|
|
|
|
Dispelling IP VPN Myths
|
|
There has been much talk about the high adoption rates and valuable benefits of IP VPNs, however, there are some common myths, which unless challenged, will prevent IP VPNs from truly empowering CIOs and impacting businesses. Let's debunk the top 5 myths.
|
|
|
|
|
Peer-to-Peer VoIP Services Need to Take a SIP
|
|
Peer-to-Peer VoIP services have proved to be very
popular. Skype claims to have more than 10 million users. However, Skype and
other peer-to-peer providers use proprietary technology to deliver their
services. This results in potential quality of service, security and reliability
issues, as there is no way to manage pure peer-to-peer routing. Additionally,
the ability to improve quality and provide new services through collaboration is
tough to come by in the pure peer-to-peer environment. The limitations of
peer-to-peer can be overcome through the introduction of Session Initiation
Protocol (SIP). Here are some advantages and disadvantages to consider.
|
|
|
|
|
Reflections from SUPERCOMM 2005: Converging on Convergence
|
|
Not surprisingly, at last week's Supercomm trade show in Chicago, convergence emerged as a major theme. Sitting, talking, and converging with one telecom reporter about convergence, he snickered at the buzzword, asserting that convergence has been talked about in this industry for 10-15 years. True. But it takes a while for things to really happen in this industry.
Convergence at SUPERCOMM 2005 was, I confidently claim, real and crystallized. Consider these facts:
|
|
|
|
|
Wi-Fi Will Find its Voice with Cellular Roaming
|
|
Although VoWiFi may seem inevitable to some, the concept has skeptics scratching their heads wondering why anyone would want to use VoWiFi, other than "just because we can". The most obvious answer is that VoWiFi may provide a viable, low cost alternative to traditional cellular networks for roaming.
|
|
|
|
|
Hearing Voices…over IP
|
|
Does the seemingly inevitable ubiquity of broadband truly translate to VoIP gold? And if it does, how do service providers stake a claim? Is it now time for service providers, a group whose primary aim these days is (or should be) to reduce costs while taking advantage of business and consumer demand for new and differentiated services, to seriously consider the move to a unified network to deliver voice and data?
|
|
|
|
|
Efficiencies - for Corporations and Communications Providers - Drive Voice to IP
|
|
The promise of communications infrastructure convergence is becoming reality and the benefits are translating into real gains for corporations. With a solid list of telecommunications technology “firsts” that include leading in the packet arena with Voice over ATM, Voice over Frame, and VoIP, the company is implementing the circuit-to-packet transition in its local networks. Sprint is finding that most customers are looking to migrate in a path similar to the one our corporation has taken: site by site. Here is a migration plan.
|
|
|
|
|
Evolving the Next Generation VoIP Network
|
|
The original telecom model placed the softswitch as the nerve center. Today, session controllers also play a critical role: enabling cost-efficient VoIP peering and delivering advanced traffic-management capabilities end to end across the network. No longer simply an edge play, today's leading session-control technologies must also offer critical telephony functions such as VoIP call routing and billing. This synergistic approach – leveraging both softswitch and session-control technologies – is eliminating traditional scalability and manageability limitations and spurring accelerated adoption of VoIP and other advanced services. Border elements of the future will also have to take on new critical functions that not only allow Advanced IP Communications networks to interconnect but also share network information with one another.
|
|
|
|
|
Steps to Convergence – From Thought to Acceptance
|
|
MPLS has become the launching pad for converging an enterprise's applications on a single IP network. Though many networking professionals understand the inherent benefits of MPLS – reduced operational costs, simplification, enhanced site interoperability, optimized bandwidth – there is still some reluctance to abandon existing voice investments to pursue the MPLS “route” toward convergence.
The most important concerns aren't always so obvious, and very often, they aren't always related directly to technology. It's what lurks beneath the surface, and in the back of every CIO's mind, that present the real challenges.
These factors include user acceptance and adaptation, business impact, project planning, flexibility to change, resource and skills availability in the organization, and partner and vendor relationships. All of these challenges can be addressed if an organization masters the following low-risk stages, from convergence “thought” through convergence “acceptance.”
|
|
|
|
|
Escaping the Network vs. Services Catch-22
|
|
While network upgrades for IP multimedia services may take years, service providers do not need to migrate to IP-based networks before deploying significant new services. Instead, they can move to IP-based service platforms that are able to connect to existing TDM networks as well as to the evolving IP networks. This approach supports new services and new revenue streams immediately while preserving investments during the migration.
In addition, by leveraging web-based service creation tools, IP-based service platforms bring new flexibility, cutting the time and cost of developing and deploying new services. Finally, the early introduction of an IP-based service platform eases the eventual transition to packet network operation by guaranteeing a one-to-one carryover of enhanced service features.
|
|
|
|
|
Unstoppable Circuit-to-Packet Migration Driven by Functionality, Lower Costs
|
|
The dynamics of today's global telecom markets have aligned in such a way to make the continued progress of the migration inexorable. Today, packet-based central office architectures can be deployed at a similar cost model to the traditional TDM network, but with a dramatically different service model for carriers. This new model offers a much greater range of services and scales to support very large user capacity cost effectively.
|
|
|
|
|
Infranets – Migrating Circuit-based Services to Converged Networks
|
|
The next evolution of telecom infrastructure has to deliver the benefits of both private and public network services. It has to support applications with appropriate performance levels – from best effort to highly stringent delay/jitter sensitive traffic. The first step in this evolution is going to be consolidating today's services onto the same network. This article takes a look at the requirements needed to support today's circuit based networks while supporting emerging services, and interworking between those two worlds.
|
|
|
|
|
Convergence is Driving MPLS IP VPNs
|
|
The economic case for converged voice and data has become so strong that most big companies cannot afford the luxury of waiting. When more than a few international sites are involved, convergence can dramatically lower their total cost of ownership (TCO) – that is, their overall costs factoring in investment. An Equant customer based in Georgia, for instance, recently replaced its separate voice and data networks with a single converged MPLS-based IP VPN network and is now saving $29,000 a month just on voice calls between its Brazilian sites and its U.S. headquarters.
|
