magazine - Connect-World

EMEA 2013
Kees van Veenendaal
VP and General Manager of EMEA
MobileIron
Let the Content speak for itself

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All articles are available for download at www.connect-world.com
CONTENTS
Connections
From the Editor-in-Chief’s desk
by Fredric Morris
Imprint
4 6 9 11
14 17 20 22
25
35
46
28
38
Advertisements
Newtec
BT
IBC
SDN & NFV
ITU World 2013
NFC MMS
Broadband World Forum
PTC
Carriers World Asia
Cisco
AT&T
31
40
33
43
2
2
IFC
3
8
13
19
26
29
36
41
IBC
OBC
4G growth
Will 4G bring growth 4
by Didier Levy, Arthur D. Little
Digital content
Content is king 6
by Steve Ellis, CEO and President, Broadcast Pix
Digital broadcasting
Winning digital audience 9
by Solomon Mugera, BBC Africa Editor
Unified communications
Content in a network context 11
by Bill Wignall, President and CEO, Sangoma Technologies
Data traffic
Managing rising data traffic to increase data revenues 14
by Niall Norton, CEO, Openet
Quality content distribution
Content is king - but quality reigns 17
by Hui Zhang, Co-Founder and CEO, Conviva
Telco evolution
Content talks - but what’s the message 20
by George Nikoloudis, COO, OTEGLOBE
Communication service providers
How CSPs can stay competitive 22
by Gordon Rawling, Oracle Communications
Subscriber relations
The value of empowered subscribers 25
by Lucas Skoczkowski, founder and CEO, Redknee
Signaling traffic
Diameter signaling: the good, the bad, and the future 28
by Doug Suriano, CTO, Tekelec
Over-the-top content
Headline: Content for the masses 31
by Zdeněk Gerlický, CTO, nangu.TV
Native language content
Content speaks for itself - in the viewer’s language 33
by Philippe Rouxel, CMO, GlobeCast
Virtual working
The essentials of virtuality 35
by John Berry, Director and Management Consultant, TimelessTime
Secure content distribution
Secure mobile distribution of corporate content 38
by Ian Evans, Managing Director EMEA, AirWatch
Mobile security
Cutting mobile content risks 40
by Kees Van Veenendaal, VP and General Manager of EMEA, MobileIron
Ultra HD TV
Ultra HD TV - real quality 43
by Ian Trow, Senior Director of Emerging Technology and Strategy, Harmonic
Bandwidth
Conquering through copper - delivering content wherever needed 46
by Lee Palmer, Commercial Director, The Kenton Group

CONNECTIONS
Connections
Today access to digital content
is changing the way we work
and live. Social networks are
redefining the way we interact
not only with friends and family,
but the way we interact with
businesses of all sorts and the way
businesses communicate internally.
The resulting surge in digital
traffic is straining networks - both
fixed and wireless and pushing
wireless spectrum to the limits of 3G capacity.
The theme for this issue of Connect-World EMEA is Let the
Content speak for itself.
Fredric Morris,
Editor-in-Chief,
Connect-World
editor@connect-world.com
Migration to 4G will provide enough additional network
capacity for about ten years, but price competition is reducing
the revenues communications service providers (CSPs) need to
build extra capacity. CSP business models are changing; they are
seeking partnerships with content producers, equipment vendors
- indeed the entire universe of technology and content related
specialties - to help them build the next generation contentmoving
environment both for business and personal use.
Every aspect of the content chain - creation, production,
distribution models, networks, devices business models - is
highly likely to change. What will not change is the need to
please the consumer - from the person who just wants a good
show or the company that has a business to run. Empowering
the user - giving them access to the content they want ant to
what they can do - is the key to higher revenues throughout the
content chain.
Content where we want it, on whatever device we want is the
challenge. When content can reach connected cars and tablets
on train or someone walking down the street, when broadband
Internet access is available and affordable for all - then content
can choose where it goes.
Editor-in-Chief: Fredric J. Morris fredric.morris@connect-world.com
Publisher: David Nunes david.nunes@connect-world.com
Editorial Department: editorial@connect-world.com
Connect-World is published under licence
by INFOCOMMS MEDIA LTD
email: info@connect-world.com
URL: www.connect-world.com
Production Department: production@connect-world.com
Sales Department: sales@connect-world.com
Administration Department: admin@connect-world.com
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronical,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from the publishers. The content of this publication is-based
on best knowledge and information available at the time of publication. No responsibility for any injury, death, loss, damage or delay, however
caused, resulting from the use of the material can be accepted by the publishers or others associated with its preparation. The publishers neither
accept responsibility for, nor necessarily agree with, the views expressed by contributors.
ISSN 1748-6998
2 • EMEA 2013

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4G growth
Will 4G bring growth
by Didier Levy, Arthur D. Little
Despite 4G, European telecom operator revenues will continue to decline although somewhat
more slowly. Nevertheless moving to 4G is extremely important for European telecom
operators whose current networks are running out of capacity. 4G LTE can carry 70 per cent
more traffic than the latest 3G technology - enough to meet capacity needs for the next ten
years. To build profits, operators will need new tariff structures, partnerships with content
providers and others, cost reductions, better network utilisation and network sharing.
Didier Levy is the Director of Arthur D. Little’s ‘TIME’ -Telecommunications, IT, Media and Electronics - practice; he has extensive
experience in strategy, marketing & distribution, organization and transformation projects in the TIME sector as well as in other
industrial and services sectors. During many years Mr Levy has assisted players of the telecom and media industry (mobile, fixed,
broadband, pay-TV, vendors) in different parts of the world. In particular, he has led many projects in growth strategy, product design
and pricing, distribution as well as operational performance improvement.
Didier Levy is a graduate of HEC Paris and holds a MSc from the London School of Economics
4G and European revenue recovery
European telecom operators saw revenues
down by 3.8 per cent in 2012. Will 4G
reverse the trend
Although 4G will quickly become essential,
it will not revive the sector’s revenues. In
fact we expect that despite 4G, revenues will
continue to decline in Europe: -1.8 per cent
per year on average by 2016.
The sector could return to growth if LTE
smartphones generated data ARPU of EUR17/
month by 2016e i.e. EUR7 higher than today’s
data ARPU on 3G smartphones - this is a
stretch. Nevertheless this demonstrates the
high importance of a successful move to 4G
for European telecom operators.
For operators, moving to 4G LTE is a nobrainer…
European operators’ 3G networks will soon hit
a ‘capacity wall’ and 4G LTE is a great tool to
surmount this. Moreover 4G LTE is a better
technology than 3G; the amount of traffic that
can be carried on a given amount of spectrum
is almost 70 per cent higher on 4G than it is on
HSPA+, the latest version of 3G.
Based on our traffic and capacity modelling,
we found that thanks to 4G spectrum, operators
will not face capacity issues for an average of
a decade: specifically not before early 2022 for
operators with 800MHz spectrum and some
time in 2020 for those without.
Network demand and capacity for a typical
operator
Source: Arthur D. Little, Exane BNP Paribas
…and we expect customers to adopt 4G
quickly
The US, Japanese and Korean markets where
4G rapidly became successful, benefited
from specific circumstances not shared
by European operators. Still we believe
that 4G will be a commercial success in
Europe. Customers are growing increasingly
frustrated with the 3G experience, a problem
that will only get worse as usage increases.
LTE will bring a better service, with
download speeds three to five times faster
(15-20Mbps versus 4-6Mbps) and response
times five times shorter.
The take-up of LTE should accelerate in the
second half of 2013 and throughout 2014. We
expect 100 per cent of new smartphones and
tablets to be LTE-enabled from 2015, leading
to a 54 per cent penetration of 4G-enabled
devices in the population by 2016.
We do not expect 4G to restore the industry’s
pricing power
We expect 4G to significantly boost mobile
data traffic. Experience in the US, South
Korea and Japan has shown that traffic per
device is higher on 4G than on 3G, driven
by faster speeds, lower latency and datahungrier
devices. In addition, US operators
have shown that ‘shared data’ plans (enabling
a monthly data allowance to be used across
multiple devices) could accelerate the
connection of more devices to networks.
However our analysis shows that the move
to 4G is unlikely to restore pricing power in
the industry. In many cases, price levels keep
declining due to operators offering higher
data plans for the same price. Thus, the
transformation of traffic growth into revenue
growth is not apparent.
4 • EMEA 2013

4G growth
Differentiation is elusive
Unlike Verizon Wireless and AT&T, leading
European mobile operators will struggle to
sustainably differentiate themselves from
challengers for the following reasons:
Spectrum differentiation Challengers’
spectrum assets are far in excess of their
revenue market shares, giving them room
for growth; conversely, leaders have lower
spectrum share than revenue market share and
are hence more constrained.
Cost differentiation Costs will be lower
under 4G than 3G, but the decline will take
time to materialise and all parties will benefit
eventually. With 4G, network costs will
become a smaller part of the total cost base
over the long term; correspondingly, “other
opex” will become an increasingly important
factor to monitor - this is good for the leanest,
not for the largest.
Differentiation from owning fixed
networks Fixed-line networks will be
an increasingly essential part of mobile
networks, with WiFi offload and small
cells being a key part of future architecture.
However, for mobile operators, there are
alternatives to owning fixed-line assets.
Quad-play differentiation It is too early to
say whether customers will prefer to bundle
tablets with smartphones in shared data plans
as is seen in the US or with fixed broadband
in quad-play bundles as in some European
markets. However, mobile-only players
certainly have one less option compared with
their integrated competitors.
So what can operators do
1. Monetising data - new tariff structures
The transformation of traffic growth into
revenue growth depends on how operators
price their mobile data bundles.
We believe that the most attractive structures
are usage caps, which are already common
practice in Europe and shared data plans,
which have developed in the US and are
starting to be seen in Europe e.g.at Telia
Sweden, SFR in France and O2 Ireland.
These shared plans are a great way to
encourage users to connect more devices
to cellular networks - and hence to generate
more traffic revenues over time.
2. Innovating in services through partnerships
Tech giants and content providers such as Apple
and Google are in tight control of the mobile
services ecosystems and most of the value of
additional services such as maps, music, etc. is
unlikely to go to mobile operators.
However, with the move to LTE, we see
several opportunities for mobile operators
to generate value in additional services
- focusing on content heavy applications
(cloud storage, on-demand media, video
conferencing…), with potential benefits either
directly (generating revenues) or indirectly
(stimulating mobile data traffic and/or acting
as customer retention tools).
3. Continuing cost reduction programmes
With a further decline in revenue trends
ahead, reducing costs will remain of
paramount importance. The cost of capacity
is a small component of the overall cost
structure today (c.EUR3/month per customer,
i.e. c.20 per cent of the total cost base) and
will further decline in the coming years,
despite exponential growth in data traffic
(EUR2/month per customer in 2020e).
Being the lowest-cost provider will become
even more important in the future - and
those most likely to benefit from a cost
differentiation in the long term are those
achieving better efficiencies on their ‘other
opex’. For a typical operator, achieving a ten
per cent efficiency gain on the mass of ‘other
opex’is equivalent to achieving a 25-30 per
cent gain on the capacity-related costs in
2013e, and to a c.50 per cent gain in 2020e.
The key opportunities relate to transformation
towards an ‘online centric’ business model
- with opportunities to save on commercial
costs (direct online sales versus indirect
physical distribution), customer management
(self care versus call centres), billing
(e-billing and direct debit), marketing
(simplification of offers; use of targeted
online tools rather than expensive TV
advertising), etc.
4. Optimising network utilisation
Offloading mobile data traffic on fixed-line
networks via WiFi, femtocells, etc. is (and
will increasingly be) a key element of mobile
network strategies, with two key benefits:
Spectrum optimisation: WiFi operates
on a different spectrum to 3G and 4G, so
offloading traffic to WiFi helps enable to
save on spectrum utilization. In our core
scenario, we assume the share of traffic
which offloaded onto WiFi will increase by
25 per cent (of the total traffic) by 2017e. In
this scenario, the operator’s spectrum assets
are modelled to be fully used by 2022. In an
alternative scenario assuming no incremental
offload, the spectrum would become saturated
more than two years earlier.
Cost optimisation: small cell solutions are
significantly cheaper than large outdoor
macro-cell antennas. However, because the
incremental cost of capacity is small anyway,
we estimate that the cost gain enabled by
offloading an additional 25 per cent of traffic
onto WiFi reaches less than one per cent of
the total cost base of a typical operator.
Integrated fixed-mobile players can leverage
the fact that they own both fixed and mobile
network assets. However, mobile operators do
not need to own fixed-line assets themselves
to benefit from this. There are many other
options available today or which will develop
over the coming years.
5. Consolidation or network sharing
European mobile operators have thought
about in-market consolidation for many
years. There would be significant synergies
in terms of costs and potentially of ‘market
repair’. However, this could come under
regulatory scrutiny from the relevant
competition authorities.
Mobile network sharing is an alternative which
can generate savings ranging from ten per cent
to 30 per cent on network capex and opex. The
roll-out of LTE networks is a good opportunity
to look at this as it is easier to generate
synergies when rolling out a new network than
when trying to consolidate two existing ones.
However, financial benefits have to be weighed
against the potential strategic consequences e.g.
enabling smaller players to access scale benefits
that would otherwise be reserved for leading
players or reducing opportunities to create
significant network differentiation.
In conclusion
4G represents a key opportunity for telecom
operators to address customers’ growing
usages and to provide ten years additional
capacity to European mobile networks.
As a result, 4G will quickly spread across
Europe and will experience commercial success.
Will 4G be enough to put telecom operators
on the path of growth again Probably not as
such, but operators will take advantage of this
new technology to innovate in their offerings,
their services and their networks.
For customers, networks and operators, 4G
will quickly become essential. •
EMEA 2013 • 5

Digital content
Content is king
by Steve Ellis, CEO and President, Broadcast Pix
Content may well be king, but producing a king today is easy. They don’t make kings as they
used to. Today, anyone with a laptop, some sophisticated editing and production software,
and two or three consumer camcorders (or just a cellphone and microphone)can produce
professional content. Add an Internet link, and the producer can distribute it worldwide from
home or even a hotel room - all this at a tiny fraction of what it would have cost less than
ten years ago.
Steve Ellis is CEO and President of Broadcast Pix, and a member of the board of directors. Mr Ellis previously he served vice president
of sales and as vice president of emerging markets at Telestream. Mr Ellis began his video career in the Air Force, Merrill Lynch and
AT&T. Mr Ellis was Vice President and General Manager of Editel Boston. Mr Ellis was also a co-founder of SNNY, which sold video
production equipment and was the top reseller for Pinnacle Systems; Pinnacle later hired him as its director of sales for the Americas.
At Vizrt, he served as Vice President of Sales for North American Operations.
Steve Ellis has a communications degree from the State University of New York.
‘Content is king’ is a quote that has been
vastly overused (and thank you, Mr. Gates,
for the original quote), but it does speak
to the world in which we live. However, I
would take this one step further and modify
his quote to say, “Content is king, but
he who controls the content has the keys
to the kingdom.” The rapidly changing
communication and media landscape is
creating an environment where anyone can
create a kingdom. At the start of my career in
the broadcast and production industry, it took
money and power to control content - and
only those with enough resources were given
the opportunity to be ‘kings.’
Granted, there were a few lucky individuals
that were at the right place at the right time,
but I would contend that if you wanted to
launch a radio station or TV station, build a
station group, or launch CNN, you had to be
someone like Ted Turner with the resources
to do so. You also had to commit those
resources (time and money), and be prepared
to sacrifice equal amounts of both. It was also
very important that you were a visionary with
your eye focused on success.
The rules to success were clearly written,
and how you controlled content was fairly
straightforward. You had to have money and
lots of it. Whoever controlled the medium
controlled the content.
Today, there are only two steadfast rules
needed to build a media empire, and it no
longer takes a great deal of money to control
the media and its associated content. You
need to know a few things, such as a basic
understanding of modern communication,
including the Internet and the technology
needed to create content that will be
disseminated on the Internet. And you need a
very good idea; you need to be a visionary.
A great example of this is Justin Bieber, a
young and extremely wealthy entertainer
who got his start when his music video
on YouTube went viral. A simple video
delivered on the Web, a virtually free
medium, launched a career without
the need of millions for marketing and
promotion. Content is still king, but the
rules have changed.
Not long ago, I was interviewed by a Webbased
industry magazine and given the
6 • EMEA 2013

Digital content
opportunity to speak about my company
and our products. My expectation was that a
crew would show up with a tripod, camera,
some type of mic (probably dangling from a
boom or a fish pole), and lighting kit. While
it has been a very long time since I read
Fundamentals of Television Production for
my introductory college video production
course, I remember things that were very
important 30 years ago, including threepoint
lighting, depth of focus, nat sound, and
reaction shots.
Much to my surprise, the interviewer showed
up with a cell phone with a mic plugged into
her phone - no lights, no boom, no crew. This
was a far cry from the numerous videos I
have produced and directed in the past.
The interviewer, who was also the director,
recording engineering, and mic operator,
said, “When I blink my eyes you start
talking, and when I blink again you can
stop.” That was followed by, “I bet you can
do it in one take”, which I did. When the
interview was complete, she ran off with
my one-take performance, bypassed postproduction,
and posted the video on their
Web site within the hour.
Welcome to video production in 2013.
I went back to my hotel room later that day,
found the email with the link to the Web site
for the publication, and watched the video
that seemed to be produced so hastily. Much
to my surprise, it worked. The video did
exactly what was intended: It communicated
a message about my company without all the
trappings and tools I thought were necessary
to deliver content to an audience.
This is a real life experience that
demonstrates that a very simple production
process is only one example of how changes
in technology have changed how we produce
and deliver content and view content.
At one point in my career, I had the
opportunity to oversee the design and
installation of two very extensive video and
film production facilities. The first of these
projects had a construction and equipment
budget of just under $30 million U.S., which
included a live studio with multiple cameras,
a smaller secondary studio, a sound and
audio production suite, three fairly extensive
editing rooms, graphics, and several remote
video production systems. The second was
nearly three times this size, with film-to-tape
transfer, several NLE suites, three times as
many graphic workstations, and more.
The standard definition studio cameras in the
first project were nearly US$80,000 each,
while the 3D graphic systems were close to
US$300,000. Despite the large price tags,
neither production facility would have the
diverse and compressive capabilities of the
tools we use today, which are available at a
fraction of the cost.
Last year, I had the opportunity to
recommend an integrated production
product to someone who has managed
live production for nearly 30 years. He
was tasked with producing a multi-camera
remote live production and delivering the
content to viewers around the world on a
very limited budget.
Years ago, he would have used a remote
production vehicle equipped with cameras
and all the necessary gear. He would
have contacted a company to set up a
communications link, complete with
microwave feed or uplink to a satellite. And
after spending tens of thousands of dollars, he
would pray that it all worked.
Instead, he used an integrated production
software package running on a laptop.
The software included a production switcher,
graphics, audio, streaming capabilities,
and a virtual set - and he plugged in three
consumer grade HD camcorders. For less
than US$4,000 (and the help of an ISP), he
delivered a high quality live production to
locations in several countries.
Fifteen years ago, if you wanted to deliver a
commercial or TV program to be used on the
air in California tomorrow and the production
company was in London, you would put a
production intern on a flight to Los Angeles
with a copy of the videotape. Even five
years ago, I could not have imagined that if I
wanted to share news footage of the tsunami
in Japan or flooding on the New Jersey
shore, I could just upload it to the cloud
and it would instantly appear in someone’s
inbox 8,000 miles away, ready for use on the
evening news.
Television technology (or perhaps I should
call it new media technology) is moving
at such a fast pace that many young
professionals who are just beginning their
careers don’t remember a time when we did
not have file-based workflows. The changes
in our everyday production tools and how
we deliver content is changing how we see
the world. New media delivery systems,
such as YouTube, give everyone equal access
to viewers everywhere; these new media
outlets can create empires and, in some cases,
destroy them.
It has been three decades since Tim Berners-
Lee first postulated the idea of using the
internet as a means to store and retrieve
information. Working as a contractor in
Switzerland, he was the first to believe
that the World Wide Web was a medium
that could connect business, employees,
and others. In the years since, streaming
television services have expanded at an
unimaginable rate, and the giants of the
broadcasting and cable industries have moved
quickly to utilize the medium as well.
Radio stations around the world have also
joined the long list of others who utilize
the Web. In particular, radio stations In
the United Kingdom, France, and Germany
are providing streaming video content to
their customers. For the first time, radio
stations and networks can compete with
traditional television stations and networks
by delivering video and audio to anyone,
anywhere in the world.
Whether you are in the United States,
Europe, or Bangladesh, this concept of
providing low-cost entertainment and
information is a worldwide phenomenon.
The number of content providers is growing,
from large media giants to citizen journalists
who stream video and audio news and
content on the Web.
This is the real world of content and
modern media communication. It is no
longer necessary to have big money,
a TV transmitter, or a cable franchise
to communicate an idea. With today’s
advanced technology, the content can and
will speak for itself.
I imagine that if media and communication
philosopher Marshall McLuhan were alive
today, he would be not be surprised that his
famous quote, “The medium is the message,”
and his prediction that there would be a
World Wide Web (decades before it was even
invented) had become realities. But he might
be very surprised that in our fast paced and
quickly changing world it is no longer about
the medium - it’s about the message. •
EMEA 2013 • 7

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Also, take advantage of a variety of extra special features included as
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a special area of IBC which
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• IBC Production Insight
centred around a professional
standard studio set, attendees
have a host of the latest
production technology to get
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• IBC Workflow Solutions
dedicated to file-based
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attendees with the opportunity to
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journey
• IBC Big Screen
providing the perfect platform
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• Future Zone
a tantalising glimpse into the
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Digital broadcasting
Winning digital audience
by Solomon Mugera, BBC Africa Editor
Nearly 60 per cent of Africa’s one billion people have mobile phones and this is transforming
businesses, driving entrepreneurship, economic growth and the continent’s media landscape.
A shift to mobile phones and other portable digital devices is fast overtaking radio
broadcasting; these devices are becoming the mass medium for information, communication
and social interaction. The challenge for mass media broadcasters is to develop ways to
drive digital audiences to traditional platforms. Trends on social media now drive content
for other platforms.
As BBC Africa Editor, Solomon Mugera oversees the managerial and editorial direction of BBC Africa programmes. Before taking this
position Mr Mugera headed the BBC Swahili service, where he started as a producer and presenter; this multimedia radio and online
operation has staff located in the UK, Burundi, DR Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.
Mr Mugera also worked with various other BBC services and programmes and H pioneered BBC’s live, interactive debate across the
continent Africa, Have Your Say which started as Africa Live! in 2002. Mr Mugera was instrumental in the launch of the first ever BBC
TV bulletin dedicated to Africa and led the launch of a similar programme in Kiswahili for East and Central Africa.
Before joining the BBC, Solomon worked for three years as a television journalist with the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation.
The growth of mobile phone subscription
across Africa is phenomenal. The World
Bank estimates that nearly 60 per cent of
the continent’s one billion people have
a mobile phone, more than in developed
economies such as the United States and
the European Union.
It has become a life tool which, says
the World Bank, is transforming
businesses, driving entrepreneurship
and economic growth.
Mobile phone technology is also changing
the media landscape across Africa. The
UN predicts that the continent will become
predominantly urban within 20 years. Over
that time, 48 per cent of all Africans will be
city dwellers. That number will continue to
rise year on year.
A study in 2012 by the US based Centre
for International Media Assistance (CIMA)
says increased urbanization and growth in
technological development will bring about
significant changes in the way people in
Africa consume particularly digital media.
The report shows that mobile ownership is
higher in cities. Nigeria is a case in point.
In 2012, 85 per cent of residents in big
cities such as Lagos owned a cellphone
compared to 72 per cent of rural residents.
At this rate mobile penetration could reach
or even surpass the 100 per cent mark in
some cities within the next few years.
And it will not be long before mobile
phones and other portable digital devices
inevitably become the mass medium for
information, communication, interaction
and other transactions.
The traditional method of broadcasting
to mass audiences via radio is fast
being overtaken by a shift, particularly
by the young, to mobile-phone and
internet platforms.
Take the case of Kenya where the number
of mobile subscribers has risen to more
than 30 million. However, according to
the Communication Commission of Kenya,
CCK, the rate of growth of one per c ent
EMEA 2013 • 9

Digital broadcasting
seen over much of 2012 shows the market
“appears saturated and tending towards
maturity.” That means nearly all adults in
Kenya, which has a population of about 42
million, has a mobile phone.
The story is the same across most of Africa.
Nigeria’s Communication Commission
reports that mobile-phone subscriptions
have risen to more than 100 million, the
highest on the continent.
Figures from Ghana’s National
Communications Authority show there
are nearly as many mobile phones as the
country’s population of nearly 25 million.
That presents a penetration of 100 per cent.
Research shows that short message service
(SMS) is still the most popular use of
mobile phones in Africa. It facilitates
interactivity, aids financial transactions and
enhances communication. While it provides
a platform for media content such as audio,
video and text, SMS can be a direct and
timely source of feedback and market
intelligence for broadcasters.
The high growth of mobile-phone use
across Africa is also driven by various
factors such as the low cost of handsets and
competition among mobile-phone service
providers, ensuring better price deals.
The introduction of fibre-optic connectivity
has enhanced mobile internet speed.
Competition in the sector is also helping to
keep connectivity costs relatively low.
Recent statistics by the Communication
Commission of Kenya, CCK, show
the number of internet users in Kenya
continues to grow, reaching 16.2 million by
end of 2012. This represents nearly 40 per
cent of the population. The growth trend
cuts across internet penetration and usage
of broadband.
This increase is attributed to growing
demand for internet and data services,
including use of social media especially
among the young. Competitive tariffs
by the mobile operators could also have
contributed to the growth in the number of
internet users.
A recent World Bank survey on mobile
usage in Kenya shows that the majority are
young people between the ages of 18 to
29. This shift creates new opportunities for
existing broadcasters to reach and engage
with audiences. For the BBC, which has
built a strong heritage in Africa thanks
to radio, this shift to digital platforms
poses both a number of opportunities and
challenges. The debate is no longer about
whether or not to tackle them, but how to
do it in a cost-effective way that delivers
reach and impact.
First, there are thousands of mobile
handsets in the market. Their screen sizes
and capabilities vary, from basic to feature
to smart phones. Through an approach
called Responsive Design, the BBC is
redesigning its websites so that web pages
can resize themselves depending on the
type of mobile phone or device with
which a user is accessing the content.
The challenge is how to fit content that is
designed on a desktop computer to various
screen sizes and retain as many elements of
the content as possible.
The African market is still dominated by basic
and feature phones. Less than ten per cent of
mobile phone owners have smartphones.
One of the BBC’s first language service
websites to move to Responsive Design is
BBC Hausa’s bbchausa.com. The service
which boasts a weekly radio audience of
more than 23 million, commands a huge
following on its Facebook site which has
more than 300,000 likes. The BBC Swahili
service, with a radio audience of nearly
20 million, is also performing well on
Facebook with nearly 90,000 likes. The
majority of BBC Hausa and BBC Swahili
digital audience access internet via their
mobile phones rather than the desktop.
The second challenge for broadcasters is
how to strike a balance between the needs
of traditional versus digital audiences.
Research suggests that mobile users
across Africa are rather different to BBC’s
existing radio audiences. Whilst existing
radio audiences tend to be rather older
and predominantly male, African mobile
users tend to be younger and more evenly
balanced between male and female.
Do we need a different editorial proposition
to capture the digital market What sort
of news is this audience looking for and
in what formats Journalists used to one
form of production for radio are having to
adapt their skills to new platforms. How
do broadcasters juggle limited resources to
serve new audiences as well as old ones
As highlighted above, there is a difference
between radio and mobile phone audiences.
Programming content for mobile telephone
is not the same as for radio and TV. They
differ in duration, tone and delivery.
Beyond SMS, the rapid growth of online
social networks such as Facebook,
YouTube, Twitter and blogs offer
broadcasters with potential to drive
digital audiences. It can help increase
reach, engagement and interactivity with
audiences. Social media are also helping
generate content for other platforms. On
several occasions, BBC Hausa service has
learned about events happening in northern
Nigeria through its Facebook page.
Take the case of Kenya’s elections last
March. The polls passed off peacefully,
a stark contrast to what happened
when a dispute over the outcome of the
December 2007 elections degenerated
into violent protests.
While there was calm on the streets,
Kenyans resorted what some in social
media described as digital violence.
BBC Monitoring observed how Kenyans
exchanged offensive ethnic slurs on
Facebook, Twitter, blogs and other
social networks.
BBC Monitoring reported that the state
National Cohesion and Integration
Commission (NCIC) highlighted the
use of ‘coded language’ and ethnic
stereotypes to engage in ‘hate speech’ and
stir ethnic intolerance.
Beyond politics, Kenyans and Nigerians
took to Twitter to taunt each other as
their national teams braced for a World
Cup qualifier match. With hashtag
#SomeoneTellNigeria, Kenyans complained
about how unfairly their team had been
treated by their hosts ahead of the match,
and began to mock Nigerians. The
latter responded in kind with hashtag
#SomeoneTellKenya.
Such trends on social media are a source
of content for other platforms such as
radio, TV and online. The challenge for
mass media broadcasters in particular is
how to develop capacity and technical
ability to drive digital audiences to
traditional platforms. •
10 • EMEA 2013

Unified communications
Content in a network context
by Bill Wignall, President and CEO, Sangoma Technologies
Demand continues to grow for rich and relevant content, but, it is still a challenge to deliver
content reliably wherever it is needed. Today’s communications infrastructure has evolved
over the last 50 years; it is a patchwork of disparate systems that, amazingly, manage to
interconnect. Unified Communications (UC) solutions glue together this collection of
disparate technologies, business processes and infrastructure. Simplified UC deployment
will be the key to getting the most out of the available resources and information.
Bill Wignall serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Sangoma Technologies. A technology industry veteran for over 20 years,
Mr. Wignall has held CEO and executive roles at Truition, Electronics Workbench, Northern Telecom, BNI and Telezone.
Bill Wignall is a Registered Professional Engineer in Ontario and holds a B.A.Sc., Electrical Engineering from the University of Toronto.
He is also a graduate of Stanford University’s Executive Program for Growing Companies.
Many of us in the telecommunications
world place a premium on creating the
latest, fastest, most powerful technology
solutions, applications, and services for
targeting particular markets or solving special
challenges. We tend to pay these innovations
extra attention; perhaps, in some cases, more
than they deserve. This rings especially
true when one considers the mind of the
individual end user who stands to benefit
most from these emerging technologies. The
focus is almost always on the sizzle - the
flash, the productivity, or the entertainment
value consumed by the user. No surprise, it’s
all about the content.
Communications technologies that were
once considered blue-sky thinking,
such as multimedia communications,
collaboration tools in the workplace,
presence management and more, have all
become not just part of our daily lives, but
indispensable tools and capabilities for
living and competing in today’s high-paced
global village. While many are looking
for the flash and entertainment value of
rich and immediate access to content, in
the business world, content is regarded in
a somewhat different, more crucial, light.
Communications information in any format
- voice, video, text, email, and more, as
well as the inputs or outputs of any business
process - are elements of content that can
have a profound impact on the profitability
or even survivability of an organization.
Whether personal or professional content
is the subject, one fact remains clear across
the board: There continues to be an evergrowing
demand across all markets and
walks of life for rich and relevant content.
As the saying goes: Content is king. Content
keeps users and consumers busy, happy, and
productive. Yet, if truth be told, content is
nothing if it cannot be steadily and reliably
delivered to the many endpoints where it
is consumed. So, in this respect, though
content may be considered king, if there are
no dependable, robust, and seamless systems
to ensure its uninterrupted delivery, this king
has no kingdom.
Behind the closed curtain
When we peel back this thin surface veneer
of exciting content, we reveal the frightening
truth that the technologies, networks,
standards, and environments that comprise
our communications infrastructure, one that
has evolved so dramatically and disruptively
these past fifty years, is nothing more than an
underlying patchwork of disparate systems
that somehow, amazingly, still manage to
interconnect - well, most times, though
perhaps not very efficiently. With each new
wave of technological evolution, from the
first digital telephone circuits straight through
to cellular, Voice-over-IP, mobile data, SMS
and text, video chat, and “free” Internet
calling services today, this hunk of legacy
infrastructure continues to have new widgets
and gadgets bolted onto its top, sides, bottom,
and even its inside.
This is not to suggest that nothing has been
retired or taken out of service in all this time,
of course, but it doesn’t take too long or too
hard a look to still discover within today’s
systems the residual working pieces of nearly
everything invented since that first fateful
telecom connection was made so many years
ago - when Alexander Graham Bell first
called Watson the adjacent room. Further
complicating modern communications is the
EMEA 2013 • 11

Unified communications
fact that no single person or business ever sits
still. Today’s organizations seldom operate
from a single monolithic location. Rather,
their offices, systems, and information assets
are distributed throughout the world - whether
down the block, or downtown, or across
cities, countries, and continents. In addition,
they increasingly rely on a workforce that can
prove just as widely distributed, if not more so,
with remote teleworkers conducting business
from wherever they happen to be. With so
much distribution to span today, with so much
territory to be efficiently and cost-effectively
covered - both physically and virtually - it’s
little wonder that the rally cry for the last
decade has been “Unified Communications!”
But again, for content to rule as king in
our circles, systems need to be continually
integrated to ensure its non-stop delivery.
UC to the rescue
Now, an enterprise or their trusted system
integrator can certainly deploy a UC solution
that glues together all of the different parts
and pieces of business processes, systems,
and networks - and many have done so using
media gateways, routers, PBX platforms,
session border controllers, and a broad range
of database engines, dialers, call servers, and
workflow management systems. However,
as time and technology continue to march
on, and businesses continue to focus on
serving customers with the effective use of
content, the skills necessary to knit together
a patchwork of disparate elements are
becoming more difficult to find in any one
organization. For many, overarching solutions
that can take the complexity out of deploying
UC will be the key to getting the most out of
the resources and information available.
Over the years the UC solutions developed
by global UC leaders, has given us the
means to deal with the challenges that
bubble to the surface in nearly every
implementation. Even though these
providers sell technology suites and
comprehensive solutions, there is still an
incredible amount of complexity involved
in deploying and implementing them. The
‘out of the box’ experience does not really
lend itself to a ‘set it and forget it’ mindset.
Almost every installation has unique
requirements and ecosystem tie-ins that
require additional pieces that facilitate the
seamless bridging of old and new systems
and networks. It’s these little chinks in the
armor of the total solution that can present
the biggest challenges - and where vendors
can apply what they have learned to hammer
out these final wrinkles.
To put this argument into tangible
perspective, let’s consider for a moment, as
a working example, the latest innovation
in Unified Communications (UC) from
Microsoft - Microsoft Lync. This is a
powerful suite of business process tools and
features that easily combine communications,
common files and databases, real-time
collaboration with the convenience of desktop
sharing, presence management capabilities,
multiple forms of messaging and media
interactions, as well as business processes
such as those typically used in contact centers
and service bureaus just to rattle off a few
scenarios. Now, that’s a great deal of stuff
to pack onto a single platform - a heck of a
lot of content! - and it’s almost never spread
across easy ‘greenfield’ landscapes. In fact,
in most enterprises, a UC solution such as
Lync will have to seamlessly integrate with
multiple disparate platforms and systems
within the business ecosystem, both old and
new, both proven and emerging, and must
likely make multiple and varied network
connections to the outside world. And yet, of
course, we assume all of this heterogeneity
will merge neatly, unify seamlessly, and work
without a hitch, completely transparent to all
who use it. Because if not, what’s the point
The complexity of such an undertaking
was once considered daunting. Today,
such unification is not only doable, and
preferable, but expected. Working on the
front lines of business communications
we see this dynamic manifesting itself in
multiple ways every day. In fact, according
to reports from the global systems integrator
Ingram Micro, small and medium enterprises
see the efficiencies and flexibility offered by
UC as not just a business preference, but,
indeed, a competitive necessity. However,
without large in-house IT staffs, most of
these companies require a solution that can
bridge not only the server and application
environment in the LAN (and sometimes in
the Cloud), but can also unify the different
outside world connections, including SIP
trunking, Internet access and security,
Public Switched Telephone Network
(PSTN) connectivity, and multiple video and
application sharing features.
The good news for many is that, along
with the crush of technological innovation
across the industry, a focus has emerged
from unique market leaders for bridging
these varied and disparate ecosystems in
simple and efficient ways. The Lync Express
appliance from Sangoma is one such all-inone
solution that covers all of the common
integration pain points that can make UC
and Lync a major headache for smaller
companies that are running lean. This
was precisely the case for Euroline AS, a
distributor of telecommunications equipment
and solutions based in Drammen, Norway.
A small enterprise with locations in Norway
and Denmark, Euroline’s management
team was eager to replace a failing PBX
and gain the advantages of UC through
deploying Lync. However, without the correct
internal expertise, they required a simple
and comprehensive solution. According
to technical manager Rune Jacobsen, who
had no previous experience with Lync, the
configuration was quite intuitive and easy
to navigate, and the change was completed
without disruption to everyday business.
Without consistent delivery, content is
inconsequential
What has driven the need for this and so
many other innovative solutions for unifying
communications in the business world The
same hunger we have in our personal worlds:
an ever-constant demand for delivered
content. Think about it. Every professional in
the business world is also an avid consumer
of content in their personal worlds, and
the same expectations that drive them at
home are those that, either consciously or
unconsciously, are also driving them at work.
There exists a constant demand for immediate
access to rich content, delivered in ubiquitous
and unimpeded ways. Granted, this is easily
said, but not so easily done; however, and
at the risk of invoking yet another cliché,
necessity is the mother of invention.
Thus, in markets around the world,
enterprises of all sizes continue exploring
UC-like solutions such as Lync to satisfy
their content-hungry workforce. They want
that familiar unified frontend that accesses
the myriad of applications, networks, and
technologies residing in the backend -
separate, but connected - to deliver the
seamless and consistent content we all so
commonly crave.
The desire and expectation of the business
owner is not just for content, then, but
for continuously connected content, with
dependable distribution and delivery to all
company-related constituents and consumers
- both internal and external - without the
prohibitive costs and complexities associated
with such connectivity. This is why, for my
money, sure, content may be king… but
delivery will always reign! •
12 • EMEA 2013

A great and very helpful insight into the use cases of SDN
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Data traffic
Managing rising data traffic to increase data revenues
by Niall Norton, CEO, Openet
Within a few years, ten per cent of all mobile connections will use 4G, but will generate
45 per cent of the traffic. With increased data traffic comes additional costs and, as well, a
chance to sell ever more sophisticated services to build revenue. Operators’ are becoming
digital service providers and partners to those who provide digital services and content -
everything from home automation services, to cloud based entertainment to mobile health
products. Telecoms are becoming content delivery networks.
Niall Norton is Openet’s Chief executive officer and is a member of its Board. Mr Norton previously served as Openet’s Chief financial
officer. Prior to joining Openet, Mr Norton served as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary of O2 Ireland, the Irish
operations of O2 Group Telecommunications PLC. Mr Norton also serves as a director of Clever Communications Limited, a mobile
virtual network operator.
Niall Norton holds a B.C. degree in Commerce from University College Dublin and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in Ireland.
I recently read that in 2012 only one per
cent of global mobile connections were on
4G networks, but this one per cent drove 14
per cent of all global mobile data traffic. 4G
has been described as the fastest growing
mobile technology ever and market forecasts
predicting that by 2017 ten per cent of all
global connections will use 4G, but will
generate 45 per cent of the world’s mobile
data traffic. This will help account for the
fact that data usage is continuing to grow,
as is the penetration of mobile devices with
Internet connectivity. According to recent
Cisco 2013 VNI forecast, Western Europe is
second only to North America in the growth
of connected mobile devices with ten per
cent CAGR from 2012 to 2017. Increasingly,
many of these devices will be able to access
LTE networks, with 96 per cent of European
operators surveyed by Informa Telecoms &
Media claiming to have a live or pending
LTE network.
These figures are useful in setting the
context. Just a quick look at the websites
of mobile operators and we can see how
they’ve changed in a few years - they’re
now data centric. In many bundles voice
calls and text messages are unlimited, and
it’s data usage that has caps (by volume,
and increasingly speed). The next step in the
operators’ evolution is moving to become
digital services providers and partners
to those who provide digital services.
Several operators are now providing digital
lifestyle products and services - from
home automation services, to cloud based
entertainment to mobile health products.
Telecom networks have come a long way
from being a phone company and are poised
to be content delivery networks.
At the heart of this evolution - services that
require data.
14 • EMEA 2013

Data traffic
“Innovative operators are managing the mobile data gap, and many have taken steps to
better optimize mobile data traffic. Operators have reported optimized data traffic growth due
to such measures as web and video optimization, reduction in peer-peer traffic, as well as
tight control and enforcement of fair usage policies.”
With this increase in data traffic comes both
opportunities and threats. The network and
infrastructure CapEx costs, as well as the
ongoing OpEx, are significant threats. The
opportunities are there too - the optimal
success formula being how operators
best turn this massive increase in usage
into profit. Many of the most innovative
operators are rolling out LTE networks,
seeing average data usage and revenues
increase and facing the ever increasing data
upsurge with a confidence that this will
enable them to sell many more value based
products and services to their customer base.
And they’re doing so profitably.
The key to success is to manage the mobile
data gap - that is the data revenue per
subscriber is greater than the data traffic
cost (and associated cost to serve) per
subscriber for delivering data. It is not just
a case of managing down network costs to
serve - it’s also clearly about increasing
data enabled revenues.
Innovative operators are managing the
mobile data gap, and many have taken
steps to better optimize mobile data traffic.
Operators have reported optimized data
traffic growth due to such measures as web
and video optimization, reduction in peerpeer
traffic, as well as tight control and
enforcement of fair usage policies. These
controls and traffic management initiatives
are the start of an increased focus on proactive
data traffic management, and we will
continue to see an increase in their range and
implementation over the next few years.
Generating increased revenues on the other
hand requires operators to be able to offer a
more rich and diverse portfolio of ‘mobility
enabled’ solutions to their customers
directly, and indirectly via content partners.
Such services include video, location based
services, content and real time services that
maximize the ever increasing features of
their devices. Revenues also are now being
also generated from partner deals where
mobility is transforming existing business
models, cloud based service offerings and
machine-to-machine business models.
These services are real time typically to
make them valuable.
Cost control to revenue generation
When data usage started to cause some
alarm bells to ring, many operators bought
policy management systems to add controls
to network usage. Typically the first use
case was to implement fair usage policies.
Policy management systems have come
a long way since the early days of fair
usage, and they’re now used by marketing
in product development, as well as by
network. Knowing which traffic to apply
required bandwidth to, and what rules
to apply to different traffic types, from
different customers, all helps in controlling
network cost. For example, deciding to
off-load one traffic type (e.g. video) to wifi
for certain customers, may result in cost
optimization. Using the same policy system
an operator may decide to allocate a higher
QoS to traffic for one content partner for
streaming videos, rather than just best
effort - this example shows how policy is
being used for product development as well
as network optimization.
However, traffic (and associated cost)
optimization is only one part of the equation.
The other is to increase data revenues at a
fast enough rate. This comes from looking at
increasing revenues for the delivery of data
services and also looking at new business
models and revenue sources.
We know that mobile data can increase
revenues and overall APRU, a challenge
many operators face is that revenue uplift
will not be enough to balance the cost
of providing and maintaining networks
to cater for the increases in mobile data
traffic volumes. For many operators this
is still a significant strategic issue, while
others are meeting this challenge and are
now starting to implement controls to
decrease average network costs. The main
challenge is now to consistently increase
data revenues and to examine new revenue
streams, which will ensure that mobile
data revenues exceed costs and provide a
solid foundation in which to roll out new
networks and services.
We’ve seen the move away from all you
can eat plans to tiered data plans, with
tiers typically volume based. This provides
a more equitable approach to pricing and
also attracts low volume customers, for
whom an all you can eat plan doesn’t make
economic sense. The addition of speed
tiers is starting to happen in some countries
(e.g. with LTE networks), and some
operators are now offering off-peak time
based pricing for mobile data to try and
help balance network traffic. Tiered pricing
of data is just the start - operators now
know that they need to deliver data enabled
services that customers will value, and pay
for accordingly.
It doesn’t end in tiers - The emergence of
dynamic services
Increases in sophistication in customer
behaviour are radically changing how
operators develop and market their
services. The immediacy of customers’ data
experience is resulting in the continuous
marketing loop of analyzing behaviour,
developing offers, launching and promoting
services, and back to campaign measurement
at a faster rate than ever before (see Figure
1). Add new services from partners into the
mix and the process becomes more complex
as well as faster. New offer and service
development will become increasingly
dynamic, as operators continue to develop
their pricing and product strategies based on
value, rather than be involved in a race to
the bottom by selling a generic commodity.
As operators look at how to best monetize
these new and enhanced services, they
will need to look at pricing and packaging
flexibility that exists in legacy systems and
ask that it provides the flexibility and fast
time to market that dynamic data driven
services will require.
Dynamic Services enables value based
pricing options to be presented to
appropriate segments in real-time based
on their context and network usage
patterns. This requires real-time visibility
so that customers can see when they are
approaching thresholds and select from the
available options e.g. to purchase additional
data entitlements or accept a slower
network speed.
Dynamic Services are enabled by advanced
PCC (policy and charging controls) systems.
EMEA 2013 • 15

Data traffic
In addition to network access control and
data monetization, PCC systems have access
to real-time customer usage data which can
be harnessed into customer intelligence to
drive service innovation. Recent advances
in PCC have seen the addition of interaction
software which provides a secure channel
to the customer device, which drives realtime
customer interaction. This provides
a step change in the evolution of PCC
systems which speeds up the marketing
continuum illustrated in Figure 1, by proving
real-time offer presentation, interaction,
communications and purchasing.
There are many successful examples of
Dynamic Services being launched by
operators - ranging from data, application,
speed ‘bolt-ons, to shared data plans,
to service passes. What is consistent is
that they need real-time charging and
monetization, and policy is now being
used to help develop products to increase
revenues, as well as control costs. Realtime
charging integrated with policy is now
a given in providing the foundation for data
offers. Operators are now evolving this to
the next stage and delivering engagement
with the policy and charging control
infrastructure direct to subscribers, who can
view and purchase services, and to content
providers, with controlled access to Policy
and Charging functions.
PCC integrated with a real-time
engagement capability is the key to
operators delivering a Dynamic Services
strategy and giving customers the choices
needed to let them spend their money on
the services that they want.
Real-Time - The foundation for data
monetization
In order for operators to increase data
revenues by offering innovative plans
and dynamic services they need to be
supported by systems that provide the realtime
capabilities that customers need when
buying and using data enabled services.
For customers to understand and take
advantage of compelling offers ‘right
now’ they must be able to explore and
purchase ‘right now.’ As operators move
into a world of value based charging with
its shared plans, sponsored services, and
context specific passes, the emergence of
the network as a platform drives us to the
inevitable conclusion - with data and content
we have to do everything, not just some
things, in real-time.
Real-time data is the key to securing a
sustainable place in the value chain for
operators. It enables customers to make
more choices, faster. It allows QoS to be
built in to an infrastructure that now plays
the role of marketing enabler. Operators
can expand real-time PCC direct to the
device, run real-time analytics and by
moving real-time capabilities direct to the
customer deliver real customer choice and
deliver value. This is starting to happen
and operators are now seeing that with the
potential of real time operations in the hands
of the business, anything is possible.•
An insight into the future!
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16 • EMEA 2013
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Quality content distribution
Content is king - but quality reigns
by Hui Zhang, Co-Founder and CEO, Conviva
The TV industry is undergoing a massive transformation in the delivery of content to
consumers. There are new ways to deliver content to meet the demands of ‘TV Everywhere‘
and social entertainment. Over-the-top (OTT) video delivery - delivery via the Internet to
any connected screen - is changing the economics of content delivery. Since the Internet
was not designed for the quality video consumers expect, content providers are challenged
to produce multiple Internet-streaming formats and different ways to advertise for each.
Dr Hui Zhang is a Co-Founder and CEO of Conviva; he brings 20 years of pioneering research experience to the design and construction
of media control platforms. As a professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Dr Zhang has established himself
as a world authority on Internet Quality of Service (QoS), video streaming, network control and Internet architecture.
Dr Zhang’s End System Multicast (ESM) research group at CMU pioneered the overlay multicast architecture and developed the world’s
first peer-to-peer live streaming system. His paper on ESM won the ACM SIGMETRICS Test of Time Award in 2012 for its significant
impact on research, methodology, application and transfer in the last decade. His 4D research project advocated the network control
architecture that separates control logic from data devices, and was the precursor to the Software Defined Networks (SDN) initiative.
The TV industry is undergoing a massive
transformation in the delivery of content to its
consumers. With more devices for watching
content, come new techniques of content
delivery particularly to meet the demands of
TV Everywhere and social entertainment. We
have seen the popular uptake of over-the-top
(OTT) video delivery or delivery through a
facilities-based service provider that can be
sent to any connected consumer electronics
device, regardless of location. Yet, the fact of
the matter is, the internet was not originally
designed for quality online video delivery.
To meet the realisation of TV Everywhere
consumers are coming to expect, content
owners and publishers are faced with
the technicalities of producing multiple
internet-streaming formats use different
types of authentication methods, and also
have different ways of inserting adverts.
Underpinning all this is a far greater
challenge; maintaining high video quality
despite external factors and optimising
delivery without interruption to the end user.
Dr. Zhang suggests that there are a few
hurdles to overcome. Here, he discusses the
challenges with TV Everywhere or rather
‘content everywhere.’
The TV Everywhere paradigm
As imagined, there are a variety of new
business and operational models emerging.
TV Everywhere, an innovative business
model, has been a welcome development
within the Pay TV industry and is gaining
traction. Park Associates research recently
revealed 70 per cent of European PayTV
area are able to access TV Everywhere.
OTT services such as Netflix and Hulu have
made significant strides and have proved
popular with consumers particularly with
attractive operational models alike Video On
Demand (VoD). Its low-cost packages and
access to content has caused broadcasters and
PayTV providers to develop these innovative
models to ensure they do not lose their large
subscriber base.
Added to this, most multiscreen TV content
has until recently been served as VoD. The
simplicity of obtaining the rights to VoD
content has allowed OTT providers to boost
their viewership numbers. Despite this, the
majority of consumers’ time is still spent
watching linear TV in their home and come to
EMEA 2013 • 17

Quality content distribution
“Delivering different types of content to different devices is especially complex when it
comes to processes and distributing across networks. Live content particularly must be
authenticated by subscribers on authorised devices before it can be viewed, adding yet
another level of complication.”
expect this type of content on-the-go. Events
such as The 2012 Olympics and Paralympics
pulled in record number of online viewers
around the world using different devices to
witness history being made. Consumers want
to watch more live content wherever they are
providing an opportunity for broadcasters
and Pay TV providers to take the competitive
advantage and secure its position far ahead of
OTT service providers.
To achieve this however, it is critical that
certain elements are guaranteed. While the
availability of different types of content is
key, equally valuable is the assurance that the
content will be delivered without interruption.
Authentication and content access must be
seamless and guaranteed and every viewer
ideally needs to enjoy the high quality
viewing experience on every size screen and
from every type of network.
Getting to the finish line
In the race to gain this competitive edge,
certain challenges need to be addressed
before TV Everywhere or OTT can really
take off. Firstly making content available
by securing the rights to broader content
distribution such as live content is necessary.
PayTV providers have the benefit of being
able to extend in-home access to live TV
content, without incurring additional charges.
OTT providers must negotiate new contracts
for multiscreen live TV and do not have
the large subscriber base and budgets to
consolidate their case.
Delivering different types of content to
different devices is especially complex when
it comes to processes and distributing across
networks. Live content particularly must be
authenticated by subscribers on authorised
devices before it can be viewed, adding yet
another level of complication.
Coupled with the variety and availability
of new content as well as the processes
involved, consumers are in need of
additional education about the realms of
TV Everywhere services. Knowledge of
what content is available across devices
fragmented and is an area that is in need of
support. What we do know however is that
according to ABI Research, in addition to
the computer, Apple’s iPad continues to be
the most supported TV Everywhere device,
particularly in the US market. In fact, it
suggests that iOS and Android smartphones
and tablets capture the lion’s share of
device support, besting even the popular
game consoles, reinforcing the importance
mobility plays in the future of the TV
Everywhere market.
Quality viewing = opportunities for revenue
Beyond variety, security and availability,
quality remains a significant hurdle to
overcome. We know that the technology is in
place to offer wider reaching TV Everywhere
services. Investments are being made in
varying amounts across different regions
towards building robust infrastructure that
will deliver online video without interruption.
The fact is a huge overhaul and massive
investment is not necessarily the solution.
Software is available today that can pre-empt
the level of optimisation that is necessary
to resolve quality issues and interruptions
to video. By switching between content
delivery networks (CDN) such technology
can ensure that video is delivered optimally
allowing for fast start up times, no buffering
and at a highly sustained bitrate. To achieve
this level of quality however, broadcasters,
publishers and content owners need to be
armed with the right data that illustrates the
Quality of Experience (QoE) for each of
their viewers. This knowledge and insight is
extremely valuable as equipping publishers
with real-time QoE data will mean revenue
opportunities can be leveraged to help grow
audience numbers and consolidate the brand.
Publishers are particularly interested in seeing
how long each viewer watches and how
often each viewer returns to watch more. By
eliminating buffering, avoiding video start-up
failures and improving video bit-rates across
all devices, a typical premium long form
Video On Demand provider, with 10 million
views per month, should increase revenue by
approximately £1.9 million monthly.
The concept of TV Everywhere is exciting
and clearly within reach, yet challenges
remain. TV Everywhere will allow content
owners to extend the relationship they
have with current subscribers onto digital
platforms in a personalised way and
represents expansive opportunities for
revenue. With this in mind, it is important
to note that while variety and availability of
content will determine the success of TV
Everywhere, QoE will determine its purpose
and will reign supreme. •
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18 • EMEA 2013

The world is
greedy for data.
Can you
keep serving
Social networks, video on demand, OTT
apps and smartphones have created a
hunger for bandwidth. Where is the extra
spectrum coming from - and who’s funding
the network upgrade
The 1 conversation that matters
Participate now, visit world2013.itu.int

Telco evolution
Content talks - but what’s the message
by George Nikoloudis, COO, OTEGLOBE
Although most of their market will still come from data and voice services, the telecom
industry needs to reinvent itself in the next ten years. The rise of non-traditional services,
explosive Internet demand, shifts in customer behaviour, an always connected digital world
and innovations brought by OTT will force today’s telcos to choose between traditional
revenue streams or look to higher growth services at a higher risk. Telcos need to climb the
value chain of applications, content and media to grow.
George Nikoloudis is OTEGLOBE’s Chief Operating Officer; he was previously OTEGLOBE’s Director of Voice Sales Services. Prior
to OTEGLOBE, Mr Nikoloudis held a number of high-level positions at MCI Inc, later acquired by Verizon Business. As a Country
Manager, Mr. Nikoloudis was responsible for the launch and operation of the regional office in Athens, which covered the markets of
Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania and FYROM.
George Nikoloudis holds a University Degree in Electrical Engineering from the UNSW University of Sydney and a specialization
in Informatics.
Content booms in a connected world
Remember when the Internet was known as
the “information super highway” Back in
these days, users connected to the Internet
primarily through dial-up networking to
look for information and email messages and
then disconnect once their job was complete,
freeing the phone line for traditional phone
calls. Nowadays things are a little bit different
but the context is the same: Spread the
knowledge around the world and stay tuned in
a global village called the World Wide Web.
Today, the Internet isn’t just a side activity,
it’s the main dish. It is a social medium
where people are engaged. We shop online,
do business online, we play games online,
we read the news online, we listen to music
on line, we watch TV and movies online,
we connect on-line with social media, it’s
a never-ending list. Our kids expect to find
nearly all types of content available online
and on all kind of different devices. Mobile
devices, such as smartphones and tablets, as
well as connected internet TV are likewise
becoming the most popular and enjoyable
medium for entertainment services.
And what have we done as an industry to feed
this content hungry, always connected Homo
Sapiens We built high-speed, broadband
connections to replace the old dial-up lines,
we run thousand of kilometers of optical
fibres around the globe, added mobility
and layer-upon-layer of complexity on our
network infrastructure to make sure that our
services would always be there when people
needed them.
Oh, and by the way, somewhere along the line
we made money, we increased our revenues
and the size of our business, we transformed
ourselves from simple voice carriers to fixed,
mobile, internet, etc. service providers.
So since our industry, the telecom industry, has
benefited so much by this content boom during
these last 30 years why’s everyone complaining
Stop shouting! Listen to what the content has
to say…..
When it comes to our industry today’s
customers have one thing in common: they
are ignorant about the players in the content
delivery chain. They don’t know - and
couldn’t care less - who owns the content
when they watch a movie on their iPad or
who is responsible for their call when they
use Skype.
People in our industry say that this rapidly
changing customer behaviour is reshaping the
competitive landscape of Traditional Telecom
Operators. Why
Because on the one hand new entrants, also
known as ‘over-the-top’ or OTT players
20 • EMEA 2013

Telco evolution
are offering free services via Internet
directly to the end-customers, our eye-balls,
eliminating voice and data revenue streams
and on the other hand heavy network and
IT investments are still required just to keep
up with the traffic explosion coming from
these same OTT sources, that generate little,
if any, incremental revenues. It seems like
moving in circles, but wasn’t it always like
that More content needed bigger networks
that connected more people asking for more
content, it’s a never ending story. So what’s
the difference today
Become a utility or be like Google What are
the options
Sustaining new revenues is as important today
for traditional telecom operators as it was
when voice became the cash cow for potential
revenue streams. International pressure on
roaming and terminating tariffs diminishes
high margin products like voice and text
messages, paving the way for the rise of new,
non-traditional services i.e. social media,
M2M, etc. with tighter and riskier margins.
This fundamental shift towards a different
revenue mix and eroding margins is
shaking up the industry and is introducing
new metrics of service performance as
well, like accelerating content delivery
and overcoming problems of bandwidth
bottlenecks and latency over long distances.
Moreover with medium and large businesses
and corporations moving much of their IT
infrastructure to the cloud, the speed, quality
and assured delivery of corporate content
and applications over the cloud, as well as
the increasingly vital e-commerce content,
is also sensitive to the inherent delays - path
congestion along the way - and vulnerabilities
of public Internet.
So it does not come as a surprise that
trying to remain competitive more telcos
are focusing on content delivery networks
(CDN), that promise to increase and, most
importantly, assure the speed and quality
of content to the end user as if the origin -
content server is located right down the
corner. Some telcos are investing in CDN
technologies to shape up their own networks
for the growing content opportunity. Others
are integrating CDN solutions of third
parties in their network and service offering,
either by acquiring or by partnering with
pure-play CDN providers. Lately, there
has also been a lot of debate in the CDN
industry as to whether or not a federated
CDN model will take place amongst
independent operators taking on bilateral
agreements or exchange based models and
the establishment of CDN exchanges.
But is this the magic solution for our industry’s
growth Will another technological advance help
our business to transform into highly efficient
and innovative media entities, the Google, Apple
and Amazon of the future Although moving
higher up the value chain is raising the bar again
for our industry, setting new and higher delivery
standards, it is also sending another message: that
all the key players in the value chain will need
to co-operate in the immediate future to deliver
content over managed networks instead of public
Internet to improve performance and uptime,
lower overall costs, improve quality of service
and in the end improve the end user experience.
Global experienced leading operators
with extensive network infrastructure
and presence in multiple markets, smart
content distributors with efficient delivery
platforms and creative OTT players with their
innovative solutions should work together to
build new business models, form alliances
and commercial agreements and pave the
way for the digital world of the future.
But what about the smaller regional players
or specialized wholesale providers What
should a regional service provider do in the
meantime to address the content explosion
and the fundamental shifts towards new
services in this new and unpredictable
digital landscape
I’m a regional player. What can I do now
Every player in our industry should need to
be prepared for the fundamental shift in the
market by deciding which markets to address
and which business models - tools to use in
the short/mid -term.
What the content tells us is that no matter
our size and geographic reach, sitting on
the fence is no longer an option as network
costs are increasing and the revenues
coming from traditional ‘cash cow’ services
are starting to stagnate.
A good short term plan to compete in the
different parts of the value chain is to adopt
a “reliable & smart pipe’ model focused
on efficient connectivity selling, targeting
CAPEX optimization and flexible cost
structures that are the key success factors
in securing customer loyalty and long term
contracts. A short/mid-term approach is to
address specific carriers, content providers
and OTT players alike and co-operate
to create better value for them and their
customers by developing innovative, reliable
and highly adaptable tailor-made solutions.
Expansion into new products and adjacent
markets along the value chain will also be
necessary, but for a regional operator a high
risk, high investment approach towards new
products and services could only form part
of a transformation process in the mid/longterm.
We have to keep in mind that although
new services such as cloud computing, will
experience high revenue growth, they have
significantly lower margins (less that 15
per cent on an average) when compared to
traditional voice and data services.
The approach to evolve into a smart, next
generation operator targeting specific
markets might look conservative or even out
fashioned to some, but at the end of the day
there is no standard ‘one size fits all’ model,
every operator will have to take their own
decisions on how far they want to go and
which path best suits their strategic model,
capabilities and heritage.
So what will it look like in ten years from
now
Few industries will have to re-invent
themselves as the telecom industry will
have to in the next 10 years. The rise of
non-traditional services associated with the
explosive internet demand, shifts in customer
behaviour in an always connected digital
world and the innovations brought in the
supply of services by OTT players create
strategic challenges for the telecom operators
of today putting them at the crossroads
between sticking to the traditional revenue
streams or building new partnerships and
tapping into higher growth services but at a
higher risk.
Although more than 65 per cent of the market
is still expected to come from core telecom
services (data and voice) in the next decade,
the operators will need to move along the
value chain to more applications, content and
media-based solutions to preserve such as
their growth potential.
In a few words, our industry will need to
transform not only to address new customer
demands but also to adapt to the challenges of
the new digital world.
The content speaks now and we have to
listen:
Human evolution has always been about
adaptability and co-operation, not survival of
the fittest! •
EMEA 2013 • 21

Communication service providers
How CSPs can stay competitive
by Gordon Rawling, Oracle Communications
Competition has been hard on CSPs (communications service providers). Price competition
- a race to the bottom - mines their businesses; still, CSPs don’t need to fight on price.
Packages tailored to the individual user, based on usage data they already have, can help
CSPs offer quality services which cannot be offered at the cheap, commoditised end of the
market. Skilfully tailored services, based on analytics and insight, can fight churn as well as
be a key to customer acquisition.
Gordon Rawling is the Director of EMEA Marketing for Oracle Communications; he joined Oracle Communications as senior marketing
director for market development in the EMEA region. Prior to his role at Oracle, Mr Rawling worked for Amdocs where he held a
variety of roles, from delivery to product marketing. Prior to Amdocs, Mr Rawling worked for EDS, performing management consulting,
relationship management and delivery roles throughout the organisation.
Gordon Rawling graduated from Salford University with a degree in computer science.
The Internet has done much to change the
way we live and how we work and entertain
ourselves, but our loyalty to those companies
who first got us online, or who we’ve used
for many years, is still something that can
never be taken for granted. Especially if those
companies fail to remain competitive with
new entrants flooding the communication
service provider (CSP) market.
However, being competitive is no easy riddle
to resolve. It would be easy to assume it is all
about price but the truth is far from it, even in
these straitened times. Our Internet access in
particular has gone from being a nice to have
to an essential in many homes.
Network infrastructure is also coming under
increasing pressure from industries. While
consumers have been shopping, banking,
reading and connecting with friends for
some time, the rise of Machine-to-machine
communications (M2M) to automate
processes in industries including healthcare
insurance, automotive, logistics, retail and
utilities is a much newer phenomenon. The
increasing volume of traffic related to M2M
makes it even more important for CSPs
to understand usage trends if they want to
improve their service offering and find a way
to monetise.
But unlike other utilities where value for
money relates to an intersection of price,
availability and reliability, CSPs find a far
greater array of customer preferences and
expectations. Some customers are more
motivated by speed, some by price, some by
quality of service, and some by download
limits or factors such as bundled content
or value-added-services. However, none of
those potential differentiators are mutually
exclusive. Most consumers are likely to be a
combination of these factors, skewed more
or less towards price depending on the value
they perceive their Internet service to provide
them with, which is why M2M services are so
crucial to CSPs.
This means that first and foremost, the CSP
must understand each customer and their
22 • EMEA 2013

Communication service providers
individual needs: from those willing to pay a
premium for a better, faster service to those
who just need a simple entry level service.
For example, a customer who values a
choice of on-demand premium content and
high, uncapped speeds for streaming or
downloading media and is online for several
hours every night is likely to take a view that
what they’re looking for in a CSP goes far
beyond simply finding the lowest price. They
want a quality of service which rarely comes
cheap and they are most likely prepared to
pay as long as the service they receive meets
their expectations.
Against such expectations, the CSPs don’t
need to be fighting on price with every other
company. It needs to be looking at what its
tailored package for that user, based on the
data they have, looks like and ensuring that it
is competitively priced for the offering.
It may seem obvious, but CSPs need to
delve into their customer data and provide a
customer centric offering based on genuine
needs and behaviours rather than focusing
on the offers of their rivals, because some of
those rivals will be targeting very different
customer segments.
The market is becoming crowded and CSPs
cannot afford to lose sight of their customers.
A crowded marketplace
Each day, millions of tablets, smartphones,
smart TVs and home PCs connect to the
Internet, fuelling an insatiable appetite for
entertainment, online shopping, social media,
news and on-demand content from film and
television to music.
There is no shortage of customers who need
Internet services, but there is also no shortage
of service providers vying for their custom.
Today, there is an unprecedented amount of
competitive offers and loss-leading deals on
broadband being offered by traditional CSPs
and new entrants such as retailers.
The economics are fairly simple on the
face of things. A supermarket, for example,
which makes millions on its core groceries
business can afford to subsidise Internet
services in the same way it may also do so
for credit cards or insurance. Such tactics
are businesses’ pursuit of building a brand
which touches every area of a customer’s
life, finding cross-selling opportunities amid
the customer data they collect.
Similarly Internet services can be a loss
leader for retailers looking to shift other
goods. Recently we have seen UK high
street retailer John Lewis offering an initial
six months free Internet service to customers
buying connected devices, such as tablets,
PCs or smart TVs.
But for those businesses which only sell
Internet services the ability to compete on
price is being squeezed. A loss-leader for
them is simply a loss. And attracting new
customers on a profitable basis is increasingly
tricky for CSPs in such a climate if they try to
compete purely on price.
However, it is worth going back to the earlier
point that not all consumers want the cheapest
possible broadband access. In fact, as we
become more sophisticated online citizens, it
is quite likely more and more consumers want
more from their Internet provider than a bogstandard
Internet connection.
Many consumers prioritise quality of
service, the breadth of services offered
- such as premium movie and television
services - and the overall bundle they are
being provided with. Stripping out any frills
and service niceties therefore simply to offer
the cheapest possible service may represent
a false economy, or certainly may only be
right for an entry level product for light
users of the web.
Free, a French CSP, is testament to this. A
disruptive force in the telecommunications
market, Free was the first tripleplay provider
in the country offering broadband, landline
and IPTV services. Having secured a 3G
license in 2010, the company launched its
mobile service in 2012 and secured 8%
of the total market by the end of the year.
Offering a service beyond broadband that
utilised its full quadruple play product,
Free was able to capture over 6 million
subscribers in a year.
And this is the key - not all consumers are
the same. They want choice, some want high
quality, some want cheap.
CSPs therefore, must get on the front foot and
review their service provision and the quality
of what they are offering customers based
on their customer data. They must ensure
customers feel unique and that their needs
are being catered for. Most importantly, CSPs
need to offer the kind of quality of service
which simply cannot be offered at the cheap,
commoditised end of the market.
Without that differentiation they will be
drawn into a downward spiral of competing
purely on price.
This is something Portuguese cable operator,
Zon, struggled with. Seeing an increase in
competition offering cheaper services, Zon
took the decision to focus on the quality of
service delivered to its consumers and set
about redesigning its entire user interface.
What it achieved was an unrivalled user
experience and quality of service that put the
customer back in the centre of its service.
A focus on skillfully tailored services, based
on analytics and insight, should have the
effect of fighting churn but can also be a key
element in customer acquisition.
It must start with understanding the full
worth of a customer across all products
and the full lifetime of their custom.
In order to offer a service which keeps
customers happy and bought in, CSPs
must offer personalised deals and rewards
based on the value of the customer. In an
increasingly savvy marketplace customers
will know their worth. CSPs cannot afford
to take them for granted.
Similarly, CSPs must be prepared to predict
and pre-empt complaints. If they know how
important Internet access is to customers
then they must pre-empt the angry reaction
when it is unavailable. Customers who are
proactively notified of a problem in their area
are likely to bear less ill will towards a CSP
- providing it is quickly fixed - than if they
have to find it and report it themselves.
Fine tuning, based on understanding customer
data, can start in the call centre and customer
service operation with the faster, more
focused resolution of customer enquiries and
the more effective tailoring of packages and
bundles to suit individual customers through
to choice of premium content on offer. Cheap
Internet access is often just that. It doesn’t
come bundled with services such as cable TV.
Therefore, CSPs offering bundles must ensure
they are complementary. Data gleaned about
Internet usage should inform the provision
and promotion of such services.
No two customers are the same
Typically, the cheapest offerings at the
more commoditised end of the market
treat customers with a uniformity that
ignores many trends in Internet usage and
individual behaviour.
EMEA 2013 • 23

Communication service providers
For example, CSPs may know that customers
who most regularly take advantage of an
agreement to use Wi-Fi hotspots as part of
their package may be most amenable to offers
such as cloud based storage and back-up or
packages of services related to getting the
most out of multiple mobile devices and their
mobile lifestyle.
Security is another service which can be
incorporated so that customers feel they
are getting value on top of their basic
connectivity. Similarly, content deals with
music or movie studios can be brokered
and tailored based on online behaviour.
For example, CSPs who recognise the
behaviours of families with children may
be most successful in offering security
packages, online safety guidelines and
parental controls. Learning such things about
customers must then be fed in to the overall
customer service experience. Providing
parental controls shouldn’t stop with parental
controls. Those households with children
may be a good market for packaged content
such as Disney classic movies on-demand.
Conversely, households with children may
see higher instances of sport or more mature
programming being watched on second
screens or mobile devices, if the family TV
is taken over by children, creating a captive
audience for promoting such services.
Getting customers engaged regularly with
multiple services from one CSP makes it far
less likely they will churn, even if they can
get a better deal on one aspect of the offering.
CSPs also have a wealth of infrastructure
they can make work harder, providing cloud
storage, applications and back-up services to
customers where a need is identified. And for
home office workers, CSPs can offer business
applications and hosted email as well as
helpdesk services to reduce the need for
external IT support. All of these offers can be
built around insights and behaviours the CSPs
should be able to gain.
Much of this isn’t about cost it’s about
convenience and quality. Ultimately, CSPs
need to break away from the race to the
bottom taking place - in terms of pricing -
and realise consumers are only going to get
more sophisticated in the use of the Internet,
with behaviours and usage only going to get
more complex.
They may lose a handful of customers
to the novelty of free, no-frills Internet
access, but the growth areas are going to
be in providing a service which reflects
the importance many people place on their
Internet access at home.•
An insight into the future!
You are a decision maker;
You understand your business;
Do you understand how ICT affect the markets,
the countries and the people you serve
Gain insight into how ICT leaders see the future.
Connect-World, The Decision Makers’ Forum for
ICT Driven Development, brings you the thoughts
and opinions of leaders from around the globe,
their personal assessment of the issues that drive
the ICT revolution and change the lives of us all.
24 • EMEA 2013
connect-world.com
The Decision Makers’ Forum for ICT Driven Development
Global House n 12 Albert Road n London E16 2DW n United Kingdom n Tel.: +44 20 7540 0876 n Fax: +44 20 7474 0090 n email: info@connect-world.com n URL: www.connect-world.com

Subscriber relations
The value of empowered subscribers
by Lucas Skoczkowski, founder and CEO, Redknee
Communication service providers (CSP’s) need to keep all their subscribers happy, all the
time. How do they create compelling service bundles to address subscriber needs How
do they identify those needs, protect and increase revenues and reduce churn Insight into
usage patterns drives the creation of clearer, more relevant services, and more competitive
pricing plans. Give power to the subscribers over what and how they consume data, and
they’ll give you the trust that forms the basis of all lasting relationships.
Lucas Skoczkowski is founder and CEO of Redknee, a provider of real-time converged billing systems. Mr Skoczkowski previously gained
experience in sales, operations, business and product development with a variety of international companies including Nortel Networks
(USA, UK, Canada) and Clearnet Communications Inc. Mr Skoczkowski has been honoured with the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the
Year Award in the Information Technology sector for Ontario, as well as a Top 40 Under 40 Award for Canada.
Lucas Skoczkowski earned a BSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Waterloo, where he was a Loran Scholar.
Content service providers (CSP) today are
competing in a dynamic, growing and datahungry
market. Subscribers know what they
want and they know how to shop around to
get it. If one provider doesn’t offer the right
solution, subscribers are becoming adept at
switching to another. Increasing frustration
with ‘bill-shock’, frequently triggered by
roaming charges -- combined with the often
complex schedules of pre-paid plans that fail
to address certain subscriber needs -- creates
barriers to loyalty. It’s a tough market, and
it’s placing pressure on operators to transform
their business models.
That sounds like a daunting challenge.
‘Transformation’ sounds like it involves
significant investment, time and ingenuity.
It doesn’t have to. When operators accept
that they simply need to ‘recalibrate’ their
positioning, shift on their axis a little, and
realign the capabilities they already have
so that the market perceives them and
reacts to them in a different way, business
opportunities come easier.
CSPs are already doing this; identifying
profitable new business models. They are
looking more closely at customer experience,
acknowledging variances in subscriber
needs that can help shape modifications to
pricing plans that make more sense to certain
subscriber segments. They are re-evaluating
the way in which customer care is delivered,
moving away from old models of call centres
which no longer resonate with the selfdetermination
subscribers are accustomed
to through the online channel. They are also
looking afresh at their ability to charge for
support services. Most encouragingly of all, they
are achieving success with these new approaches.
Subscriber segmentation
Operators have been locked in a constant
battle against declining ARPU for many
years, aware that the revenue that is
disappearing has not been evaporating
from the mobile market, it has been flowing
elsewhere - invariably to OTT service
providers. LTE is upon us, OTT providers
have introduced magnificently innovative
services into the market, new breed operators
are slicing and dicing consumer motivations
as they launch targeted MVNOs. Subscribers
today know how to manipulate service
packages, swap SIM cards, and interchange
EMEA 2013 • 25

Subscriber relations
devices for different usage requirements.
They know how to get the best deals. In
many ways the market is at a tipping point.
CSPs who fail to deliver clearer service
propositions are likely to lose business to
those who study subscriber usage patterns
closely, assess that nature of services
consumed and then align the services they
offer accordingly.
Agility is critical if operators accept that they
need to shift away from a network-centric
business model to a customer-centric model.
Follow the customer; observe behaviours,
requirements, journey patterns, usage peaks
and troughs. Once you have followed them,
you’ll be able to lead them. Winners in the
market are those who make the content as
accessible as possible. This entails giving
subscribers flexibility and control over not
just what they consume but -- perhaps even
more importantly -- how they consume it.
No subscriber likes to be wrapped over the
knuckles half-way through his or her billing
cycle because they’ve used up their data
allowance. No one likes to be in the dark
about precisely what they get for their money,
so that bills arrive demanding much larger
amounts than the subscriber thought they
might be in for. That’s not a customer care
approach; it’s a big corporation that isn’t
too bothered about who it annoys. Annoyed
customers have a tendency to become excustomers.
Customer-centricity gives the
customer control and in so doing, it also gives
the operator a competitive edge.
Self-care drives subscriber satisfaction
Solutions are available, either in the cloud or
as on-premise models, that enable operators
to deliver self-care to their subscribers
by implementing converged billing and
customer care solutions that are low-risk,
scalable and flexible. These are the solutions
that MVNOs, for example, are using all
over the world to drive agility; identifying
subscriber segments, acting upon their needs
and then relating to them in a caring fashion.
These are the subscribers that stay loyal
because they have no need to shop around.
They are served with integrated self-care
channels that synchronize web portals with
the subscriber’s device, offering real-time
updates if credits require attention or if other
services become available.
They are attracted by fair and flexible tariffs.
For CSPs, the ability to intelligently package
a new service or offering in a way that
encourages frequent use of data is becoming
more important. ‘Roaming’ is a good
example. Traditionally many subscribers
have been hesitant to use their phones when
roaming because they’ve been worried about
the cost. If CSPs focus on upselling and
packaging roaming however, subscribers will
be more receptive and it unlocks additional
revenue for the CSP.
Re-shaping the market
One of the most recent developments in
subscriber self-care is CSP investment
in social media. Customers increasingly
expect to be able to use social media
tools as an engagement channel with their
service provider; it’s a natural fit - for many
subscribers their prime consumption of data
arises from activity through social media
platforms that are changing not just how
they view their worlds but also how they
communicate with every contact point within
those worlds. It’s seamless, or it should be.
For this reason, CSPs are starting to use
Twitter as a channel where concerns can be
raised from the mobile phone and responses
provided by customer care agents through
the same social media channel. CSPs can
today simply introduce a full self-care portal
within Facebook. This enables them to link
the users’ Facebook profiles and their key
friends on Facebook, who also use the same
CSP, directly into their frequent calling plans.
This is sophisticated mobile empowerment
- relevant and targeted to subscriber
behaviours. The self-care experience is
shifted from the mobile to social media,
where consumers are spending more of their
online time. As well as customer care, CSPs
are able to effectively utilise this transition
for marketing new packages, promotions and
new services to subscribers.
Meanwhile, growing markets are adopting
subscriber segmentation and self-care
strategies at increasingly earlier stages in
their evolution, demonstrating successes that
more mature markets are learning from. Zain
Kuwait’s approach is one example of an agile
business model that delivers great business
results by empowering the user.
Analyst firm Pyramid Research believe the
growth rate of mobile Internet in the Middle
East and Africa will be faster than any other
region in the world. While it contributed only
three per cent of global mobile data revenue
in 2008, projections are that the region will
double its share of revenue by 2014. Leading
communications provider Zain Kuwait
launched Kuwait’s first national wireless
broadband service in 2006.
To maximise its data revenues Zain identified
three target subscriber segments: young
users, Arab expatriates, and inbound roaming
markets. With 70 per cent of its subscriber
base being prepaid, Zain wanted to get the
services to its prepaid customers quickly.
This involved changing its business model,
to bring pricing into relevant packages that
subscribers could easily understand and
trust. Zain deployed a real-time rating and
charging platform to enable flexible, tiered
services and dynamic subscriber controls.
The platform has enabled Zain to understand
how its services are being used and how
best to rate and charge for them -- increasing
opportunities to monetise and better manage
its data services and network assets.
Zain’s customers now control their own
mobile experience and can select daily,
weekly, or monthly packages, gaining
better clarity of the charges they will incur.
Through the provider’s web portal, users
have full visibility over the services they
use, they can track their usage and decide
whether they need to top up their credit or
regulate their usage.
Conclusion
The experience of Zain Kuwait highlights
an extremely interesting point relating to
the stage of evolution a market has reached.
Operators in this region generally are
shaping their business models in parallel
with emerging subscriber needs. They
are learning lessons from more mature
markets and responding in an agile way to
opportunities. They are not taking forever to
adapt. These lessons are now coming back to
mature markets, where operators are reacting
afresh to pressures they may once have had
no choice but to succumb to. The cloud now
puts agility and flexibility within reach for
all CSPs, offering low-risk highly relevant
capabilities that can drive customer-centricity
and increase ARPU as well as loyalty.
Operators should not be deterred by the idea
of huge investment costs for any of these
initiatives given the cloud-based business
support systems they can access on a lowrisk
basis. They need not be deterred by time
to market, since these systems drive agility
faster than ever before. And they need no
longer think that subscriber churn is the
inevitable by-product of doing business in
a competitive market. Those days are over
- power to the consumer is bringing power
back into the business. •
EMEA 2013 • 27

Signaling traffic
Diameter signaling: the good, the bad, and the future
by Doug Suriano, CTO, Tekelec
Diameter is an authentication, authorization and accounting protocol for telecommunications
networks that will generate a significant amount of signaling, as more sophisticated policy
and charging systems require more messaging and communication. The dynamics of chatty
apps and LTE-driven services will drive operators to lay a foundation for self-organizing,
self- optimizing, software-defined networks that autonomously respond to surges in signaling
and other unpredictable events. As such, more robust systems are needed for monitoring
traffic, load balancing and congestion control, as well as enhancing the customer experience
and potential for revenue generation.
Doug Suriano is the CTO of Tekelec where he leads product development for intelligent mobile broadband solutions. His R&D team is
responsible for architecting session, policy and subscriber data management products for software-defined networks. Mr Suriano joined
Tekelec from Dynamicsoft, Inc. where he was VP, Engineering. Prior to Dynamicsoft, Inc., Mr Suriano served as Chief Information
Officer for QAD Inc., an enterprise resource planning software developer, responsible for the company’s global information technology
infrastructure, business systems and development support. Mr Suriano also managed IT for the U.S. Marine Corps.
Doug Suriano earned a Master’s of Science degree in information technology at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School and a Bachelor’s
of Science Degree at the U.S. Naval Academy.
Diameter signaling [‘Diameter’is an
authentication, authorization and accounting
protocol for telecommunications networks]
surges are to be expected as more sophisticated
policy and charging use cases trigger more
signaling messages. But the increased pinging and
communication should be embraced as a harbinger
of more revenue opportunities for operators.
The multi-tasking, mobile-social nature of
subscribers, and the multi-session nature of
new devices are making the concept of ‘busy
hour’ obsolete. The majority of devices today
are continually connected and perpetually
busy thanks to ‘chatty’ apps like Facebook,
Skype and WhatsApp. Constant signaling is
also driven by the dynamics of Voice over
LTE (VoLTE), Rich Communication Suite
(RCS), and new machine-to-machine (M2M)-
, over-the-top (OTT)- and advertising-driven
business models.
For operators in Europe, the Middle East and
Africa, market pressures, regulatory changes
and spectrum auctions are expected to drive
more LTE roll outs.
TeliaSonera, Telekom Austria, Deutsche
Telekom and O2 Germany have been among
the first, and Telefónica Spain, Vodafone and
others have also announced more LTE spend
for this coming summer.
Further, by the end of 2015, about 7.5 million
Middle East subscribers and 11 million African
subscribers will be on LTE, according to figures
issued by Signals and Systems Telecom.
As LTE momentum builds across EMEA,
there will be more sophisticated roaming
arrangements, concurrent data sessions,
video streaming, quality of service (QoS)
guarantees and behavioral changes via social
networking. All of this will cause increases
in Diameter signaling. In fact, Tekelec’s LTE
Diameter Signaling Index® predicts that LTE
Diameter signaling traffic in EMEA will see
a 320 per cent compound annual growth rate
(CAGR) from 2011 to 2016.
That CAGR will be driven by increased
Diameter-based communication among
gateways, policy servers, charging systems,
subscriber profile databases, and mobility and
session management functions.
Some of the biggest increases in signaling
traffic will be due to online charging and
policy functions.
Charging alone can generate multiple
Diameter messages per session - depending
on the type of session, billing arrangements,
and other factors pertinent to the service.
VoLTE and RCS and anything requiring
dynamic charging, quality of service, and
shared usage plans will further drive up
Diameter signaling.
Also, increased mobility will require that
policy be active for longer durations,
maintaining session ‘state’ and tracking
subscriber usage for hours or days as
subscribers move around networks.
For example, if you think about policy in the
context of authentication, messages have to
be invoked every time a subscriber powers
on an LTE device, or activates a new service.
An event like a new iPhone launch - where
millions of devices get activated within a
condensed window - can suddenly generate
a surge of Diameter messages. Similarly, an
event like the Olympics can trigger millions
of messages when smartphones and other
devices become a conduit through which
people share their experiences.
The good news is that the swell in Diameter
traffic will correlate to the sophistication of
services and devices. More sophistication and
more personalization means more revenuegenerating
opportunities.
The bad news, however, is that a wait-and-see
approach to addressing Diameter traffic is no
longer acceptable. As operators accommodate
28 • EMEA 2013

Signaling traffic
popular applications like Apple’s FaceTime
over cellular or QoS-driven VoLTE and
video, or tailor Mobile Ads with subscriber
data, Diameter signaling will need to be
addressed. If not, it will become increasingly
difficult to personalize mobile data services.
Operators need to apply advanced policy
rules, and they will have to manage the
consequent increase in Diameter messages
among policy and charging systems, and
subscriber databases.
Why a centralized diameter approach
‘Signaling storms’ have already hurt network
performance and compromised the customer
experience. In the shift from unlimited to
usage-based data plans, for example, signaling
surges were experienced by several operators.
Operators that are now in the planning stages
have learned from others to incorporate
Diameter signaling strategies into their
network architectures. The lesson: a separate,
intelligent New Diameter Network is needed
from the outset of LTE networks, and
cannot wait until ten million or 20 million
subscribers join the network. A meshed
architecture-the direct connections between
each network element-simply cannot scale
sufficiently, even at low subscriber numbers.
Scalability problems abound in the SS7
world, too. But where SS7 did handle
congestion, traffic overload and traffic
throttling, Diameter does not!
Operators assumed that IP networks would
handle those responsibilities on a ‘best-effort’
basis, but now it has become obvious that the
Diameter protocol has to be deterministic to
address issues at the IP layer.
Currently, Diameter is at the end of year two
of a five-year development cycle and the
IETF is leading standardization to incorporate
new capabilities into the protocol. In the
meantime, operators should increase their
focus on the signaling core.
Building dynamic and resilient networks with
a diameter signaling router
As operators and vendors learn more about the
impact of applications on the Diameter network,
operators are focusing more on the signaling
network and the role it plays in supporting
innovative and sophisticated applications.
Traffic engineers that understand how a
signaling network works are looking more to
Diameter Signaling Routers (DSRs) as a means
to prevent further outages and optimize what
they can do to enable or participate in new
mobile-data business models.
The DSR enables an architecture that
reduces the cost and complexity of the
core network, and it helps IP networks to
grow incrementally in support of increasing
service and traffic demands. Additionally,
the DSR facilitates network monitoring by
providing a centralized vantage point in the
signaling network.
When evaluating solutions, operators should
consider how robust and proven a solution is
in 3G mobile data and LTE networks, as well
as its roadmap for the future.
Important for a solution today is the ability to
handle hundreds of thousands of messages;
tens of millions of concurrent sessions;
and millions of subscribers and devices.
Also important are extensive scalability
and congestion control features. But for the
future, there has to be a path to virtualization,
as operators are going to want to move the
DSR and related elements like policy and
subscriber data management into the cloud.
As more architectural agility becomes
necessary to handle signaling and data traffic
surges, the DSR’s operations, administration
and maintenance (OAM) functions will have
to be virtualized.
Already, operators in the Asia-Pacific
region and IP Exchange (IPX) providers are
deploying DSRs with virtualized elements.
As the DSR becomes increasingly critical,
it will become a key component within an
independent control layer - one that should
be comprised of signaling, policy and
subscriber data management. Tekelec calls
that independent layer the ‘New Diameter
Network,’ a Diameter signaling layer in the
network core that handles routing, traffic
management, load balancing and protocol
interworking. In that context, the DSR
integrates with the Policy Server (PCRF) in
order to define business rules for new service
plans. It also integrates with subscriber data
management (SDM) to personalize services
and evolve them according to consumer
circumstances and preferences.
As a part of the NDN, the DSR, Policy Server
and SDM manage the constant pinging among
essential LTE network elements, including:
Offline Charging
Policy Servers (PCRF)
Online Charging (OCS)
User Data Repositories
Mobility Management Entities (MMEs)
Policy Control Enforcement Points (PCEFs)
Session Management, like a Call Session
Control Function (CSCF)
In essence, the DSR becomes the network’s
central nervous system, monitoring all
Diameter traffic and making decisions
regarding load balancing and congestion
control based on its knowledge of the entire
network, as opposed to a specific segment of
the network.
These capabilities lay the ground work for
software-defined ThinkingNetworks -
networks capable of self-organizing, selfoptimizing,
and self-determining responses
to unprecedented and unpredictable events.
In essence, networks that have to think for
themselves, yet remain malleable enough
that network architects can adjust network
resources as needed.
While operational efficiencies and cost
savings are some of the benefits of
ThinkingNetworks, it will ultimately be
innovation and personalization that are the
crowning benefits.
To get to that point, there are four phases to undergo:
Phase 1, the creation of the New Diameter
Network - a centralized, intelligent Diameter
control layer governing all equipment that
uses the Diameter protocol.
Phase 2 comes when the NDN moves to
the cloud, creating a fundamental shift
in the way operators improve network
scalability and flexibility in terms of sessions,
transactions, and throughput. Tekelec
calls this phase Cloud XG, as the nextgeneration
of cloud will depend on network
function virtualization and software-defined
networks (SDNs). Here, operators will look
to dynamically add and remove compute
resources to available hardware, and to
dynamically manipulate traffic flows entering
or leaving the cloud.
Phase 3 is MobileSocial, where subscribers
are intimately known by their providers
as individuals and as members of greater
social circles - personal and professional.
This is where the rubber meets the road, as
operators become digital-lifestyle providers,
customizing customer experience according
to real-time data coming from networks and
Big-Data sources.
As operators unleash the valuable contextual
data they hold, they build opt-in, mobile
advertising, and other personalized offers to
OTT application and content providers.
Phase 4 culminates with ThinkingNetworks,
which embody all critical components of
the previous phases. Founded on policydirected
SDN control and network event
listeners (such as event records, analytics,
alarms and probes), ThinkingNetworks
give an analytical view of the relationship
between all of the services supported - the
characteristics of each as well as the impact
of one service on another.
The end goal is to significantly reduce
network costs by giving service providers the
ability to dynamically assign compute and
storage resources where and when needed in
the network, as well as to enhance service,
application, device- and user-awareness in
order to further personalize services.
The ThinkingNetworks vision provides
a roadmap to turning those goals into
reality with carefully planned steps that
get operators from where they are today to
where they want to be tomorrow as Digital
Lifestyle Providers. •
30 • EMEA 2013

Over-the-top content
Headline: Content for the masses
by Zdeněk Gerlický, CTO, nangu.TV
Zdeněk Gerlický is the CTO of ‘nangu.TV’ where he oversees all areas of development. Mr
Gerlický joined Alnair a.s, the intellectual property owner of nangu.TV, as a Middleware
System Developer for the IPTV platform. He later became Team Leader of the Java
Development team iand recently assumed the position of CTO.
Zdeněk Gerlický completed his graduate studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at
the Czech Technical University in Prague, majoring in Computer Networks and Internet.
Zdeněk Gerlický is the CTO of ‘nangu.TV’ where he oversees all areas of development. Mr Gerlický joined Alnair a.s, the intellectual
property owner of nangu.TV, as a Middleware System Developer for the IPTV platform. He later became Team Leader of the Java
Development team iand recently assumed the position of CTO.
Zdeněk Gerlický completed his graduate studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the Czech Technical University in Prague,
majoring in Computer Networks and Internet.
In the last decade the way that we send,
receive and view information has changed
exponentially. Twenty years ago we were
marvelling at the capability of the internet
and how it could potentially change our
lives. We could never have imagined
the technological breakthrough that
smartphones and tablets would bring and
what a difference they would make to how
we operate both at work and at play.
In 1983, when Madonna released her
debut album and shoulder pads were all
the rage, the first - very sizeable - mobile
phone was launched. Motorola’s DynaTAC
‘Dynamic Adaptive Total Area Coverage’
had 30 minutes talk time, could go eight
hours between charges, was 13 x 1.75 x
3.5 inches in dimension, had eight hours of
standby time, took ten hours to recharge,
featured an LED display and memory to
store thirty numbers. All that for a price tag
of US$3,995!
In 1993 the mobile phone was entering
its second decade and a new phase in its
technology; models were just small enough
to fit into the palm of the hand, having
shrunk from the size of a house brick, and
features were beginning to include PDA
capability such as a calculator, pager,
address book and email. Fast forward to
2013 and the change is incredible with
people using their (small) device to search
for content, watch content or interact either
directly or via social media applications
almost anywhere.
A plethora of content consumption
reports and studies support the huge
rise in multi-screen viewing habits in
countries across the world. Digital TV
Europe recently highlighted The Mobile/
Tablet TV & Video: Content, Broadcast
& OTT Strategies 2013-2017 study. It
stated that in 2017 the Western European
market will account for over a fifth of
mobile and tablet viewers, at more than
430 million people. The report says that
the success of online and multi-screen
services like Netflix has begun to affect
the pay-TV business, with the threat of
consumers ‘cutting the cord’ resulting in
many pay-TV providers, such as Sky in
the UK, fighting back with multi-platform
strategies of their own.
EMEA 2013 • 31

Over-the-top content
In May 2012, Nielsen’s Global Survey of
Multi-Screen Media Usage reported that
more than 28,000 internet respondents in
56 countries indicated that watching video
content on computers has become just
as popular as watching video content on
television among online consumers. Over
80 per cent reported watching video content
at home on a computer (84 per cent) or on
TV (83 per cent) at least once a month. By
contrast, in 2010, more online consumers
reported watching video content on TV (90
per cent) than on a computer (86 per cent)
in a month-long period. Since the report
was published these figures are likely to
have swung further with the trend for tablet
and mobile applications growing rapidly.
In the Europe the Orange Exposure
2012/2013 annual independent study
by TNS published in November 2012,
examined mobile media habits across
UK, France and Spain for the advertising
industry. It showed mobile as the primary
screen of choice for 11-18 year olds with a
very high penetration of smartphones and
highlighted the power of social networking
and social TV in this demographic. The
study also showed that adults are using
screens more interchangeably than ever
before with less preference for one over
another. The trend doesn’t just apply
to adults and teenagers. Many young
children wake up to find a tablet amongst
their Christmas or birthday presents these
days. These figures are being mirrored
in countries across the world and as such
operators need to be able to provide a
combined service offering that’s simple to
navigate with high quality services.
There are three parties involved in the
delivery of content to consumers: network
owners/operators, service providers and
third-party content aggregators (Hulu/
Netflix etc). The development of Overthe-Top
delivery (OTT) means that service
provision can be separated from network
ownership/operation allowing a much
faster rate of service deployment and
growth helping to satisfy the demands
of the modern consumer. As we can see
from the reports, audiences don’t just
want the freedom to view content anytime,
anywhere; they now expect it - they are
truly network-agnostic.
For ISPs, along with cable, mobile and
hospitality TV service providers to survive
in this highly competitive market they need
a complimentary mechanism to deliver
value-add additional features including:
non-linear TV, VoD, triple- screen, hybrid
boxes and mobile applications. That
mechanism is OTT. OTT delivery - where
the service provided is separated from
the network - allows consumers to access
the same content on their mobile, tablet
and TV provided that they have a good
enough internet connection and a service
provider(s) that understands the pitfalls and
the quality that’s expected. Not all OTT
delivery is created equally as many of us
know: video drop-out and buffering are
common problems. Sometimes a complete
loss of service is the result.
The key to the success of OTT is the
quality of delivery and this is where
the wheat is separated from the chaff.
Adaptive streaming technology is the
driver in this arena. Adaptive streaming
frequently checks the connection type and
strength for both linear and non-linear
content and adapts accordingly for quality
optimisation. Therefore it allows service
providers/content aggregators to deliver all
their services to all devices (multi-screen
delivery) via a single platform reducing
resources and operational costs and
providing a pay-as-you-grow model.
With the integration of apps on mobile,
tablet and smart TVs, watching OTT
content across multi-screen devices has
never been easier. Users simply purchase
the application via the App Store or
Google Play and access content on their
platform using the pin number provided
by their operator. The high level search
functionality technology on smart phones
and tablet devices provided by the delivery
platform allows users to select and view
content quickly and easily. The operator
can also offer universal recommendations,
increasing social TV interaction and
advertising revenues.
Recommendation technology is an
important addition for viewers. There’s so
much content available it can be frustrating
to sift through the content that you’re not
interested in to find content that’s relevant.
Finding the right key words that describe
what the user is looking for so that they get
to the correct information is challenging.
Having to fine tune those words and then
filter through the content takes time and
patience. Television continues to be a leanback
experience and as such the process
of searching for content that will satisfy
should not be a struggle - in fact it should
be the exact opposite if operators and
content owners want to drive loyalty and
therefore revenues. The key for content
owners is how best to present content to the
user in an orderly fashion.
Remote viewing capability is also
important as well having the ability
to use the smartphone or tablet as a
remote control for the television with
significantly increased search capability.
Remote applications enable simple browse
capability whilst pop-up push notifications
on the second screen alert the user that
content is starting and a single click plays
it on the TV via the set-top box. Search
optimisation is highly advanced, enabling
filtering based on chosen criteria. Users can
search, record, bookmark or play content
on the TV then freeing up the second
device.
Unlimited devices can be connected to the
server allowing operators to set their own
parameters. High-level security settings
mean that subscribers can put in place strict
parental control where necessary. Users can
check which devices are connected to the
platform and are able to disable or switch
devices without having to purchase another
application or connection.
The multi-screen revolution is being driven
by the consumer and is developing quickly.
It offers huge potential and a bright future
for operators adopting OTT across multiple
devices. By delivering quality television
services operators are expanding their
market potential and thereby significantly
increasing revenue and meeting the ever
increasing demands of their customer base.
•
32 • EMEA 2013

Native language content
Content speaks for itself - in the viewer’s language
by Philippe Rouxel, CMO, GlobeCast
For immigrant and expatriate viewers, the best experience is one that brings them ‘home’.
There is an important, and lucrative, new market awaiting broadcasters - their own expatriate
communities in other countries. People away from home want familiar content in their own
language. With the right global partners, broadcasters can harness this demand and create
new revenue streams. By producing a meaningful experience for their overseas viewers -
they can bring new levels of closeness and connection to communities everywhere.
Philippe Rouxel is Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) for GlobeCast, a content management and delivery company for broadcasters, and a
member of the Orange Group. Mr Rouxel oversees the company’s global product strategy, including business units in Europe, Africa, the
Middle East, Asia and the Americas. Prior to joining GlobeCast, Mr Rouxel served as the Vice President of International Distribution
for France 24, an international broadcaster serving 165 million households in five continents. Previously, he held business development
positions with channels belonging to Lagardère, Canal+/Multithémathiques, Viacom/MTV Networks International, Première, and Walt
Disney International.
Philippe Rouxel graduated from EDHEC and CELSA Paris-Sorbonne.
Today’s connected world is one that embraces
diversity: diversity of content and technology
of course, but also the diversity of its viewers.
In any given country, most of us belong
to specific communities and cultures, but
we’re also more mobile and more far-flung
than at any time in history - and the days of
cities and regions with a singular cultural
identity are long past. The democratization
of international travel and mass cultural
migrations, enabled by the Schengen Zone in
Europe and other international treaties, have
made it easier than ever for large populations
to pick up stakes and to create diasporas in
new lands.
But wherever we roam, we still have a basic
human need to stay connected with the folks
back home and get a dose of the familiar from
time to time. In the old days, family might
mail a newspaper, movie, or book to someone
living in another country to make that person
feel more connected to his or her roots. That
basic need is still there today, but the means
of keeping that connection have evolved in a
big way.
Perhaps more than any other technology
trend, the availability of a vast array of
content on an ever-growing and equally
dazzling line-up of platforms and mobile
devices has changed the way people stay
connected and access information. As the
world becomes more and more of a melting
pot, viewers’ demand for international
content on the device of their choice will
present powerful new opportunities, and new
challenges, for broadcasters.
How we got here
In the early years of television, channels
never left their home market. Each country
- and indeed each region - produced its
own programming for a local audience.
Beginning in the 1960s with the launch of
satellite communications, technological
innovations spawned an evolution. Suddenly
the world started to shrink, and for the first
time, events of international significance,
including sports programming, began to
cross international borders.
There was no going back. Major news
networks such as CNN and BBC were the
first to create international versions of
their channels for various regions of the
world, followed by powerhouses such as
EMEA 2013 • 33

Native language content
MTV. Today, major international networks
appear on cable and satellite systems on
five continents.
Initially, such a global operation was
prohibitively expensive for all but the
largest of the world’s broadcasters. Tailoring
international content for overseas markets
was a technically and financially gargantuan
task and remained so through the end of the
20th century. To effectively cater to these
markets, a broadcaster had to establish local
bureaus as well as purchase huge amounts of
satellite capacity. However, once the digital
age had replaced analogue broadcast and
Internet bandwidth became robust enough
to carry streaming video, the floodgates of
information opened wide. All of this set
the stage for an unprecedented explosion in
international content.
An ideal marriage: international content and
multiplatform delivery
We know that today’s connected world is
all about content. But if content is king, the
user experience is King Kong. International
content has a built-in advantage in this
respect; after all, what experience could be
better than feeling “transported home” on any
device, anywhere in the world This former
niche area is finding exciting new ways to
touch audiences far beyond their borders,
sharing their unique world perspective and
reaching expatriate, immigrant, and cultureminded
viewers across the globe.
Consumer demand is driving video delivery
on user devices ranging from gaming
consoles, mobiles, and tablets to PCs and
connected TVs - and international content
is no exception. As a result, today’s viewers
live in an age in which, with a click of the
mouse or a wave of the finger, they have
unprecedented access to their program or
channel of choice. For shrewd broadcasters
who apply the right tools and choose the
right distribution, it’s an opportunity to build
loyalty and revenue by presenting engaging
content to targeted audiences.
The multiplatform, multi-device environment
lends itself well to international content
delivery for a variety of reasons. The
first reason is the scalable nature of these
solutions with the ability to control costs.
This is particularly important to broadcasters
who are launching in a brand new market.
Even premier broadcasters in their home
country may have to start from scratch from
a budgetary standpoint when expanding to a
new country. Conventional solutions such as
satellite - although they have a wide reach -
can be prohibitively expensive in some cases.
Over-the-top (OTT) distribution via IP
networks offers a more cost-effective entry
point for broadcasters looking to establish
themselves in new markets. While many
broadcasters view OTT as a complementary
strategy for their traditional services, others
approach it as a primary launching pad for
entering a new market. In some cases this
choice can be dictated by technology as well
- especially in less-developed regions where
terrestrial networks are not as mature or
reliable as mobile services.
Despite the initial uncertainty of launching
in a new country, if they do their research
right, international broadcasters have a clear
advantage over local and thematic content in
the sense that they have a dedicated, built-in
community of viewers hungering for content
in their own language and culture. In fact,
some viewers are so hungry that they will get
their content through any means necessary
- even illegal downloads off the Internet
or satellite pirating. Therefore, it behoves
broadcasters to proactively approach these
markets and take control of content delivery
through managed service offerings.
From a technology standpoint, the increased
mobility of viewers and the access that comes
with a handy mobile device only enhances the
opportunity to win these viewers over.
Key ingredients for success
In order to build a profitable operation and
unlock every opportunity for monetization,
broadcasters need to offer the widest possible
variety of content at the highest quality, with
relevance to different audiences wherever
they may live. The best OTT offerings make
full use of the broadcaster’s entire content
portfolio by offering live programming that
can be easily converted to VOD for catch-up
viewing, as well as pre-existing VOD titles
and assets from media libraries.
Of course, each offering must be highly
tailored to the target audience and region;
simply time-shifting the content or trying
to stream the same channel to every market
might have worked before, but is no longer
effective in today’s hyper-connected
world. Therefore, robust tools for content
regionalization and localization are a must,
as are tools for graphic insertion, subtitling,
and program substitution. The good news
is that Internet-delivered content makes
it much easier for broadcasters to create
tailored offerings, by providing easy access
to a wealth of statistics and metrics about
their audiences. Better knowledge of viewers
and their habits leads to better targeting of
services and therefore better controls on the
viewer experience with the goal of increasing
audience loyalty. Also, a competent global
service partner can help ensure a smooth
rollout of tailored content offerings by
providing an intimate understanding of
the target markets, and also providing
localization services.
The future is now
Although we might be a few years away
from widespread availability of international
content in any language and from any
country, there’s already a groundswell of
activity from broadcasters around the world.
To date, leading broadcasters from Brazil,
Africa, Romania, and Portugal have signed
onto the service as an easy and cost-effective
means of bringing local news, sports, and
entertainment programming to their expatriate
communities in the U.S.
Other examples abound. beIN Sport a global
network of sports channels jointly owned and
operated by Qatari Sports Investments, now
offers three channels in France and two in
the U.S. The Cambodian Television Network
(CTN) now delivers Cambodian-language
content to viewers in the U.S. and also
offers a mobile app for accessing the content
from phones and tablets. Russia Today, a
24/7 channel covering news, world affairs,
and human interest stories from a Russian
perspective, is now available in a range of
Asian countries.
To summarize, there is a bold and extremely
lucrative new world awaiting broadcasters,
and they need look no further than their
expatriate communities in other countries
- people who yearn for familiar content in
their own language. With the right global
partner, broadcasters can harness this
demand not only to create new revenue
streams, but to create a meaningful
experience for their overseas viewers and
bring new levels of closeness and connection
to communities everywhere. •
34 • EMEA 2013

Virtual working
The essentials of virtuality
by John Berry, Director and Management Consultant, TimelessTime
Today, broadband connections are adequate for virtual working, but without richer
communications, people will struggle to convince participants of the presence of others,
and connections will not replace face-to-face. Most firms wish that at least some of their
workers could work on the move or from home or client sites. Effective virtual teams
need connectivity, computers, Internet connections from wherever they are; appropriate
applications with relevant peripherals; methods that make teams function; and workers with
the right competencies and behaviours.
John Berry is a Director and Management Consultant with TimelessTime, a people-management consulting firm. Prior to founding,
TimelessTime. Mr Berry served with InterConnect Communications, part of Ericsson, as the director responsible for their consulting
in wireless regulation. Previously, Mr Berry started and built ATDI Ltd, a wireless and spectrum management software and consulting,
he also worked for Thales in radio spectrum management and led Maxon’s mobile marketing firm. Mr Berry started his technology
management career with Philips, leading its base station lab, and then led its mobile systems marketing. Mr Berry is a regular presenter
and speaker on technology and management.
John Berry has a BSc in electronics and a BA in sociology, politics and economics. He also has an MBA, specialising in the management
of technology and is just finishing an MSc in organisational technology at Birkbeck, University of London.
Today, the majority of firms are looking at
the prospect that at least some of its workers
could benefit from working while on the
move or from home or client sites. The
idea that one can participate in an audiovisual
conference call while on the train, for
instance, must be hugely attractive. After
all, time is money and reducing lost time
through travel must be every manager’s
aim. Similarly, the ability to run a workshop
with clients from the comfort of home is an
obvious benefit to a firm. Office space is an
overhead and so any corporate real estate
reduction must be eagerly sought.
It’s 2013 and it feels as though all the pieces
of the jigsaw are in place. Regulators have
allocated spectrum, 3G (if not 4G) networks
have rolled out, fibre is in the ground to
cabinets, and every worker has a computer.
Surely virtuality is with us
Well perhaps… Today, most of us work in
teams and for effective virtual team function,
five things are necessary. From the technology
side, firms need connectivity and computers.
They need workers to be able to connect with
the Internet from wherever they are located;
and they need computers running appropriate
applications with relevant peripherals. From
the people side, they need methods that make
teams function and workers with the right
competencies and behaviours.
How practical is virtuality today. There are
technological advances that allow virtual
operation. Then too, there are the people
and there are companies either trying to
foster the dual development of employees
and technology virtuality requires. Other
companies, though, simply wait expecting
technology alone to drive the change towards
the virtual organisation. Our experiences
with a recent virtual project team, spread
geographically across Europe and the
Middle East, provides some insight into how
technology benefits such operations.
An EMEA case study
As a backdrop to this discussion there’s a
case study: around eight consultants located
in the UK, The Netherlands, Saudi Arabia,
Dubai and Qatar and around six clients
located in Iraq. All worked recently on a
cross-national, cross-company project. All
the consultants worked from home or from
touch-down centres and all clients worked
from offices in the Green Zone in Baghdad.
This case study tells us much about how
advanced the technology and the people
are and hence how well firms across the
region can embrace virtuality. It will be used
throughout to illustrate the various arguments.
Raw connectivity
For virtual operation, the participants must be
afforded the ability to communicate wherever
they are located. But what does that mean Team
members need to communicate by voice. We
have that today - although international mobile
calls are costly and many operators block free
services such as Skype. Luckily subscription
services, such as GoToMeeting, are allowed and,
today, local access points are provided in many
countries. It was quite a shock when one project
team member announced his participation while
mobile across Jordan. So the team can associate
and build trust through regular calls.
It’s somewhat more effective though if voice
is augmented by imagery. Watching the caller
on screen can be a distraction but looking
at and helping construct an organisational
chart or a job description on-screen helps
understanding. The audio and visual cues
work together. So online workshops need
Citrix-style applications which, in turn,
EMEA 2013 • 35

PACIFIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS COUNCIL Facebook/PTC.org @ptcouncil Pacific Telecommunications Council

Virtual working
need broadband connection with modest
latency and near-continuous availability.
Thankfully though the limiting characteristic
is not the broadband speed - online meeting
applications keep going even when only a
few hundred kb/s are available.
Not spots, islands and contention
Now in principle, network operators report
high percentage coverage of populated
areas. But in reality, most countries suffer
extensive not-spots. 3G services are focused
in city centres and regulators have yet to
allocate adequate spectrum. As recently
reported extensively, around 700MHz of
UHF spectrum is needed now by operators
and while much has been identified, only
a fraction has actually been allocated. The
result is that demand exceeds supply and
users suffer extensive contention, degrading
any ability to sustain data connection.
Luckily, hotels, cafes and other providers
of wi-fi have now substantially stopped
charging by the day. The result is that workers
can get free or low-cost access just about
whenever it’s needed, at least somewhere in
town. Trains too are beginning to use mobile
networks for mobile access, providing wi-fi
access inside the carriage to users and while
connection suffers contention, it works. So
between mobile networks and wi-fi ‘islands’,
connection is available.
So it’s a mixed state. Our consultant participating
while mobile across Jordan is good but today,
such ubiquity is pretty much restricted to voice.
Computers and applications
For technology to afford workers function,
they need applications. Workers need
the ‘normal’ office packages but virtual
workers need shared workspaces to replace
the Sharepoints and the CRMs of the
headquarters domain.
Dropbox is possibly the most widely accepted
shared file-space today and yet many
corporate IT ‘police’ forbid such connection
and sharing, citing security worries. Our
EMEA project team suffered just this. Some
team members could only receive working
documents via email and since most of
us receive hundreds of emails a day, it’s
a real challenge to manage team material
production and distribution.
Collaboration is a challenge. But if workers
adopt Web 2.0 technology, it can work. Social
media allows teams to micro-blog, keeping
one another up-to-date and applications such as
GitHub allow issues to be shared and resolved.
Methods
Now, in our EMEA team case, consulting
methods had to be settled on once the job was
won. The clients were based in the Green Zone
in Baghdad and few of the consultants were
prepared to go there - so the conventional
delivery of documents and the richness
of face-to-face workshops were not going
to work. This meant that new approaches
were needed that would accommodate the
infrequent lean connectivity available.
And it happens that the world of software
engineering has a method well suited to just this
environment - Agile. The essence of Agile is the
break-down of the project deliverables into multiple
‘stories’, the production of a deliverable during a
‘sprint’, its review at a ‘stand up’ and its subsequent
revision and acceptance before repeating all again
for the next ‘story’ in the project. Agile breaks the
project into fortnightly periods. In the EMEA case,
we broke the project into weeks.
One of the biggest issues when operating in
virtual teams is the building of trust. When
face-to-face, trust is built through action but
also through the basic liking and understanding
between workers that comes from looking a
colleague in the eye. In virtuality, trust comes
only through action. Team members must do
what they say they’ll do when they say they’ll
do it. And trust won’t be built when conventional
plans are developed with project phases lasting
months before deliverables appear. Our variant
of Agile helps build trust by demanding that team
members produced smaller deliverables sooner.
Action is simply measurable.
So methods must be adjusted to
accommodate virtual working and the
nuances of dispersed teams.
And the people
People are defined by their individual and
substantially unchanging characteristics: their
personality, intelligence, competency, beliefs,
attitudes and motives. The people are used to
working in a particular way. They have beliefs
about the success of the established method.
The job they do motivated them, providing skill
variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy
and the necessary feedback. Now, people have a
new, very different way of doing their jobs.
Change means un-learning what they
knew and re-learning new skills. Suddenly
visual cues are absent - after all you can’t
see your colleague - and shared working
environments, email and micro-blogging
prevail. Impressions are managed differently,
more by performance than anything and all
parties can multi-communicate - the idea that
they can be on an audio-visual conference
with a super-group, while communicating
privately with others.
People have competencies. When methods
and technologies change, these competencies
must be developed. Firms must therefore
not only invest in technology - providing the
connectivity, computers and applications - but
must also invest in the people.
Staff often take time to embrace the audiovisual
workshops and to adjust their own style
to this form of communication. Some may
struggle to adjust to the pressure of the week
bursts of activity and all must feel that the
environment is sufficiently risk free to allow
the experimentation needed to learn anew.
Firms often assume that by implementing
technology, change will just happen. This is
not the case. Perhaps the youth of today, who
grew up with the Cloud and social media, will
embrace change, but those more established
in their ways may reject, resist or work round
the change or even leave the organisation.
Conclusions
There is a duality here - the social system in which
people work together to achieve objectives and the
technological system that facilitates this working.
The social places pressure on the technological,
modifying what people will use and how they
use it and the technological modifies the social,
affording the users of new approaches to old
problems - if they chose to accept it. Technology
affords connectivity and tools, encouraging
virtuality and social systems mingle with the
technology to afford new methods.
Today, connectivity is adequate for virtual
working but only if team members are fixed or
nomadic, using fixed or nomadic broadband
connection. Until mobile networks offer a richer
communications, they will struggle through
their slower information processing to convince
participants of the presence of others, hence
replacing face-to-face.
Companies can wait and let the technology
and colleagues force change - or they can
plan change and train staff for the sort of
virtuality they want. But just like in our
EMEA team, change is inevitable and the
technology is sufficiently mature to allow
much to be achieved. •
EMEA 2013 • 37

Secure content distribution
Secure mobile distribution of corporate content
by Ian Evans, Managing Director EMEA, AirWatch
When sharing corporate content in the cloud, with everything accessed via mobile devices,
it can be difficult to manage access. Free cloud file sharing services distribute corporate
documents to employee-owned devices, but offer businesses little protection or control.
Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solutions provide secure corporate content
management and protection,; they prevent leakage and theft while enabling distribution.
Hybrid approaches using a combination of internal and external storage can provide the
most flexibility and help companies control employee user costs.
Ian Evans is Managing Director for the European, Middle Eastern and African regions (EMEA) region at AirWatch, specialised in
enterprise mobility management, mobile security, mobile device management (MDM) mobile application management (MAM) and
mobile content management (MCM) solutions. Mr Evans has more than 20 years of experience in the software industry. Mr Evans
worked previously as Managing Director, EMEA of Aste, a software solutions company. Before Astea, Mr Evans was director, EMEA for
O4 Corporation, and a vice president at InforGlobal Solutions.
Ian Evans holds a degree in Computer Science.
Revoking all access to corporate content
when an employee left a company used to
be easy a decade ago, when removal of door
entree blocked admission to all corporate
information and data. The year 2013 brings
new ramifications, as employees have come
to expect easy access to corporate resources
from any device, anywhere at any time. With
corporate content often shared across users
and in the cloud, IT departments may find
it hard to keep control. As mobile access is
becoming increasingly business-critical, IT
departments in companies across EMEA
are challenged to securely deploy content to
mobile devices, to enable collaboration and to
prevent data loss and leakage.
Business challenges
During the past few years I have seen the
first generation of mobile natives enter
the workforce. A new set of business
challenges emerged, as mobile workers
increasingly utilise widely available and
free cloud file sharing services to distribute
corporate documents, potentially risking
data loss and leakage. Challenges exist also
in the proliferation of personal accounts
used for business, the rapid adoption of
mobile devices and file sharing apps, and
employee-owned devices with access to
corporate content.
In the cloud-collaboration space, users are
very often ahead of IT. When employees
started to collaborate online, they introduced
basic, consumer-grade cloud storage solutions
that do not normally offer the data protection
or enterprise control capabilities businesses
require into the workplace, as alternatives
were not readily available. Today, Enterprise
Mobility Management (EMM) solutions
provide content management security and
protection alongside wider mobility support
to help businesses prevent leakage and theft
and enable the distribution and sharing of
corporate information while ensuring that it
remains secure.
38 • EMEA 2013

Secure content distribution
The role of mobile content management
across industries
The uptake of mobile devices varies across
countries, industries and job roles. While
sharing content on tablets and mobile phones
may not be suitable for everyone, many have
seen great benefits:
Aviation: This is an example of an
industry where tablets have completely
transformed customer experience and the
work environment. Air France now offers
customers the possibility to download digital
versions of newspapers on their mobile
devices on the day of their trip1, and KLM
and Air France have recently announced the
launch of inflight Wi-Fi2.
Aircraft operators also utilise Electronic
Flight Bags (EFBs) to streamline updates
to their flight manuals. Instead of providing
paper copies of manuals that had to be
reprinted every two weeks, digital content can
be stored on tablets and updated with ease.
With a conventional flight bag containing an
average of 12,000 sheets of paper per pilot,
EFBs offer significant green benefits by
reducing paper use and, through decreased
weight, reducing fuel consumption. Having
switched to EFBs, one airline expects to save
nearly 16 million sheets of paper a year and
326,000 gallons of jet fuel.3 By abolishing
heavy 40-pound flight bags in favour of
EFBs, airlines have also been able to address
back injuries, a health and safety issue not
uncommon among pilots. As EFBs are
subject to stringent compliance and security
measures to ensure passenger safety and
protect sensitive data, a suitable enterprise
mobility management solution is critical.
Education: Tablet devices are changing the
modern classroom, and schools see better
engagement from students and increased
relevancy of the instructional materials from
eLearning, as videos, presentations and
eBooks become readily accessible. Bringyour-own-device
(BYOD) schemes that
allow pupils to access teaching material on
their own mobile devices are becoming more
important to schools and universities, with 67
per cent of UK schools currently considering
BYOD important, up from 52 per cent in
2012.4 To ensure that pupils have access to
required classroom content, remain secure
and not access unsuitable content, schools
and universities utilise device and content
management systems that enable them to
restrict access to inappropriate websites
as well as push relevant study material to
devices in specified classrooms only.
Healthcare: Healthcare providers across
Europe are under increasing pressure to
realise cost savings and improve patient
care, which lead to this industry seeing rapid
uptake of mobile devices. Health workers
can access patient information on-the-go,
eliminating the need to go into the practice
before being able to see patients. Mobile
devices are streamlining work processes,
with doctors and nurses having information
about a patient immediately available on their
tablets, eliminating the need for a computer
or paper chart. A lot of work is now done
exclusively on tablets. Patient information
is accessed through mobile devices that are
shared across shifts and can travel anywhere
and healthcare privacy laws requiring data
security become increasingly important.
Mobile device and content management
solutions that enable shared device ownership
ensure that patient data is only accessible to
the appropriate healthcare individual.
Field Sales: This is an area where tablets
will ultimately take over and laptops will
be phased out as companies update their PC
inventory. Field sales teams will do sales
presentations on mobile devices and access
corporate content such as brochures and
pricing information through these. With
content managed centrally, any additional
information a prospect or client may require
can be pushed to the individual device
immediately, providing the sales executive
will any content required.
Integration with existing infrastructure
ensures simplicity
The influx of mobile devices in enterprises
has, to a large extent, been user driven and
users have determined which solution is
being used, without the enterprise taking cost,
architecture, security, audit-ability or logging
of activities into account. Professional
procurement of content management
solutions, with distinct prerequisites,
regulatory and integration requirements is
only now starting to emerge.
Through integrated, secure content
repositories, businesses are able to control not
only content but also the geographic location
the content is enabled for - only in proximity
to the office for example, the tools that can
be used to open and read content, and the
rights and permissions around the content,
limiting which content can be printed, edited
or forwarded. To prevent leakage of corporate
data and ensure that devices read contents
securely, organisations can use network
directory credentials for subscription access
control lists to enable EMM integration
with corporate repository services such as
SharePoint or encrypted file share drives such
as Amazon drives.
The importance of user experience
Enterprise-grade content management
solutions need to be user-friendly and
non-invasive if they are to successfully
replace consumer-grade solutions in the
enterprise. A hybrid approach where storage
is a combination of internal and external
storage can, for example, allow for the most
flexibility. It enables companies to share
content with their own employees through
secure mobile access to SharePoint or File
servers and allow employees to utilise
personal storage areas, utilising third party
repositories in cases where companies don’t
have sufficient internal storage capacity.
Cost ramifications of unmanaged content
management solutions
Collaboration is one of the two main factors
in the content management space, the second
one, which many businesses are not taking
into account, is cost management. The cost
ramifications of synchronising gigabytes of
files are often overlooked. While data plans
may be fairly generous in some countries,
they can become a major cost factor when
employees are using mobile devices while
travelling across EMEA, or are using BYOD
devices. Companies that sign employees up
to automatically receive digital content but
don’t limit content from downloading while
roaming may face major cost implications.
Cost control is a main control factor
companies need to take into account and
chosen enterprise mobility management
solutions need to be able to facilitate this
granular level of control. •
EMEA 2013 • 39

Mobile security
Cutting mobile content risks
by Kees Van Veenendaal, VP and General Manager of EMEA, MobileIron
The old model for content security - heavy containerization - protected data by separating it
from other data and blocking unauthorized apps or users, but users did not like the experience.
People that buy an iPhone or Android device do not want to flip between enterprise and
personal screens and use third-party apps instead of the native experience they love. This
compromises productivity and creates security risks as employees develop workarounds.
Targeted containerization secures enterprise content within the native experience.
Kees van Veenendaal is the VP and General Manager of EMEA at MobileIron; hebrings more than 25 years of experience throughout
EMEA, the Americas and APAC to his role.
Prior joining MobileIron, Mr van Veenendaal was Vice President Worldwide Sales for Trapeze Networks; Vice President of EMEA sales
at Extreme Networks; and Managing Director of US Robotics Benelux. Mr van Veenendaal also held senior European management roles
at Gandalf, Digital Communications Associates.
Kees van Veenendaal has an MBA from Universiteit Nyenrode, the Netherlands.
Mobile technology is driving a massive
shift in the ability of IT departments to truly
support the way people want to work. Across
Europe, we see companies becoming Mobile
First organizations, embracing mobility as
a primary computing platform in order to
transform their businesses and increase their
competitiveness. A mobile deployment used
to mean the company issued 200 BlackBerrys
to executives. Now, it means that every
employee in an organization is using mobile
apps and accessing corporate content via a
mobile device that may or may not be owned
by the company.
The result is that people expect to be able
to access the corporate content they need on
any device at any time. However, as soon as
you put email on a mobile device you risk
losing enterprise content. Email attachments
can be forwarded or uploaded to a consumer
cloud storage service. Content can be cut and
pasted from one email account to another.
Apps introduce additional security risks. Data
moving between an app and the corporate
network is vulnerable to man-in-the-middle
attacks via rogue Wi-Fi hotspots. App data
stored on the mobile device could be accessed
by a malicious app a user inadvertently
installed. Securing mobile content presents
several distinct challenges.
Mobile Content Security Challenges
Mobile devices are consumer devices not
corporate devices
In the days of old mobile, everyone
was issued BlackBerrys because the IT
department could lock them down. That’s
not possible with the new mobile operating
systems. Now, mobile devices are no longer
issued by IT. People who love using their
smartphones and tablets in their personal
lives bring them to work. Then the Mobile
IT team needs to figure out how to secure
corporate content without compromising the
employee’s privacy in terms of their personal
content. Regardless of whether the mobile
device is owned by the employee or the
company, most devices will be used for both
personal and professional use.
Mobile devices store large amounts of data in
small, easy to lose packages
Storage capacity is growing, and, in addition,
most Android devices have removable SD
cards. Content is stored in email attachments
and in mobile apps. And all of it is in a small
device that is easily lost or stolen. Enterprises
need to be able to ensure the security of dataat-rest
on the device.
Mobile devices are hyper-connected
Apple devices have iCloud and any device
can connect to file-sharing services, such
as Dropbox. This makes it very easy for an
40 • EMEA 2013

25 – 26 March 2014
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Mobile security
employee to move data to clouds outside
enterprise control. Mobile devices are also
constantly connecting to any available
network, private or public whether or not it
is trusted. As a result, data moving between
a device and the corporate network is
vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks via
rogue Wi-Fi hotspots. Mobile IT needs to be
able to secure data-in-motion as it travels to
and from the device.
Lockdown will fail
Mobile devices should never be locked down
like laptops because lockdown fundamentally
damages the user experience impeding
productivity and impairing adoption. The
core tenet of successful mobile deployments
is the preservation of user experience. A
mobile program will not be sustainable
if user experience is compromised when
employees start using their personal devices
for corporate email and apps.
Every computing deployment, whether
mobile or not, carries some risk of content
loss. With mobile, there are several best
practices which organizations follow to
mitigate this risk to the point that it is
acceptable given the positive business value
of mobile.
Best Practices for Securing Mobile Content
Email attachments are the primary source
of enterprise documents on mobile devices.
Mobile IT’s challenge is to give users access
to business email on their mobile devices
while ensuring those users cannot save
business email attachments to apps or clouds
outside IT security controls. The security
challenge of mobility for the enterprise is
that this one-click sharing of information
from the device to external services is
simple and frequent. A business email
attachment can quickly end up in Dropbox
without any malicious intent or even effort
on the part of the user.
Ensure every device is under management
Every device needs to be connected to
a Mobile IT platform that can secure
and manage the device, the apps, and
the content. If the user deactivates or
removes the management client from the
device, that will trigger a policy violation
in the system. The system should be
configured to immediate block the device
and the apps on it from accessing the
corporate network.
Monitor the operating system
When a device’s operating system is
jailbroken or rooted the established data
security measures are no longer reliable.
Therefore, automated rules should
immediately quarantine the device, remove
corporate data, and notify the administrator.
Companies should also determine what
versions of an operating system they are
willing to support. Devices running on
the latest version will be up-to-date with
all available security patches while older
versions will not.
Set and enforce passcode policy and
encryption: Passcode enforcement prevents
unauthorized access to the device. Companies
should also implement an auto-wipe policy
that wipes the device completely after
a predefined number of failed password
attempts. This minimizes the risk of brute
force attacks on lost or stolen devices.
Protect email and attachments
Restricting email forwarding prevents
corporate email from being forwarded
through the user’s personal email account on
the device. It also prevents emails from being
moved by the user from a corporate inbox to
a personal inbox. Companies also need to be
able to restrict the ability to use third-party
file readers or document management apps to
open email attachments. When an attachment
is opened in one of these apps, it can be
saved or distributed completely without
the knowledge of IT. As a result, email
attachments are the biggest risk of mobile
data loss.
Establish identity
Especially in BYOD initiatives, user and
device identity must be strongly established.
Securing email, Wi-Fi, and VPN access
using certificates protects identity and
also improves the user experience since
certificates provide complex credentials
automatically.
Define the role of iCloud
In a well-designed corporate deployment,
iCloud will not increase the risk of data loss.
iCloud does not back up any email or PIM
content that comes from corporate sources
such as Exchange or Notes. iCloud also does
not back up encrypted data, which means data
from apps that use iOS Data Protection will
not be stored in iCloud.
Blacklist known threats
The mobile app landscape moves quickly
but most organizations have identified a set
of file readers or other apps that they do not
trust. These apps should be blacklisted so that
if an employee downloads a blacklisted app,
a remediation action will be automatically
triggered. This action could range from a
simple non-compliance SMS notification to a
full device quarantine which strips the device
of all enterprise email, apps, connectivity, and
settings until the threat is removed.
Conclusion
The old model for content security was
‘heavy containerization’. A container is set of
protected data. This data is separated from all
other data on the device and is protected from
unauthorized apps or users.
In the first generation of enterprise mobility,
all business data and associated apps were
segregated into monolithic, email-based
containers. While this protected business
data, it forced users into an experience they
did not like.
People buy an iPhone, iPad or Android
device because they love the user
experience that was developed specifically
for that device. When they use that
device at work they want to be able to
have that same experience. The heavy
containerization approach forces people
to flip between enterprise and personal
screens on their device or requires they
use a third-party email app instead of the
native experience they love. Not only do
these approaches compromise productivity
but they create security risks as employees
figure out workarounds.
In the new generation of enterprise
mobility, user experience is core and the
new answer is ‘targeted containerization,’
securing the enterprise content within the
native experience and leaving the personal
content untouched. Mobile First companies
know that mobile access to corporate
content is critical and their vision is that
employees can work the way they want to,
on the device of their choice, with the apps
that they love, and access to the content
they need, all in a secure environment. •
42 • EMEA 2013

Ultra HD TV
Ultra HD TV - real quality
by Ian Trow, Senior Director of Emerging Technology and Strategy, Harmonic
Ultra HD is an important opportunity for the broadcast television industry. There are significant
hurdles concerning interfacing, format standardization, and bandwidth requirements, but
solutions exist. Cost-effective deployment of services at lower resolutions is needed for
services such as OTT HD, since costs are a major problem for broadcasters in a multi-screen
world. Repurposing HD and cinema derived content is crucial to providing an exciting Ultra
HD experience in the home environment and offer applications like movie download at
resolutions beyond HD.
Ian Trow is the Senior Director for Emerging Technology & Strategy at Harmonic; he has over 20 years of systems and design experience
in High Definition and MPEG video products. Prior to Harmonic, Mr Tow’s worked at Thomson as Director of Compression Technology
and at Envivio (VP of Technology & Marketing). Mr Trow also served at Tandberg Television as Engineering Group Manager and, later,
as its Segment and Product Manager for satellite, terrestrial and IP delivery of compressed material. Before Tandberg, he was a design
engineer at Snell & Wilcox and Sony Broadcast.
Ian Trow obtained a B.Sc in Electronic Engineering from the University of Sussex and is Cisco CCNP & CCDA qualified.
Since the introduction of television in
1925, the user experience has dramatically
changed. Aside from the resolution
increasing, television has evolved in such
a way that consumers can now watch highquality
video content on a wide range of
devices, including TVs, PCs, tablets, and
smartphones. Some second-screen devices,
like tablets, feature Retina® displays with
a high enough pixel density that the human
eye is unable to discern pixelation at a
typical viewing distance.
As consumer demand for a superior video
quality increases, a new resolution format
called Ultra High Definition Television
(Ultra HD) promises to further optimize
the television viewing experience, bringing
cinema like clarity to the home television
viewer. This article provides a detailed
overview of the Ultra HD format, including
the broadcast workflow, compression
techniques, and other necessary steps that
need to be accomplished in order to achieve
widespread consumer adoption.
What is Ultra HD
Ultra HD is a new digital video format
proposed by NHK Science & Technology
Research Laboratories and defined
and approved by the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU). The Ultra
HD format presents native video at two
resolutions (See Figure 1.). In this article we
shall limit discussion to the lower resolution
of 3840 x 2160 pixels. This is a massive
improvement in quality over the current HD
format (1920 x 1080) and just a step below
what is currently being offered by digital
cinema 4K (4096 x 2160).
The Ultra HD Workflow
The Ultra HD workflow is extremely
complex. This is due to three main factors.
Broadcast involves high-bandwidth realtime
transfer throughout the chain. Content
EMEA 2013 • 43

Ultra HD TV
is derived from a variety of ingest sources
as well as consisting of both national and
regional feeds. Lastly, even though the
highlighted workflow relates to Ultra HD,
television provision has to increasingly
cater for an ever expanding number of
multiscreen options.
It is likely that in the interest of time
broadcasters will provision their production
environment for Ultra HD in the same way
that most production facilities currently
do for HD. To cater for resolutions lower
than Ultra HD, transcoding the original
broadcast content in a cost-effective manner
is critical for broadcasters to maintain a
healthy margin. While this article discusses
the impact of Ultra HD and advocates
the use of HEVC, such a compression
scheme is equally applicable to the need for
compression efficiency in multiscreen all the
way up to OTT delivery. Many of
the challenges a broadcaster faces
when trying to establish an Ultra
HD channel are easier to solve in
a multiscreen environment. This
is because there is often little
legacy STB or PVR provision
associated with multiscreen.
Multiscreen playback relies on
software running on standard
platforms that can be quickly
repurposed for new compression
strategies like HEVC.
HEVC: Enabling Broadcasters to
Support Ultra HD
A major concern for broadcasters and
content providers is how to deliver
high-bandwidth services like Ultra HD,
specifically for catch-up TV. A new video
compression standard called High Efficiency
Video Coding (HEVC) provides the answer.
HEVC significantly improves upon the
current compression standard H.264 also
known as MPEG-4 AVC (Advanced Video
Coding) by reducing the data rate needed for
high-quality video coding by approximately
50 percent. This enables broadcasters to
deliver higher-quality services like Ultra HD
using the same amount of bandwidth. (See
Figures 2, 3, and 4.)
HEVC uses larger block sizes, enabling
more efficient coding of large images,
especially of regions with few changes
in the picture content. This is extremely
beneficial for applications like Ultra HD.
Improved Intra-frame prediction allows
better prediction of pixels by exploiting
redundancy within the current frame.
By offering more prediction directions
than AVC, HEVC allows for a more
sophisticated way of predicting and coding
the intra mode selected.
HEVC also addresses other issues, such as
banding, which won’t be discussed in great
detail in this article. However, it is important
to note that HEVC may include support
for multi-view video coding or stereo 3D
video in the future. This, combined with
scalable video coding, allows a video
stream, sequence, or image to be represented
in multiple ways and formats. In other
words, content can be prepared in different
resolutions, screen characteristics, frame
or bit rates, for viewing on multiscreen
devices, all while retaining a high level of
coding efficiency. With consumer demand
for multiscreen services rapidly increasing,
this will be important feature of HEVC.
Ultra HD and Multiscreen
While Ultra HD brings prestige to the
television screen, the real challenge is cost
effective delivery in multiple playout and
delivery scenarios, enabling increased
opportunities for targeted advertising.
The MPEG DASH standard will allow
content delivery operators to deliver
Internet services, including Ultra HD,
while containing the CAPEX and OPEX
associated with multiscreen delivery.
DASH provides operators with a universal
HTTP delivery format to cost-effectively
scale adaptive streams to any connected
device using a common encryption
technology with one master key. Utilizing
a single encryption standard, content is
encrypted once and streamed to clients
that support various digital rights
management (DRM) systems. Each client
receives a set of decryption keys and
other necessary information using its
specific DRM system, which is signaled
in the DASH protocol, and then has
the capability to stream the commonly
encrypted content from the same server.
DASH can be implemented across all
content delivery vehicles – broadcast,
mobile, interactive television, and the
Internet – while providing interoperability
between all DASH profiles and connected
devices. As Ultra HD content makes its way
onto multiple consumer devices, DASH will
be a critical enabling technology.
Applications and Consumer Adoption
HD took nearly a decade to mature;
therefore, Ultra HD will likely be a gradual
process before becoming a worldwide
broadcast format. When HD was first
introduced, there was relatively little
content. A lot of content was upconverted
from SD. A move to Ultra HD requires an
even greater stretch to allow HD
content to be repurposed.
It’s expected that Ultra HD will
first take off in the production
environment for applications
like sports, where there’s a huge
drive to achieve higher quality
for major events like the World
Cup. Ultra HD allows the use of
advanced slow-motion and pan
and scan techniques to capture
high-quality live and replay
content, which will greatly
enhance sporting event coverage.
Ultra HD also has massive appeal in the
download market, where industry giants like
Netflix and YouTube are already encoding
their files using HEVC to support Ultra HD
for cinematic 4K releases.
Before Ultra HD achieves mass adoption,
work needs to be done on the consumer
front. Current HDMI interfaces only support
resolutions up to 1080p at 50Hz and 60Hz.
Without a further iteration of the HDMI
standard any move toward Ultra HD will
be temporally hindered, unless the user is
prepared to use dual synchronized HDMI
connection into televisions. This approach is
unlikely to appear on consumer equipment,
although it is interesting to note that this
approach has been adopted on 4K cameras
where four HDMI synchronized connections
are used to sustain the bandwidth required
for baseband 4K video.
HDMI does have competition, namely
HDBaseT, an Ethernet-based standard using
Cat 5e connectors with major manufacturer
backing from the likes of Sony, Samsung,
44 • EMEA 2013

Ultra HD TV
and LG as well as Thunderbolt, commonly
available on Apple devices. For Ultra HD
to be a genuine successor to HD, consumer
interface standards will need to evolve
to support the data rates needed for Ultra
HD at a minimum of 50 Hz and 60 Hz
for broadcast and 100 Hz and 120 Hz for
premium download applications.
SES ASTRA: An Ultra HD Real-World
Case Study
While work remains to be done on the
consumer front, the satellite industry has
already been successful at transmitting
Ultra HD content. SES recently partnered
with Harmonic and Broadcom Corporation
to pioneer the first Ultra HD transmission
in the new HEVC standard live from an
ASTRA satellite at 19.2 degrees East.
The end-to-end demonstration was
powered by advanced HEVC transcoding
(ProMedia Express) from Harmonic
and an HEVC decoder from Broadcom
for receiving HEVC encoded Ultra-HD
television transmissions. The signal was
broadcast in DVB-S2 using a data rate of
20 Mbit/s, proving that the HEVC format
is able to support Ultra HD content at
manageable bitrates.
This demonstration marked the first time
that a full 3840 x 2160 pixel Ultra HD
picture was broadcast live using HEVC
compression. Previous demonstrations
were broadcast in H.264 often using
four HD encoders in parallel which
introduces motion estimation and
synchronization issues in the final decoded
and reassembled picture. While Ultra HD
delivery to consumer homes may still
be a bit in the future, the demonstration
iilustrates to broadcasters the potential for
Ultra HD services.
Conclusion
Ultra HD is an exciting opportunity for
the broadcast television industry. While
there exist significant hurdles concerning
interfacing, format standardization, and
bandwidth requirements, solutions exist that
will allow such services to launch within the
next few years.
Understanding the likely workflow
associated with Ultra HD will aid the costeffective
deployment of services at lower
resolutions, for example OTT HD delivery.
This is vital for broadcasters to improve
their margins. CAPEX and OPEX have been
an increasing problem for broadcasters in a
multiscreen world.
Native Ultra HD content is the ideal for a
broadcast service, but this expectation will
be seldom met with initial service launches.
Understanding how to repurpose HD and
cinema derived content will be crucial if
Ultra HD sets are to deliver the wow factor
in the home environment and open up
parallel applications like movie download at
resolutions beyond HD.
The prospect of Ultra HD will further
narrow the perception of a scene portrayed
by television being indistinguishable
from the live event, further immersing the
viewer and enhancing the perception of
broadcast television. •
Connect-World now on
Facebook & Twitter
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makers express their opinions in
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services have on the way people
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separate editions for each of
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www.connect-world.com.
EMEA 2013 • 45

Bandwidth
Conquering through copper - delivering content
wherever needed
by Lee Palmer, Commercial Director, The Kenton Group
With the growing demand for bandwidth to deliver the content today’s users require, especially
given the growth in mobile device ownership and bandwidth-hungry applications. So there
is a growing concern of a crunch in the future. Dealing with a crunch means choosing the
most effective medium will be the key to operator success. Fibre will always be the number
one choice, but copper is everywhere, inexpensive and inherently reliable, but for the last
mile copper is here and available now.
Lee Palmer is the Commercial Director of The Kenton Group. He has more than 20 years of sales experience in senior roles: at Jtec, he
served as EMEA Sales Director; at 3Com as Business Development Manager for the CommWorks division; ad at RAD /Axerra where he
held the position of Carrier Business Development Manager and Sales Director.
The perpetual demand for ever increasing
bandwidth and capacity on the world’s
telecom networks continues year after year.
This growth is driven by the increasing use
of mobile-connected devices such as tablets,
Smartphones, laptops and smart TVs, to name
a few. High-definition video and streamed
content on consumer devices is on the rise,
and there is no sign of this growth slowing
anytime soon.
There is a growing concern surrounding a
future ‘capacity crunch’, where the ability
to deliver capacity will be outstripped by
demand. Each year new devices, increased
capabilities and intelligence are being
introduced in the market, with the number
of mobile-connected devices set to exceed
the number of people on earth by the end
of 2013, reaching ten billion by 2016i.
Regionally, Western Europe is going to have
one of the fastest growth rates in mobile
devices and connections with a 13 per cent
and ten per cent compound annual growth
rate from 2012 to 2017 respectively. By
2017, the Middle East and Africa will have
the strongest mobile data traffic growth of
any region at 77 per cent compound annual
growth rateii. These stats alone highlight the
need for higher bandwidth – if we ignore the
signals we will put increasing pressure on the
networks, which may already be at risk of
crashing in the next 20 years.
As content increases, bandwidth needs to
expand
In order to stream high value content - TV,
video, games or otherwise – uninterrupted,
with zero buffering, more bandwidth is
needed. Most cities and new commercial or
residential developments are well connected
as fibre infrastructure is now the de facto
standard for connectivity, this means people
can effectively use the myriad of IP services
and more importantly, have the content they
require delivered over a high speed medium.
Fibre delivers unbeatable speeds and is as
future proof as a technology can be. Fibre
delivery reduces cost for deployment in areas
where the population is higher. In fact fibre
is now moving into the LAN environment
with many corporates using Fibre to the Desk
(FTTD) in buildings, by utilising GPON in
the architecture, as it can reduce capital and
operational costs by up to 70 per cent. This
up and coming technology is called FiberLan
46 • EMEA 2013

Bandwidth
and will have the ability to deliver high speed
content to the desk.
While areas across EMEA, such as the
big cities and urban areas of Scandinavia,
England and France, are well served by
carriers and already have superfast coverage
(well above average at 65 per cent or more)
iii, the suburbs and rural areas suffer.
In rural areas it is significantly more
expensive to deploy fibre as the civil works
are such a big part of the deployment.
Rural areas are suffering from well below
average superfast coverage (under 35 per
cent) in three of the biggest countries in
Europe – Italy, France and the UKiv. This
is unsurprising due to cost implications
and means both business and residential
customers in these areas are disadvantaged.
They require higher levels of speed and
service, but the service providers cannot
support this without having to deploy new
infrastructure. The costs associated with
fibre installations are high and need to be
divided over the number of customers served
by the network and as such, costs become
increasingly expensive as the number of
customers served decreases.
Other superfast technologies have been
created and merged with the three main
technologies to cover 70 per cent of
Europe - Docsis 3 cable (Data over Cable
Service Interface Specification Version 3),
VDSL (Very-high-speed Digital Subscriber
Line) and FTTP (Fibre to the Premises).
However, because of overlaps of these
technologies, they reach barely 50 per cent
of householdsv. Mapping by broadband
analyst Point Topic, reveals how much
larger the digital divide is in rural areas,
particularly where superfast broadband is
concerned. 78 per cent of rural EU homes
have access to standard broadband but only
12 per cent - five million - have superfast
broadband available. Therefore, 35 million
of the 40 million rural homes in Europe are
waiting for superfast broadband to arrive.
Today’s technologies are very much built
into everyday life and so digital deprivation
can rightly be considered alongside more
traditional social deprivations, such as low
income, unemployment or poor education.
Access to broadband brings great benefits
to rural areas, improving quality of life
through increased access to things like
government services, e-learning, commerce
and social interaction. Many of these
services are delivered through video or
VoIP and should be delivered effectively
without interruption or buffering, and so
bandwidth needs to increase.
Delivering the solution
It’s important to have the ability to deliver
content wherever it is needed, regardless
of location. Despite all the recent attention
given to FTTH where cities and developing
towns are benefitting from new superfast
networks, it has reached only 12 per cent of
Europe’s homesvi and the average take rate
across MENA is only 33 per centvii. This
shows that users only ‘pay’ for the bandwidth
they require to receive the content they
demand. The solution for rural areas is much
more complex but this should be an area for
carriers to focus on, improving the amount
of bandwidth they can squeeze out of copper
through new technological advancements to
deliver what the customer needs not what he
perceives he needs. For the carrier and service
providers it’s about maximising existing
assets to enable content delivery.
For example, using innovative technologies
to enhance the performance of existing
copper-based networks, providers can
extend the reach of broadband access
lines and maximise usage on the existing
infrastructure. By utilising technologies
such as FTTX, VDSL, EFM bonding and
even ADSL bonding, broadband reach can
be extended and speeds can be increased.
Utilisation of these new technologies makes
it possible to achieve speeds of 10Mb,
20Mb and higher. One such technology
BET (Broadband Enabling Technology),
extends broadband service to 12Km from the
exchange and allows an improved service
level to be provided to so-called ‘notspots’
beyond a local telephone exchange’s
normal limit of around 5km. Although not
considered Superfast Broadband it enables
uninterrupted gaming or video streaming
content to the user.
BET has been successfully deployed in the
UK and, by using one or two pair copper
cables, enables users to receive the same
level of service as other broadband users
positioned closer to an exchange. Broadband
Regenerator (BBR) technology has also
just been released to effectively boost the
broadband speeds at the edge of the network,
where users have ‘broadband’ but at relatively
low speeds, say ½ Mb. BBR can boost this to
up to seven times the current speed.
Both solutions require a head end cabinet
to be deployed in the serving exchange,
but simple connectivity to the copper
infrastructure with a mid-line length
regenerator to the customers’ NTE (Network
Terminating Equipment) provides a cost
effective clean solution to the “Not Spots”
and low speed edge users. These users can
then have the content they require delivered
over what has rapidly become the fourth
utility, broadband access.
Summary
User habits have undoubtedly evolved and
will continue to do so, placing increasing
demand on bandwidth to deliver the content
the users require, particularly with the growth
of mobile devices and bandwidth-hungry
applications. Looking at the average family
today, they could be sat at home streaming
content on a SmartTV and iPlayer, as well
as downloading data on their tablet and
Smartphone. With this in mind, demand for
higher bandwidth is only going to continue to
increase and should be seen as an opportunity
for vendors and operators across EMEA to
make a difference to broadband accessibility.
Choosing the correct and most effective
medium is the key. Fibre will always be the
number one choice, but don’t forget copper;
it’s everywhere, inexpensive and inherently
reliable. Copper in the last mile is here and it
is available now, so don’t overlook what can
be achieved on this network. •
EMEA 2013 • 47

48 • EMEA 2013

DELIVER THE BEST
EXPERIENCE ON EVERY
PHONE, TABLET AND GADGET
(EVEN ONES THAT HAVEN’T
BEEN INVENTED YET).
Mobile customers get savvier—and more demanding—every day. So the
network has never mattered more. With device numbers set to nearly double
in four years, Cisco is helping carriers offer better plans, more services and,
always, a top-tier experience. The Cisco® Intelligent Network masters any
device, anywhere, anytime. Regardless of operating system, communications
standard, apps or hardware. Now, offering customers more is an easy call.
Use the device of your choice to learn more at cisco.com/go/yourway
© 2012 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.