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NGN. What is unique aboutthe GENBAND approach is thatwe work with operators as a"trusted advisor", meaning thatwe don't try to force them todeploy something they don'treally need.We examine their networkinfrastructure and work withthem to build a very specificbusiness case that leveragestheir existing NGN/MSAN baseif they already have deployedsuch infrastructure. In suchcases,we offer our professionalservices to plan, designand implement the migrationin a very predictable manner,regardless of the type of TDMswitches they are migratingfrom and the Soft switch theywill migrate to.Some operators have the desireto perform migrations in IMSarchitecture and we are workingwith them to help themunderstand the pros/consof doing IMS vs. NGN basedtransformation. We generallyadvocate they start with anNGN architecture that evolvesto IMS over time to maximizeboth existing investments andto manage costs.TT - What possibilitiescould be brought up by LTEfor mobile networks?MB - If we examine theLTE value proposition, wesee that LTE delivers on twomajor fronts. Traditionally,new network technologies havefocused mainly on improvedperformance. LTE however, notonly delivers substantial performanceimprovements, but alsocreates new business modelsfor operators, improving theoverall value proposition to thesubscriber. With LTE, operatorswill not only have a platformto deliver truly ubiquitousmobile broadband services, butalso a much improved businessproposition compared to legacytechnologies. LTE brings lowercost per bit, higher capacity,a high level of flexibility andhas significant global appealcompared to 2G and 3G wirelesstechnologies.With expected throughput inexcess of 100Mbps and latencylower than 10ms, LTE will providesubscribers with a robustuser experience. In addition,because of LTE’s lower cost perbit, it also makes a number oftypically gigabyte hungry applicationscost effective and viableto use in a mobile environment.For example, high Definition(HD) video streaming, “VideoBlogging”, or the ability toupload video content to socialnetworking sites will becomeseamless.TT - Is Middle East and surroundingregions like Asia andAfrica are in line for IPv6 transitionat network infrastructurelevel?MB - The last top level (/8)block of free IPv4 addresses"Operatorsneed toseparate their richcommunication servicestrategies from theirtechnologicalframeworks."was assigned in February 2011by Internet Assigned NumbersAuthority (IANA) to the 5 RegionalInternet Registry (RIRs),although many free addressesstill remain in most assignedblocks and each RIR will continuewith standard policy untilit is at its last /8. After that,only 1024 addresses (a /22) aremade available from the RIRfor each Local Internet Registry.Currently, only Asia-PacificNetwork Information Center(APNIC) has already reachedthis stage (as of April 2011).RIPE NCC, the regional Internetregistry for Europe, is expectedto be the next RIR after APNICto run out of allocable IPv4addresses. This exhaustion isexpected in late 2011 to 2012.Consequently, IPv6 has become"table stakes" for any vendorwanting to do business in theME. We see it consistently asa mandatory requirement. Thisis mainly due to IP addressingexhaustion because of theexplosive growth in mobile traffic.Even on the fixed networkside, IPv6 is now more requiredthan before as fixed/mobileconvergence applications are inthe initial deployment stages.We have been working with ourcustomers to show them howthey can upgrade to IPv6 acrossthe GENBAND equipment theyhave already deployed, and inmost cases, they can do so witha software upgrade.TT - What are IP Interconnectionsolution(s) features beingoffered by GENBAND?MB - GENBAND is the marketleader in IP Interconnectsolutions with major deploymentsglobally, especially inEMEA. The solution exceedsthe GSMA’s IP Exchange requirementsas well as requirementsset forth by i3Forum.Our Multimedia InterconnectSolution enables the any-to-anyinterconnection that operatorsrequire to bring all the services,providers and technologiestogether.A basic requirement of such asolution is that it is massivelyscalable, dynamic and capableof supporting rigorous servicelevel and quality agreements relatedto each service. Operatorsneed to separate their rich communicationservice strategiesfrom their technological frameworksso when new protocols orcodecs come to market they canparticipate in providing the servicesthey enable without havingto upgrade their networks.Critically, such an approach alsoenables the continued supportof revenue generating legacyservices, while capping theirinvestment in aging technology,notably TDM infrastructure.GENBAND’s IP MultimediaInterconnect Solution enables areduced time to market for newservices and expansions, extensiveinter working betweenall nodes and myriad signalingprotocols. That functionalityis wrapped with a commonmanagement system thatfurther enables operational costreduction and protects operators’investment through theuse of commercial-off-the-shelfhardware and the flexibility ofGENBAND’s GENiUS platform.With so much at stake andevolution and transformationcontinuing, operators need tomake these kinds of futureproofplatform investment decisions.They have to cater to theneeds of the rapidly growingthird party or OTT supplier market,they have to make complexservices integrate and operateacross multiple technologicalecosystems, and they have todo so while providing a higherlevel of service quality thanever before.The technologies, businessmodels and platforms that enablethe rich communicationssuite need technical solutionsto bring them all together. IPexchanges can provide that linkand become a universal layerfor the re-profiling of trafficas it moves from network tonetwork and technology totechnology. Solutions such asGENBAND’s IP multimedia solu-28 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011