Enabling Next Generation IP Services in 2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
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Enabling Next Generation IP Services in
2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
Enabling Next Generation
IP Services in 2.5G and 3G
Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)
Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
WHITE PAPEREnabling Next Generation IP Services in
2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
Abstract: This paper describes the key trends that are driving the mobile communications industry as it
transitions from voice-centric 2G networks to multi-service data oriented 3G networks. We examine the major
challenges facing mobile carriers and take a look at several examples of new service rollouts to see how
carriers are addressing these challenges. We discuss the steps carriers need to take to be successful in the
emerging 3G mobile environment; and we describe how a new software technology, the SIP Application Server,
facilitates this success by allowing carriers to develop and deploy new applications quickly and cost effectively.
To Be Successful Mobile Carriers Need to Boost ARPU, Aiming for the Next Billion – Bringing Internet and
Reduce Churn and Cut Costs Broadband to Mobile with 2.5 and 3G
Few industries market more aggressively than mobile The mobile communications industry today operates in a
service providers to win and keep their customers. From highly competitive, rapidly changing environment that offers
the Sprint PCS guy—out to rid the world of cellular both promising opportunities and looming threats. On the
garble—to 3 UK’s aggressive price promotions and one hand, industry growth has been outstanding, with mobile
Verizon’s “can you hear me now?” campaign, wireless subscribers more than doubling worldwide since 1999.
carriers are actively marketing to businesses and consumers
in an ongoing effort to sell more voice minutes for less MOBILE SUBSCRIBERS EXCEEDED 1 BILLION IN 2002
money. This strategy has been successful in signing new SURPASSING WIRELINE FOR THE FIRST TIME
subscribers and growing overall voice traffic but it fails to
1400
address the three most pressing challenges facing mobile Mobile
carriers today: 1200
Wireline
• How to boost average revenue per user 1000
• How to reduce customer churn 800
millions
• How to cut the cost of developing, deploying and 600
Internet
managing new services
400
These issues have become more urgent as the mobile
200
communications industry transitions from voice-centric
2nd generation (2G) networks to multi-service data 0
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
oriented 3rd generation (3G) networks. As this evolution Source: International Telecommunications Union
progresses carriers are wrestling with key decisions from Figure 1. Worldwide Telecom Subscribers, 1999-2003
what technology and services to deploy and when, to
whether to pursue a standards-based or proprietary In 2002 mobile subscribers surpassed wireline for the first
approach to building networks and services. time exceeding the 1 billion mark, and Nokia is already
Some mobile carriers are pinning their hopes for revenue talking about reaching “the next billion” subscribers
growth, customer retention and cost reduction on 3G before the end of the decade. Moreover, the mobile
networks, which use network resources more efficiently communications industry is poised to dramatically
and enable potentially lucrative rich data services such as broaden its mission by extending Internet and broadband
infotainment, multimedia messaging service (MMS) and access to mobile users with the advent of 2.5 and 3G.
videophone. Other carriers are taking a wait and see On the other hand, mobile growth is slowing worldwide,
approach to 3G while they milk dependable money particularly in mature North American and European
makers such as voice and short message service (SMS). markets where subscriber penetration is nearing saturation.
Still others are experimenting with 2.5G-enabled services Thus reaching “the next billion” hinges increasingly on the
such as picture messaging, mobile web portals and industry’s success in penetrating faster growing emerging
downloadable ring tones that can be deployed today markets. In addition, intensified competition among a
without upgrading to 3G. growing number of mobile carriers is diluting their market
1share. And local number portability, which lets users retain which flavor—WCDMA, 1xEV-DO, 1xEV-DV or
their phone number when swapping carriers, exacerbates a 3xRTT—and whether to wait for the standards-based
churn epidemic that has all but wiped out customer loyalty. service creation environment known as IP Multimedia
Subsystem (IMS) or deploy proprietary services ahead of
MOBILE SUBSCRIBER GROWTH IS SLOWING WORLDWIDE the standard.
Sound overwhelming? It is. And mobile carriers are taking
South America 117%
49% approaches to these issues that are as varied as the
Africa/Mideast
76% questions. In Japan, NTT DoCoMo has rolled out 3G
35%
services such as video messaging, web portals and
Eastern Europe
21%
81% multimedia downloads that overlap the company’s popular
1998-2002
2002-2006
2.5G i-mode offering. In the US, Nextel, Verizon Wireless
72%
Asia Pacific
16% and others are offering value-added voice, text and data
North America
52% services such as push-to-talk, picture messaging, web
9%
browsing and video downloads over their 2.5G networks.
Western Europe 4%
39% SK Telecom and KT Freetel in Korea, and Hutchinson
3G in Europe, have all moved aggressively to 3G and are
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120% 140%
Source: EMC World Cellular Database: GSM Subscribers by Region
offering their customers advanced video conferencing,
Figure 2. Global GSM Subscriber Growth, 1998-2006 streaming video and interactive gaming services.
“Carriers must decide whether to introduce value-added
To overcome these challenges, mobile carriers are trying to services or be a low-cost commodity or wholesale
reel in new customers and hold on to existing ones by provider,” says Terry Young, vice president and principal
offering more voice minutes for less and subsidizing analyst, Telecompetition, Inc., a market research and
mobile phones in exchange for long-term contracts. In consulting company that assesses market opportunities for
Europe and North America carriers are marketing low-cost, public network services. “If they want to be positioned
prepaid plans in another attempt to capture customers. with the end-user, they need to create distinctive services
While these price-focused strategies may boost short-term that help them gain brand equity and market share – the
revenues, they are sapping carriers’ long-term earning keys to profitability.”
potential. Failing to target the 30 percent of subscribers
who account for 70 percent of profits, carriers are enticing PRICE COMPETITION IS DRIVING DOWN REVENUE PER
customers who offer little value to the franchise. MINUTE
$80 $0.60
The result is a situation in which the number of
subscribers is growing, but carrier profits are waning. $70
$0.50
According to a report by Budde Communication, global $60
ARPU more than halved from 1993 to 2000, and the $0.40
$50
Telecom Industry Association (TIA) reports that ARPU
ARPU
fell from $67 to $46 in the US over the same period. $40 $0.30
Rev/Min
While ARPU has since rebounded, the slight gain has $30
been offset by much greater usage. As a result, average $0.20
revenue per minute in the US plunged from 32 cents in $20
$0.10
1998 to 15 cents in 2002, according to the TIA. $10
These trends are creating a challenging environment for $0
1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
$0
mobile service providers, one that forces them to confront Source: CTIA, Merrill Lynch, TIA, Wilkovsky Gruen Assoc.
a series of difficult questions. They must choose whether Figure 3. US ARPU and Average Revenue per Minute
to invest in developing value-added rich data services or
risk becoming low-cost commodity providers. They must
Those carriers who succeed will be rewarded with higher
decide whether to upgrade their networks immediately to
ARPU, reduced churn, and—if they keep their costs in
3G or to buy some time by rolling out new data intensive
line—improved financial results. For those who fail,
services that leverage their existing 2.5G infrastructures.
the consequences may well be dire: intensified price
They must determine which services to introduce and
competition, commoditization, declining voice revenues,
when. If they do commit to 3G, they’ll need to choose
eroding market share and financial distress.
2Enabling Next Generation IP Services in
2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
The Debut of Basic Data Services – Lessons from portals, because they combine personalization with rich
2 and 2.5G content, provide a unique opportunity for carriers to
Basic data services, such as text messaging, debuted on increase stickiness and retain market share.
2G networks in the mid-1990s. Today, these data services
have largely been migrated to 2.5G, the first of the Services that Combine Personalization and Rich Content
Increase Stickiness
always-on packet-switched networks. 2.5G supports the
wireless application protocol (WAP), MMS, SMS, mobile Picture messaging is a popular 2.5G service in Japan, where
games, search and directory services, but at lower data nearly 20 million camera phones have been sold since late
rates and with fewer capabilities than 3G. Some mobile 2000. Vodafone’s Sha-mail, which makes it easy for users to
carriers are also experimenting with more advanced 2.5G- exchange pictures, has enjoyed phenomenal success, rising
enabled services such as picture messaging, mobile web from 1 million users in April 2001 to over 5 million by
portals and downloadable ring tones, either as a precursor March 2002. In the same period data almost doubled as a
to, or a substitute for deploying more robust 3G networks. percentage of ARPU, rising from 8% to 15%. So successful
Today many of these services can be developed and was Sha-mail that analysts point to it as the single most
deployed using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). important factor in J-Phone surpassing KDDI as Japan’s
second largest operator in 2002. NTT DoCoMo responded
DATA ACCOUNTED FOR JUST 9% OF WORLDWIDE MOBILE by introducing its own picture messaging service, i-shot, in
REVENUES IN 2003 June 2002.
Similar multimedia messaging services are now becoming
popular worldwide. According to the Global Mobile
91% Voice Suppliers Association (GSA) there were almost 15 million
2003 Revenues $367.5B
MMS subscribers in 65 countries as of June 2003.
Vodafone Live hoped to reach 8 million MMS users in
2003 and many other operators expected to reach 10%
9% Data
MMS penetration by year’s end.
Source: Telecompetition Worldwide Mobility Report: 2003
Gaming is another application with growing popularity,
Figure 4. Data Share of Total Worldwide Mobile Revenue particularly in Japan and Korea. NTT DoCoMo reports
widespread use of its popular i-mode service for gaming
2.5G networks are serving as test beds for new services and entertainment services in Japan. And in Korea, SK
and applications as well as the operational support systems Telecom’s online portal service, Nate.com, provides a pay-
needed for billing and quality of service in 3G. Carrier per-use feature that allows customers to download games
experience with 2.5G also offers insights into what and play them on their phones or Pocket PCs.
services may interest customers and how much they are
willing to pay for them. Experimentation with advanced Push-to-talk is a much talked-about application that
2.5G-enabled applications is most prevalent in the US, Nextel spearheaded in the US to great success. “Mobile
where spectrum has not been allocated for 3G, and in operators have seen that PTT users generally spend more
Asia, which was an early adopter of 2.5G. money every month and are more loyal than people just
using voice services,” says David Chamberlain of Alloy
Mobile web portals, which aggregate online content Research. Nextel’s Direct Connect offering, for example,
and services for mobile users, have been a successful allows users to instantly reach any other Nextel customer
application in Europe and Asia. NTT DoCoMo's and appeals to the company’s core base of business users.
subscription-based i-mode portal, for example, has The result: Nextel’s $69 ARPU is $10 higher on average
attracted upward of 17 million subscribers since its launch than most US carriers. Recently, Verizon Wireless
in February 1999 and generates an upside of more than introduced its own version of PTT. In addition, Verizon
20 percent on top of DoCoMo's voice revenue. Mobile offers a variety of data services on its CDMA2000 1xRTT
3platform, including picture messaging, downloadable 2003, of which 4.3 million were 3G. Meanwhile Japan
games and ring tones, email, Internet access, etc. reached 2.1 million 3G and 12.3 million 2.5G subscribers
in early 2004.
Rich Data Services – The Brave New World of 3G
ASIA 3G COMMERCIAL DEPLOYMENTS
3G networks are designed to enable rich voice and data
applications—such as multimedia messaging service, Country Carrier Launch
gaming and mobile Internet—that are integrated, Australia Hutchinson 3 Apr 2003
interactive and presence-aware. This means that 3G is Hong Kong Hutchinson 3 Jan 2004
Japan NTT DoCoMo Oct 2001
tailor made for SIP. According to the ITU specification
J-Phone Dec 2002
for 3G, it should support data rates of 144 kbps for KDDI Nov 2003
mobile users, 384 kbps for pedestrians, and 2 Mbps for Korea KT Freetel Aug 2002
fixed applications. SK Telecom Jan 2002
CARRIERS REPORT THAT 3G GENERATES HIGHER ARPU
Korea’s leading mobile carrier, SK Telecom, launched its
$120
3G services in January 2002 and by the end of 2003
$100
reached 1.7 million subscribers. Revenue from 3G
3G ARPU
$96
2.5G ARPU services—including video-on-demand, media-on-demand,
$80 videophone, multimedia messaging, Internet and voice—is
$73
having a measurable impact on overall results. SKT reports
$60
$55 that 3G generates consistently higher ARPU than 2.5G
$40
and since launching 3G the company’s average profit per
$28 user (APPU) grew 20%. 3G has also pushed data revenues
$20 up to 16% of total revenue and reduced churn.
$
NTT DoCoMo SK Telecom
SK TELECOM PERFORMANCE DATA
Source: NTT FOMA & PDC ARPU 3Q 2003, SKT ARPU by Handset Type, Sept. 2003
2002 2003
Figure 5. ARPU for 2.5 and 3G Subscribers, 2003 Mobile Subs (000) 17,220 18,313
Revenue (M) $7,430 $8,192
From wireless Internet 9.7% 15.5%
The first 3G deployments were in Asia, where NTT
Net Income (M) $1,300 $1,672
DoCoMo and J-Phone in Japan, as well as KT Freetel and ARPU $37.8 $38.3
SK Telecom in Korea, launched commercially between APPU $6.3 $7.6
2001 and 2002. In Europe 3G services debuted in half a
dozen countries during 2003. Although it is still early in
the 3G deployment cycle and carriers have limited Japan’s NTT DoCoMo reports that its 3G service,
experience to draw on, a number of observations are FOMA, reached 2 million subscribers in January 2004.
possible. First, in markets where 3G has been available for FOMA offers a variety of rich data services including
some time carriers are reporting higher ARPU and Internet access, video messaging, media-on-demand, audio
reduced churn. and video downloads as well as video conferencing. Like
SKT, DoCoMo reports that 3G ARPU has been higher
Second, in countries that have turned up 3G services so than ARPU for its second generation i-mode service.
far, the emphasis is on video and multimedia offerings
including video downloads, streaming video and video It’s still too early to assess the results from 3G operations
phone, as well as Internet access and gaming. Since 3G is in Europe, where most carriers are either in trials or have
so new there is still insufficient data to assess which of these only recently rolled out services. The key player in Europe
services are most popular. All of the 3G networks online to date is Hutchinson 3, which launched WCDMA
today are pre-IMS, which means that they still lack key networks in the UK, Italy, Austria and Sweden during
capabilities that will add value to 3G services in the future. 2003. Hutchinson’s combined 3G operations (including
Australia) reported 520,000 subscribers worldwide and
In Asia, where carriers have the most experience with 3G, revenues of $32 million during the first half of 2003. In the
the results so far are promising. For example, Korea’s mobile UK, Hutchinson 3 is offering a video-streaming service for
operators, SK Telecom, KT Freetel and LG Telecom reached playing clips of news and music videos, as well as
a combined total of 25 million CDMA2000 subscribers in
4Enabling Next Generation IP Services in
2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
videophone, video messaging and other content and SUCCESSFUL SERVICES ARE CHARACTERIZED BY HIGH
entertainment services. LEVELS OF INTERACTION AND INFORMATION CONTENT
Group
Voice Conference Multi-user Gaming
EUROPE 3G COMMERCIAL DEPLOYMENTS Video Conference
Web Conference
Country Carrier Launch
Austria Hutchinson 3 May 2003
LBS-Integrated with
Mobilkom Apr 2003 Communication
Push-to-Talk
Level of Interaction
Denmark Hutchinson 3 Oct 2003
Picture Messaging
Greece Telestet Jan 2004 SMS
Italy Hutchinson 3 Mar 2003 Person to
Voice Videophone
Person (Early)
Sweden Hutchinson 3 May 2003
UK Hutchinson 3 May 2003
Creating Distinctive Services that Appeal to End Users
Web Portals
Single-user Gaming
As the examples in the previous sections show, mobile Streaming Audio
LBS- media
push
Person to Streaming Video
carriers are pursuing a variety of strategies to manage the Machine
transition from second to third generation networks. Audio Data Audio,
Video, Data
Their objectives, however, are broadly the same. They Information Content
want to build brand equity and market share—the keys to Figure 6. Selected 2.5G and 3G Services
profitability—by creating distinctive services that appeal
to end-users. They hope customers will be willing to pay
In the preceding table we have mapped a selection of
more for some services or that new services will generate
2.5G and 3G services according to the level of interaction
additional traffic and help make up for declining voice
and information content they involve. Experience shows
revenue. They want to increase ARPU, reduce churn and
that the most successful services are characterized by either
cut the cost of running their network. In this section we’ll
high levels of interaction or richness in information
discuss what carriers can do to achieve these goals.
content. “PTT has been successful because it enables near
The first question carriers need to ask is how do you instantaneous one-to-one or one-to-many walkie-talkie
create distinctive high value services that will appeal to style calls that appeal to customer desires to communicate
end users. In an ideal world, carriers would flawlessly and interact. Mobile web portals, by contrast, appeal to
identify customer desires and match services perfectly to customers who enjoy customized access to a variety of
their needs. In the real world, however, customer desires information-rich or entertainment-related data content.” says
are notoriously difficult to predict and new services take Jon Arnold, VoIP Program Director at Frost and Sullivan.
time and money to deploy. So when carriers create new
services they generally have to make an educated bet and By Focusing on Key Aspects of the Customer Experience
hope for the best. Carriers will Improve their Success Rate with New Services
This does not mean, however, that carriers should make The following table summarizes key factors that could
service deployment decisions in a vacuum. As the influence the success of new services. By focusing on these
examples in the previous sections show, there is growing aspects of the customer experience, mobile carriers will
pool of experience with respect to 2.5 and 3G services improve the odds that their new service will succeed.
that carriers can draw on. If we look critically at this
experience we can identify the characteristics of services
that may be successful in the future.
5KEY SUCCESS FACTORS FOR NEW SERVICE CREATION SIP Application Servers bring the distributed, open
Success Factor Description application development Internet model to mobile
Transparency Are the services easy to use? communications – one that maximizes the ability to reuse
Customization Can users tailor services to their needs?
components from one service offering to another using
Interoperability Can users access services anywhere across
open, published APIs. Migrating Internet development
multiple networks? practices to the mobile communications industry enables
Differentiation Do they leverage the unique capabilities of the building of an open standards-based environment that
SIP, such as presence and availability, to allows service providers and applications developers to
create distinctive services?
create and rapidly deploy different SIP-based applications
Pricing Are services priced to encourage usage?
across 2.5G and 3G architectures.
Integration Do they integrate voice, data and video into
sticky bundles? SIP Application Servers are part of the broader standard
Interaction of Services Can users seamlessly multi-task between for Session Initiation Protocol. Modeled after the
voice, data and video services?
Internet’s HTTP (RFC 2068) protocol, SIP is simple to
User Interaction What is the level of interaction between users?
deploy and expand. An IETF specification, SIP lets
Information Content What is the extent of information being
exchanged or received? disparate computers, phones, PDAs and software
communicate with one another. Most importantly, the
signaling protocol is media independent and can support
Using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) to Create New any combination of voice, video, web content, pictures
Services Quickly and Cost Effectively and text. Moreover, SIP is session-based rather than call-
Once carriers have identified promising new services that based, giving carriers the freedom to offer innovative
meet some or all of the criteria described above, the next services that let subscribers add users and media at will.
question is how best to create them. Ideally, carriers would With SIP, a session can start as a two-way voice call and
like to have an application creation environment (ACE) evolve into a multi-party conference where pictures, music
that allows them to develop and introduce new services and video are selectively exchanged among several users.
quickly and cost effectively. That way, if their latest service “SIP is the glue that helps carriers differentiate their
offering doesn’t quite work out as planned, they can afford services,” says Telecompetition’s Terry Young. “SIP gives
to try another one. subscribers the ability to use multiple services easily, which
It also helps if this platform includes unique features of makes them more likely to subscribe to those services.”
SIP such as presence and availability, integration and SIP is also scalable, highly available and extensible. It
interaction of services, and instant messaging that can be enables carriers to extend operations, administration,
mixed and matched to design new services. This allows maintenance and provisioning (OAMP) in one
carriers to combine voice, data and video with presence application to all applications. In addition, while SIP
and availability to create distinctive and appealing new permits presence, IM, file sharing, etc., its ultimate value
service bundles. lies in seamlessly aggregating these applications in more
It also helps if this platform allows carriers to share and powerful offerings, such as information push,
reuse these components from one service offering to conferencing, collaboration and PTT.
another using open, published application programming As a result, mobile carriers using SIP can tailor services
interfaces (APIs). This means carriers avoid having to that satisfy many end-user needs and run on a variety of
recreate previously designed components on discrete devices instead of offering non-integrated services that are
servers to build new services. function and platform specific. By using key features of
And finally, it helps if this platform allows carriers to SIP, mobile carriers can focus on developing the aspects of
market a host of varied yet complementary services to a service that will most enrich the user’s experience.
their customers using a consistent user interface that Most industry watchers agree that the first widely
provides a single face to the customer. This makes it easier deployed SIP-based application will be push-to-talk.
for customers to embrace new service offerings, and it Following the success of Nextel’s proprietary PTT service
improves customer satisfaction and retention. a number of carriers have announced plans for their own
This platform is called the SIP Application Server. versions of PTT.
6Enabling Next Generation IP Services in
2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
TELECOMPETITION PREDICTS THERE WILL BE 400 Ubiquity’s SIP Application Server
MILLION PUSH-TO-TALK SUBSCRIBERS BY 2010
500 Ubiquity Software Corporation develops and markets SIP-
based multimedia software, including our award-winning
India
SIP Application Server (SIP A/S). The SIP A/S is both a
400
China carrier-grade deployment platform and a programmable,
Developed Asia
North America standards-based application creation environment that
300 Developed Europe
allows mobile carriers to develop, roll out and host next-
millions
generation converged communications services.
200
The following diagram shows how Ubiquity’s SIP A/S fits
into the application creation environment for 3G IMS
100
applications. At the heart of the application creation
environment are a powerful set of application building
0
blocks (ABBs) such as presence, session control and instant
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Source: Telecompetition, Inc.
messaging that can be mixed and matched to create new
services and reused across multiple applications. This
Figure 7. Push-to-Talk Subscribers by Region, 2004-2010 dramatically reduces the time and effort needed to build
SIP applications.
PTT is just the first of many promising 2.5 and 3G services
Moving clockwise (to nine o’clock) in the diagram we
that will be based on SIP. Other SIP-based applications that
see that Ubiquity’s SIP A/S provides open programmable
Ubiquity, our partners or our customers are expecting to be
connectors and interfaces into the J2EE and .NET
available soon, include enhanced messaging, enhanced voice
developer communities. This means that any one of the
mail, media push and picture messaging.
millions of developers familiar with Java or .NET will find
it easy to create applications using the SIP A/S software
SUMMARY OF PROMISING SIP-BASED SERVICES
development kit. A key benefit of this standards-based
SIP-based Service Description approach to applications development is that new services
Ad-hoc conferencing Leverages buddy lists to allow users to can be developed and launched quickly.
easily set up group calls
Chat Allows users to talk at the same time they “By using Ubiquity’s SIP Application Server, I can develop
are sharing information and applications an application in radically improved development time,
Enhanced messaging Allows users to escalate from IM to a using defined APIs, and supporting a range of session
voice call
control functionality that was simply not possible in a
Enhanced voice mail Allows callers to leave messages in either
voice, text, or email format circuit switched world,” says Rob Allan, Systems Architect,
Find-me Allows callers to choose to ring an leading IMS trials at Orange, UK’s leading mobile network
alternative number carrier. “This has led to innovative services being created
Location-based services Allows users to specify areas of interest and in days as opposed to the many months that traditional
have relevant information pushed to them circuit switched developments required.”
based on their locale
Picture messaging Leverages buddy lists and IM, allowing This capability comes through the use of the standard
users to instantly share photos
Java-based SIP Servlet “container” architecture—
Push-to-Talk Near instant one-to-one or one-to-many
walkie-talkie style calls analogous to the HTTP Servlet architecture prevalent
Session based transfers Allows users to switch from voice, to in the web services world—as opposed to the legacy
video, to application sharing “silo” architecture found in today’s stove-piped mobile
Infotainment Media push, allows users to designate applications. Thanks to the emergence of SIP Application
information or entertainment they want Servers, mobile carriers are gradually moving to a “drag
and have it pushed to their phone as it
becomes available and drop” application development environment—an
environment that is already prevalent in the world of
7HOW UBIQUITY’S SIP A/S FITS INTO THE APPLICATION CREATION ENVIRONMENT FOR 3G IMS
Figure 8. Ubiquity SIP A/S 3G IMS Application Creation Environment
e-commerce and the Internet. This allows carriers to easily leads to faster development time and lower costs, which
and quickly offer the latest hot application, even if means a faster ROI for carriers.
supporting that application requires adding new
functionality in the network. On the development side, the ability to reuse resources
means that developers can reuse codes and features across
Returning to the diagram, at twelve o’clock we see how many applications, thus increasing efficiencies and
the SIP A/S provides standard interfaces into the 3G IMS reducing costs. The same registration user database and
architecture providing seamless access to Home Subscriber click-to-dial capabilities can be used for both a hosted
Server (HSS), Serving-Call Session Control Function (S- conference service as well as a gaming application. The
CSCF) and other key IMS components. What this means same presence management server can be used to support
for carriers is that services deployed within today’s 2.5G or both simple instant messaging applications as well as more
3G environments can be migrated through towards a complex, premium-priced multimedia messaging services.
complete IMS infrastructure in the future. As a result,
when more advanced IMS-enabled capabilities become The ability to reuse resources benefits another key player in
available, SIP A/S will be prepared to implement them. the mobile communications industry as well: the customer.
By reusing resources, service providers can more easily
At three o’clock we see how the SIP A/S is designed to market a host of varied yet complementary services and
host multiple third party applications such as push-to-talk applications to their customers using a consistent user
over cellular (PoC), infotainment and conferencing from a interface that provides a single face to the customer. This
single unified platform. The SIP A/S also allows carriers to makes it easier for customers to embrace new service
share common resources, such as presence, IM, and offerings and improves customer satisfaction and retention.
session control across multiple services. Reusing resources
8Enabling Next Generation IP Services in
2.5G and 3G Mobile Networks
Leveraging the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Application Server for Rapid Service Creation
Summary – The Outlook for SIP Because SIP is so easy and inexpensive to use, carriers can
afford to test multiple new services without losing their
This paper articulates a strategy for mobile carriers that
shirt if some should fail.
addresses the key challenges facing them today—how to
boost ARPU, reduce churn and cut costs. This strategy In addition, SIP is uniquely qualified to handle the
can be summarized as follows: multimedia environment of 2.5G and 3G networks as well
as enabling some promising SIP-based applications. For
• Mobile carriers need to focus on becoming value-added
example, SIP building blocks like presence, conferencing
service providers or they risk commoditization,
and IM can be combined with voice, data and video to
continued price competition and eroding market share.
create appealing new services such as web conferencing,
• To make up for declining voice revenues, they need to MMS and multi-user interactive gaming services. These
increase data as a percentage of total revenues. services offer the unique possibility of combining high
• To do so, they need to create distinctive and appealing levels of interaction with rich information content and
new services and market them effectively to end users. can be easily created with a SIP Application Server.
Carriers can improve the odds their new services will Ubiquity’s award-winning SIP Application Server (SIP A/S)
succeed by focusing on key aspects of the customer is the ideal platform for mobile carriers to develop, roll out
experience such as ease of use, customization and and host next generation, converged communications
interoperability. Successful services such as SMS, PTT services. The SIP A/S is designed for carrier operating
and mobile web portals, enable a high level of user environments and uses a distributed architecture that
interaction or provide information-rich or entertainment provides the high performance and scalability that carrier
related content. customers require. High availability is a unique feature of
the SIP A/S, which replicates applications on different
Using a new software technology, the SIP Application servers and load balances SIP service requests to ensure that
Server, carriers can develop and deploy new value-added there is no single point of failure in the system. Today
services far more quickly and cost effectively than they Ubiquity’s SIP A/S is deployed in different forms at many
have in the past. This is a revolutionary step because it carriers worldwide. Using Ubiquity’s SIP Application
allows carriers to develop services in days instead of Server, mobile carriers can meet the key challenges facing
months, to host multiple services on a single platform, them today and in the future.
and to reuse components from one service to another.
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