WAN orchestration and administration. It ensures organizations have the agility to swiftly and easily react to market or environment changes, while minimizing time, overhead, complexity and cost. It can also be combined with TrueCONNECT™ Accelerator (Managed WAN Optimization Services) to further increase WAN throughput effectively and economically, with even greater bandwidth utilization and application performance. Easy and Efficient Administration As a “one-stop-shop” managed solution, TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid uses a “Single Box” deployment approach to deliver maximum convenience for CITIC Telecom CPC’s enterprise customers, with each customer site only requiring one network device that is fully managed by CITIC Telecom CPC’s 24x7 professional teams. Customers can easily monitor their WANs via a user-friendly management portal, while CITIC Telecom CPC handles daily maintenance, troubleshooting, and other administrative concerns, freeing up customer IT staff so they can focus on more productive tasks. “TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid truly and literally redefines distributed enterprise infrastructure,” added Mr Halberstadt. “Our professional service teams right across Europe can also customize the solution to fit each customer’s unique business needs. With an increasing number of European Enterprises depending on external providers for mission-critical cloud-based platforms and applications, and anticipated business growth via opportunities stemming from China's One Belt One Road Initiative, I am pleased we can offer this remarkable solution to our European customers so they can readily enjoy the benefits of cutting-edge network virtualization and gain new levels of business agility and cost-effectiveness.”
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ETELM’S Tetra and LTE Base Stations make U.S Breakthrough at Plugtest
ETELM, a leading manufacturer of advanced Mission Critical communications radio infrastructure, has successfully connected its 4GLinked TETRA e-TBS and LTE e-LBS base stations to many other vendors at the second Mission Critical Push-to-Talk (MCPTT) Plugtests. The e-TBS base station, which connects directly to an LTE EPC core via the S1 interface, allowed direct optimized communications between standard 4G LTE subscribers and TETRA subscribers. This Plugtest, the second of its kind, marked the first time that the interoperability of Mission Critical Data (MCDATA) products and services had been tested. “We are thrilled that our TETRA e-TBS and LTE e-LBS base stations performed so well at the MCPTT Plugtests interconnecting with many EPC cores, eMBMS Gateways and MCPTT/MCDATA servers,” said Nicolas Hauswald, Sales & Marketing Director at ETELM. “There are many challenges that have to be overcome when connecting TETRA and LTE, including performance, management, security, maintainability and costs of operation. Our 4GLinked solution takes the users’ requirements as its main ground and drastically reduces the operational costs for users. Today was the first time that the interoperability of MCDATA has been tested, which has provided a great opportunity for ETELM to showcase its overall 4GLinked solution for both TETRA and LTE.” ETELM is a pioneer in the critical communications sector and was the first company to implement an MCPTT solution into a hybrid TETRA/LTE network. During the Plugtest, which was organized by ETSI with the support of TCCA, PSCR, TAMU and the European Commission, ETELM’s base stations allowed Mission Critical services (MCPTT and MCDATA) including individual calls, group calls and SDS to be made between users of different technologies. The 4GLinked system management automatically manages the sessions between 4G and TETRA identities, helping to overcome challenges including interoperability, security and performance. At this Plugtest, ETELM included the connection of its TETRA and LTE base stations to eMBMS services (Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service) which is standardized by 3GPP in order to optimize the point-to-multipoint communications. Interoperability and Mission Critical service harmonization are critical challenges that must be addressed to achieve the successful deployment and operation of Mission Critical communication. ETELM’s 4G Linked solution overcomes traditional issues that are associated with legacy systems and their evolution and association to LTE, by bringing to market a fully interoperable and harmonized Mission Critical communications solution. The 4GLinked solution is now deployed operationally on the field at several customers. For further information, please visit http://www.etelm.fr/
