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Networks & Infrastructure
C5: BT 21CN Not A Reference Model, Says ECI
Vendor Takes IMS To The MSAN
by Ken Wieland
ECI, an Israel-based supplier of broadband access and optical networks, says it has broken new IMS ground (see IMS On Trial). At the C5 World Forum it is claiming to be the first supplier to integrate IMS elements into a multi-service access node (MSAN).
This represents a radical change from the IMS network model followed by BT 21CN (see Goodbye PSTN, Hello 21CN), arguably the most ambitious and aggressive NGN program in the world.
Within 21CN, the management of IMS is done from a centralized Border Gateway Function. The alternative architectural model that ECI is enabling allows carriers to distribute the control and policy enforcement capabilities between the MSAN and the edge router.
“We’re not saying this [distributed IMS management] is easy but this is what incumbent operators are telling us they want,” says Danny Berko, product manager at ECI. “It’s more cost-effective than the centralized approach and operators are able to manage better their next-generation networks and services.”
ECI says that it has gone down the distributed IMS route in response to requests from major incumbents in Europe, including Telecom Italia, France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom.
“Every NGN deployment is going to be different,” says Laura Howard, ECI’s chief marketing officer. “BT is not a reference network model that all operators are going to follow.”
Howard says that ECI will present figures in the “next few months” to reinforce the business case merits of IMS management at the MSAN level compared with the centralised BGF approach.
ECI was not chosen by BT to supply kit to 21CN and, understandably, plays down the notion that “21CN status” somehow bestows extra kudos that operators will take into account when picking their NGN suppliers.
Brian McCann, ADVA’s chief marketing and strategy officer, takes a rather different view. Early this year, the optical and Ethernet vendor was selected by BT to supply Ethernet network termination equipment (NTE) for 21CN.
“It was a two-year process before we were selected and we see it as a definite springboard for growth,” says McCann.
More Information:
IMS On Trial
Despite All The Hype, IMS Has Yet To Prove Itself As A Revenue Generator
Goodbye PSTN, Hello 21CN
In the biggest project of its kind, BT is now starting to migrate PSTN customers onto its 21st Century Network (21CN)
C5: “Ethernet Not Carrier Class,” Says Telecom Italia
Scalability, Reliability And Manageability Flagged Up As Problem Areas
BT Pioneers NGN "Open Innovation"
Networks Alone Won’t Drive Value, Says CTO
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