Blueprint: Network Architecture

Mobile Applications: Killer App vs. Killer Environment

by Patrick Fitzgerald, Sr. Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing

9/17/2008

The profitability and overall success of the smart mobile handset market relies on service provider's ability to offer new, engaging software features. Consumers have shown a willingness to devote more time to wireless devices and technology in general, but mobile service providers have yet to capitalize on this evolving social trend.

To capitalize on high-end mobile consumers, service providers must be able to provide next-generation applications quickly and cost effectively. This delivery process must be a quick one in order to take advantage of marketability during peak sales seasons like Valentine's Day and Christmas. However, the process of assembling, linking, delivery, and then disassembling can quickly become complicated.

High-growth applications will be worth $66bn by 2010, projects an INSIGHT Research report. So with economic incentives in place and IMS architecture readily available, it begs the question. Why has the killer environment taken so long to develop?

The hold up has been with IMS and its inability to provide legacy applications direct access to IMS elements. This means that next-generation IMS deployments are held pending until proven to be gainful business cases. This kink in the IMS armor has caused service providers to recycle existing revenue producing applications and infrastructure to avoid costly and time consuming development.

Most service providers operate on converging networks lacking feature transparency. In order to deploy new applications around this stop gap, service providers are forced to stove-pipe individual applications into the network layer. Application stove pipes create complexity, time-to-market challenges, and resource inefficiencies for the Service Provider. Ultimately they cause feature transparency challenges as the network grows. Service Providers face the ongoing prospect of either re-purposing general purpose network elements or "re-writing" and "re-connecting" each and every application.

The first option and the most prevalent includes re-writing the applications to add appropriate signaling or call control directly into the application to ensure the application behavior remains the same regardless of access network. This requires the application developer to re-write the application to support the evolving network, or the service provider must purchase a new set of applications to support the new network.

The second method to address the evolving network's impact on applications is the use of costly general purpose equipment such as soft switches, signaling gateways and media gateways. This solution provides the necessary rich call control and signaling required to support feature transparency across networks. However, a general purpose solution has a high product cost, complicates the application integration and deployment process, and lacks key features that facilitate the development, deployment, and management of converged applications over multiple networks.

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Fundamentally, both the general purpose and the "re-write" and "re-connect" solutions only compound the non-reusable "stove piping" deployment model and require intense integration work. The proliferation of stovepipes creates numerous management and cost challenges. Today's solutions simply do not address the impact of the evolving network on applications and feature transparency. To avoid continued frustration, next-generation applications must provide smooth behavior network-to-network and remain relevant to future generations of IMS.

Now that we've deemed the traditional solutions inadequate, the question becomes how we integrate new IMS-based services while transitioning the legacy applications. IMS framework calls for SIP-based Application Servers to replace TDM, which presents an opportunity for new migration technology.

The answer lies in the network layer. By deploying a purpose built solution that provides connectivity between new/old applications and network elements, you create a positive business case for IMS migration. This purpose built network element allows for reliable network migration with feature transparency that will remain flexible with continued IMS roll out. Until service providers are able to reuse applications, there will not be financial incentives to fuel a killer environment.

The cost of rewriting or redeploying large-scale applications across Tier 1 networks is estimated to be in excess of $10 million for each new application. Service providers are struggling to find alternatives that leverage existing applications, thereby retaining their customer base and associated revenue streams. Replacing non-IMS applications today to comply with an IP structure makes little sense if no additional revenue will be generated. IMS makes little provision for allowing legacy applications access to IMS elements directly. The net effect is that major IMS roll outs are delayed pending development of positive business cases.

INSIGHT Research found that the cost of connecting an application ranges between $10-$15m per application and deployment time can take as long as 20 months. Inefficiency of development and deployment is being compounded by the trend of asking application developers to also connect applications to service provider networks. This improper use of a developer's talents is like asking a roofer to work on the plumbing of your house.

With revenues from voice declining, competitive differentiation for service providers will depend on delivering high value-added multi-media applications. ASCs will give service providers a reliable, cost-effective, multi-network platform on which it will be possible to rapidly develop and deploy a new generation of multi-media applications in conjunction with legacy applications to create unique service convergence.

Carriers are adding next-generation capabilities to their network because IP services promise to boost revenue even as voice service margins decline. The drivers of IP services growth are tied to the growth in wireline and wireless broadband infrastructure adoption. As service providers get a better grasp on profiting financially from their new services, excitement is growing about how to blend and converge services instead of simply bundling them. With its CAPEX and OPEX cost saving advantages, higher reliability, and more rapid approach to multimedia application development and deployment, ASCs are being given serious consideration by all types of service providers. The ASCs represent a viable approach to achieving higher ARPU today because they provide the ability to route, broker, and deliver the requisite functionality to link application servers and legacy applications at the same time they provide all the necessary application connectivity.

What Service Providers must do is protect the value and innovation potential of their legacy network by ensuring that their services can be offered independent of the underlying networks, and more importantly independent of the vendors enabling those networks. An application vendor who chooses to open up their application for mass consumption has the potential to open that application to new markets. Then service providers can push any potential vendor lock away from the innovation/revenue engine ensuring that their investments in new technologies achieve maximum ROI.

Advanced migration strategies outline a clear business case:

REVENUE Generation

Extends The Reach of existing applications to new networks and enables new NGN applications to reach subscribers on existing networks
Enables new Service Combinations
Enables Service Providers to address Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) opportunities from the Web 2.0 ecosystem
Enhances Service Providers ability to deliver Faster Time to Market

CAPEX/OPEX

Efficient use of existing CAPEX investment via extended application reach
Reduces operational costs by allowing the efficient management of one IMS ready, future proof network element.
Reduces dependency, time, and costs needed by the application vendor to re-write or re-connect as networks converge and evolve.
Accelerates Next Gen transitions by maintaining consistent user experience

The ability of the Service Provider to leverage their existing revenue generating assets while at the same time creating and pushing out new innovative services enables new services to be created from existing services the same way mash-ups are creating new service opportunities on the Internet. This idealistic approach to abstract applications from the network allows new services to be developed on shorter turnaround times, at lower costs, enabling Service Providers to reduce their risk exposure. Combined with pre-NGN/IMS capabilities, it also enables service deployment across different networks with lower associated costs, maximizing the Service Provider's ARPU. As networks evolve into true NGN/IMS, technologies such as the ASC continue to fill an important role by providing backward compatibility and application reach for revenue generation services. These modern capabilities provide the Service Provider with the means to maximize the potential locked in their networks, insulate their legacy investments and prepare to embrace the future.

The promise of IMS architecture can still be realized and is rooted in the ability to drive applications like location-based services on devices like the Nokia N95. It's clear that an efficient business model is required to take advantage of evolving application development -- ultimately taking advantage of new and old applications alike. Avoiding archaic connectivity strategies and embracing migration technology is the key to creating the killer environment.

About the Author

Patrick Fitzgerald is Sr. Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing, at AppTrigger, where he is responsible for strategy, product management, new channel development, and corporate positioning. Prior to joining AppTrigger, he held the position of VP of Global Marketing for Broadband Products at Siemens Communications. Prior to joining Siemens, he was responsible for Product Marketing and Channel Marketing for Efficient Networks, a broadband start-up company that went public in 1999 and was acquired by Siemens Communications. In addition to his work with Siemens and Efficient Networks, Patrick also held sales and marketing positions at Compaq Computers. He holds a BS in Political Science from the University of North Texas.

About AppTrigger

AppTrigger is dynamically changing the telecom application delivery marketplace by empowering its customers to insulate their revenue-producing applications from the challenges of the ever evolving fixed-line, mobile, and IP networks. AppTrigger's Ignite� Application Session Controller provides a purpose built unique combination of media, signaling, call control, and a family of APIs for multi-network, converged application deployments. In an environment of ongoing network evolution, AppTrigger delivers time to market advantages, reduces application deployment costs, and provides feature transparency across disparate networks.

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