One for All
A seamless service experience achieved with a core network strategy and migration steps using the principle of ‘always best connected’
The success of a service is determined by the users’ experience of it. The variety of devices and access technologies available make it more and more difficult to ensure that this experience is consistent. Only by using a customized migration and development strategy can the operator guarantee their users a seamless service experience.
In the past voice was the driver of developments in the 2G mobile network. The focus on a single service meant that the network and the service were one in the eyes of the customer. With the introduction of 3G technology, and particularly the 3.5G upgrades HSPA and EV-DO, the picture has changed. Now multimedia services such as mobile Internet, multimedia and mobile TV services, to name just a few, can also be offered.
Customers can access the Internet in a lot of different ways. These include the mobile technologies such as 3GPP1 and 3GPP2/CDMA, as well as glass fiber, DSL, cable networks, WLAN and WiMAX. These access methods are very heterogenic. The related harmonization and consolidation efforts for the service environment are still in their infancy.
The spotlight is on the harmonization of core and service aspects
Due to the availability of such a wide range of access technologies the choice of technology is getting less and less relevant for the customer. The services on the other hand are gaining in importance. And the customer wants to reach these services using the access technology which suits them best at any specific time. This may well mean different access technologies at home, when travelling, or in a hotel. As a result the services have to be uncoupled from the access networks.
Despite major investments having been made by the different network operators in recent years they are still far from fulfilling this customer demand. Investments have generally been made in access and transport, the core network and services have however not yet been harmonized. So the customer still has a number of different accounts and has to go through different authorization mechanisms. The results of research which Detecon carried out with the FMCA, and in which 70 percent of FMCA operators and producers participated, are therefore no surprise: simplicity achieved through reduced complexity, greater speed, wireless broadband access within and outside of the home, and digital social networks were identified as being the short term customer trends which will have the largest effects on the market.
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