Pointing the wind vanes for BTSs

Transcription

FEB 2008
ISSUE 38
FEB 2008
Mobile IP surges
across Europe
LTE, are you ready?
A winning PTN strategy
The fourth generation BTS
GREEN BTS
gives fresh breath
ISSUE 38
The wind vane for
global mobile market
Sponsor:
Editorial Department of Huawei COMMUNICATE,
Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
Consultants:
Hu Houkun, Xu Zhijun, Xu Wenwei
Yu Chengdong, Tao Jingwen, Huang Chaowen,
Hou Jinlong, Li Shenzhuo, Yu Xiangping
Editor-in -Chief:
Gao Xianrui ([email protected])
Editors:
Pan Tao, Liu Zhonglin, Xu Peng, Xue Hua
Huang Zhuojian, Chen Yuhong
Zhou Huajiao, Yao Haifei, Zhou Shumin
Contributors: Peng Bo, Luo Gang, Zhang Wenlin
Qiao Xiaoping, Chen Haijun, Qiu Heng
Liu Peng, Chen Wei, Shu Chaohai
Yang Xiaozhong, Qiang Jun, Xiong Lening
He Jie, Hou Yingzhen, Jiang Tao, Han Jiayin
Li Changzhu, Xu Xueming, Wu Shang
Zhu Nianguo, Wang Yudan, Zhao Yuan
Tel:
+86 755 28780808
Fax: +86 755 28356180
Address: A10, Huawei Industrial Base,
Bantian, Longgang, Shenzhen,
China 518129
E-mail: [email protected]
Publication registration No.:
Yue B No.10148
The information contained in this document is for
reference purpose only, and is subject to change
or withdrawal according to specific customer
requirements and conditions.
Copyright © 2008 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
All Rights Reserved.
No part of this issue may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means without
prior written consent of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
2007 witnessed the continuous growth of 3G networks. GSM networks still have
much vitality in the next five years, and emerging technologies such as WiMAX and
LTE have been highlighted in commercial application agendas. Rapid changes in mobile
network modes and upgrades in technologies have raised a challenge to operators: How to
seamlessly integrate various network modes and technologies?
The accelerated growth of mobile broadband video services - coupled with an ever
greater user base and a higher average Minutes of Usage - is mounting increasing pressure
on mobile operators in terms of network expansion and operation. To win out, mobile
operators not only need to control the construction and operation costs in an end-to-end
manner, but also need to take up the social responsibility of environmental protection,
energy savings and emission reductions. Huawei has been focusing on the pressures and
challenges faced by operators, and has predominated the four technical directions of “Green,
Convergence, Evolution and Broadband.”
Huawei has proposed its “Green Site” solution that integrates a range of innovative
technologies to reduce the number of cabinets required by traditional BTSs from 10 to 1.
Meanwhile, the BTS capacity is increased from 12 to 36/72 carriers, and the system power
consumption is halved to 800W. Embodying a win-win situation, the solution delivers
both environmental and economic benefits for operators.
The need for seamless integration of different network modes and technologies has
inspired Huawei’s fourth generation BTS platform. Breaking the system barrier, the
integrated platform supports various network modes such as UMTS, CDMA, WCDMA
and LTE. Software upgrades facilitate changes between different modes, and this greatly
simplifies operators’ cost structures in a way that protects long-term investment by
ensuring smooth future evolution.
In terms of mobile broadband, Huawei has taken a leading step in IP transformation
research and raised the IP BSS/RAN solution. This solution provides an end-to-end IPbased architecture, including kernels, interfaces, and service guarantee mechanisms, which
enables operators to substantially reduce transmission cost, improve QoS, and expand
bandwidth and throughput, thus allowing flexible mobile broadband service deployment
and smooth service adaptation.
Now Huawei has become a key strategic partner for mobile operators worldwide.
Successful cooperation with Vodafone Spain sparked Huawei’s selection as the supplier
for Vodafone’s subsidiaries in Greece, Romania and Hungary. Telefonica/O2 deployed
Huawei’s dual-mode (2G/3G) BTSs to optimize its GSM networks in southern Germany,
and was further awarded its HSPA contracts for Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Chile.
France Telecom selected Huawei to construct wireless networks for its operations in
Belgium, Romania, Poland and the Greater Cairo region of Egypt’s Mobinil. In Australia,
Optus selected Huawei as its sole contractor for the world’s largest UMTS 900 network.
In India, Reliance partnered with Huawei in building its GSM network of 300 thousand
carriers. In Chicago, Huawei successfully deployed America’s first All-IP CDMA network.
The new wind vane for the global mobile market has come to fruition. Huawei and its
innovative mobile solutions represented by the fourth generation BTS will help operators
stride into the new mobile era.
Yu Chengdong
President of Wireless Network
Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
What’s inside:
P.17
P.45
Global Digest
Main Topic
01 Vodafone Australia plans national
17
mobile broadband network
By Xu Peizhong
02 Telefónica/O2 lower European data
roaming tariffs
19
2G BTS draws on 3G technologies
By Pang Yingwen
03 Huawei launches solution
to cut base station power consumption
23
Expert’s Forum
05
Green BTS gives fresh breath
By Wu Wujun
WiMAX leads a new wireless
broadband life
By Li Xiaojuan
25
Cover Story
09
Mobile IP surges across
Europe
What decisions, plans and choices have Vodafone, Orange
and Telecom Italia made with the mobile IP wave surging
across Europe?
By Liu Zhen
What can wideband RF
bring for GSM?
By Feng Baoshun
Wideband RF technology had been put into commercial
use in WCDMA and CDMA systems. The application of
this technology to the GSM system will deliver with it a
breakthrough in traditional mobile networks, which will
greatly assist GSM operators to lower TCO and achieve a
low cost for rapid expansion. Moreover, it will offer smooth
future evolution potential.
Let’s COMMUNICATE beyond technology and share understandings of the latest industry trends,
successful operational cases, leading technologies and more. Based on in-depth analysis of the
matters that lie close to your heart, we will help you stay on top in the competitive telecom industry.
P.15
P.46
Media Insight
Interview
27 Harvesting in the US, India and China
39
Huawei makes it large in CDMA
The Ferrari of Telecoms: TI
racing towards record prosperity
By Wang Yudan
By Li Chuantao
42
Vitality of mobile broadband
By John Lee
How to Operate
30
P.23
International roaming leads
everywhere
By Xiao Qian
As the demand for lower tariffs for international roaming becomes
more pervasive, major mobile operators are beginning to research
methods globally for providing the lowest international roaming
tariffs, while delivering services that are similar to those of a home
network. This, of course, is under the precondition that operators’
business revenue remains ensured.
Solution
45
WiMAX maximizes your potential
By Liu Wang
47
Moving towards multi-system
integration
By Liu Ping
Leading Edge
33
Intelligent heart of mobile Internet
50
By Chi Zhentao & Zhang Baoguang
VoIP over HSPA:
running in the fast lane
By Li Xuanbo
35
Seeking for a winning PTN strategy
By Bian Mingang
53
LTE, are you ready?
By Xu Yan
GLOBAL DIGEST
Events
Vodafone Australia plans national
AT&T launches 3G mobile broadband in Baltimore
AT&T announced that it had
Philadelphia to Northern Virginia now
expanded its 3G mobile broadband
have the option to access the Internet
network throughout Baltimore and
over AT&T’s 3G wireless data network,
the surrounding suburbs, thanks
which acts as a gateway to a variety of
to technology upgrades at 250
“feature rich” web content, including
cell sites in the area.Customers from
streaming video and music downloads.
T-Mobile and 3 UK create Britain’s largest 3G network
3 UK and T-Mobile UK have signed
As the world's largest known
an agreement to combine their 3G
active 3G network sharing agreement,
Vodafone Australia plans to
access networks in a ground-breaking
this will significantly increase both
roll out a national high-speed mobile
complete its hardware and software
collaboration that will lead to almost
operators' 3G network quality and
broadband network that will provide
vendor selection process early in 2008
complete population coverage for
coverage, accelerate the provision of
and has already commenced work
3G services across Britain by the end
new high-speed mobile broadband
on its core network in preparation for
of 2008 with significant fill in and
services and deliver substantial cost
In a statement, Vodafone
the upgrade. Vodafone will maintain
improvement to dense urban in-
savings as well as environmental
Australia said it plans a significant
normal mobile network services
building coverage in 2009.
benefits.
during the rollout period.
Vodafone Australia said it plans to
coverage to 95% of Australia's
population by the end of 2008.
expansion and upgrade to provide
It said it will continue its 3G
high-speed packet access, or HSPA,
joint-venture with Optus in major
to customers, enabling faster
metropolitan areas. However,
download and upload speeds.
Vodafone Australia will undertake
The upgrade will also improve
its own upgrade to its 900 MHz and
network coverage and capacity for
2100 MHz mobile network in all
standard 2G and 3G voice calls, it said.
other parts of the country.
Japan: Softbank and KDDI lead in wireless
subscriber growth
2007, for an end-of-year total of
29.19 million subscribers.
Market leader, NTT DoCoMo,
trailed its smaller rivals, adding
just 121,500 new subscribers,
for a nationwide total of 53.15
million. 27,900 of DoCoMo’s new
Japan’s third largest mobile phone
subscribers signed on to the so-
operator, Softbank, led competitors
called “2in1” service, which allows
in terms of subscriber growth in
subscribers to have two phone
December 2007, adding 210,800
numbers and email addresses for a
new subscribers over the course of
flat monthly fee.
the month, and bringing its total
subscriber base to 17.61 million.
Meanwhile, EMOBILE, a newcomer
to Japan’s wireless market, added
Softbank was followed by
83,600 new subscribers in the final
KDDI, which posted net subscriber
month of 2007, giving it a subscriber
additions of 138,600 in December,
base of 205,900.
1 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
First Wi-Fi / 3G transport network in UK
Strathclyde Partnership for
station.
Transport (SPT) and network operator
The new network will enable
Arqiva have announced a ground
Subway customers to access the
breaking deal to provide a combined
Internet and mobile phones at
cellular and Wi-Fi network across the
stations, and provide public access to
15 Glasgow Subway stations.
Wi-Fi services.
Under the agreement, Glasgow
This unique Wi-Fi project is part of
will become the first UK city to provide
the massive programme of Subway
passengers with combined 2G and 3G
modernisation and efficiencies being
cellular mobile and Wi-Fi access.
undertaken by SPT, which sees great
Arqiva Wireless Solutions division
potential in using Wi-Fi technology
will begin deployment of the
to migrate some of its existing
network later this month, with initial
applications and services, including
testing at Buchanan Street Subway
ticketing, onto the network.
Data
Telefónica/O2 lower European data roaming tariffs
Telefónica has announced cuts in
starting from early February, pay no
its data roaming tariffs of up to 40%
more than EUR0.32 to send an SMS
within Europe. The company says that
from any EU country - representing
consumers in Spain, UK, Germany,
a reduction of up to 49% on current
Czech Republic and Ireland will
prices. The new rate will apply to
benefit from cuts of more than 40%
all customers by April. It will cost
in data roaming prices, while the cost
nothing to receive a text.
80.74 million
By the end of 3Q2007, 80.74
quarters in 2007 amounted to 9
million of China Mobile's customers
billion messages. In 3Q2007 alone,
were using MMS, according to the
approximately 18 billion MMS were
operator. This represented an increase
sent in the Asia-Pacific region as
of 16.8% from 2Q2007 and brought
a whole, according to Informa's
the share of its customers using
World Cellular Data Metrics. Value-
MMS to 23%, according to Informa
added services, such as MMS, ring-
Telecoms & Media.
back tones and WAP continue to be
of sending a text message home from
Telefónica also intends to increase
anywhere in the European Union
the transparency of data roaming
falls to a maximum of EUR0.32+
prices and reduce the possibility of
taxes. For business travelers, a new
bill shock by combining its simple
roaming bundle provides worldwide
tariff schemes with a range of usage
access to data at a price equivalent
monitoring tools. From March 2008,
The Chinese government said its
year. According to the government's
to EUR1 per megabyte (MB) - subject
mobile laptop users will be able to
Internet population has soared to 210
Xinhua News Agency, China is only
to a minimum spend of EUR50 per
monitor their data usage in real time
million people, putting it on track to
5 million behind the US, a figure
month.
via their “Connection Manager”
surpass the US online community this
consistent with some American
O2 businesses and Movistar in
s o f t w a re , w h i l e a l l ro a m i n g
year to become the world's largest.
estimates.
Spain will implement a range of
customers will automatically receive
The official China Internet
China still lags the US in many
new data roaming tariffs aimed at
a text message containing SMS, data
Network Information Center, also
respects, however. Xinhua placed
consumers traveling within Europe
and voice pricing information.
known as CNNIC, said the online
China's online penetration rate at
To t a l M M S s e n t b y C h i n a
Mobile's customers in the first three
the main drivers of China Mobile's
revenue growth.
210 million
ahead of this year's summer holiday
In addition, O 2 and Movistar
population grew 53%, from 137
16%, the point Americans were at in
season in July. These will include both
customers will not incur penalties if
million reported at the same time last
the mid-1990s.
significant reductions in the per-MB
their phone selects a non-preferred
price and the introduction of time-
network - removing any potential
based charging principles, such as daily
concerns about hidden charges.
80%
rates. The resultant savings for
In 3Q2007, 80% of mobile
models on sale has increased
customers will be anything
handset models on sale in Japan were
70% year-on-year from 47% of
between 42% and 80% over
WCDMA models. The remainder were
the models on sale in 3Q2006, as
November 2007 prices.
mostly CDMA models (18%) sold by
Softbank has strongly expanded its
Recognising the ever-
the country's second largest operator
WCDMA portfolio and market-leader
increasing popularity of
KDDI, while just 2% of models on sale
NTT DoCoMo has also continued to
text messaging as a way of
were PDC handsets.
promote the technology under its
The share of WCDMA handset
staying in touch, both prepaid
FOMA brand.
and postpaid consumers will,
6 billion
Polish telecom incumbent begins testing FTTH
broadband technology
Vodafone has announced plans
the next three years on our Indian
to spend USD2 billion a year over the
operations... We have set a target of
next three years expanding its Indian
reaching 100 million subscriber base
from the current level of 40 million."
Poland’s incumbent telephone
which will last until the end of
network coverage and improving
provider, Telekomunikacja Polska SA,
November. Residents will be able
service quality. The company would
He also ruled out any talk of an
is ready to start testing its fiber-to-
to browse the Internet at speeds of
be launching a range of new services,
IPO for the Indian company in the
the-home broadband technology,
up to 50Mbps through a Livebox
but did not elaborate on what and
short term saying that he wanted
after rolling it out to all residents of a
FTTH modem, as well as access on-
when.
to build up the company operations
new apartment building in the Wola
demand television, video rental,
Speaking during a visit by the UK
before any possibilities would be
district of Warsaw.
and Internet telephony services, at
Prime Minister to India, Vodafone's
explored in that direction. The funding
a cost of just PLN49 (USD20) per
CEO Arun Sarin said "We shall be
for the USD6 billion of expenditure
month.
investing USD2 billion annually for
would come from company resources.
All of the 265 apartments are
eligible to participate in the pilot,
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
2
GLOBAL DIGEST
Huawei News
Vodafone UK partners with Huawei to launch their smallest HSUPA USB Stick
Newbury, 11 January 2008
can look forward to enjoying high-
real benefits from the ease of use
that customers will be delighted
Vodafone UK and Huawei have
speed wireless access, both at
offered by our USB plug and go
with the mobile lifestyle they will
launched the next generation of
home and on the go. The plug-
device, coupled with our increased
enable," said Steven Lau, director
USB device, the Vodafone Mobile
and-play featured devices are
network speeds. As a result, they
of Huawei European Terminal
Broadband USB Modem Stick or
compatible with Windows (Vista
have increased their usage six-
Department. "Consumers expect
E172. Boasting High Speed Uplink
and XP) and Mac OSX, whether run
fold as they use the service to
mobile service providers to
on a PC, laptop or handheld device.
work more productively or surf
demonstrate constant innovation
and innovative design, it will
The Vodafone E172 is the
the Internet", commented Kyle
and Huawei is very pleased to be
be available to Vodafone UK's
world's slimmest and smallest
Whitehill, Vodafone UK, Enterprise
working with Vodafone to fulfill
customers from today.
HSUPA USB stick, and was designed
Director. "Vodafone was the first
these expectations."
Packet Access (HSUPA) technologies
The E172 enables uplink
with the elegance of a sleek white
to improve download speeds with
speeds of up to 2Mbps and
piano in mind. Highly portable, is
HSDPA (High Speed Downlink
download rates of 7.2 Mbps. Within
perfect for mobile users, and built-
Packet Access), the first to increase
Vodafone's HSPA network, the
in features ensure that the USB's
upload speeds with HSUPA, and
device will facilitate fast Internet
cap cannot be dropped or lost.
now we're pushing the boundaries
of usability even further with a
browsing, instant access and the
"For personal use or remote
uninterrupted ability both to upload
working, customers buy Vodafone
and download data. Combining
f o r p re d i c t a b i l i t y, u n r i v a l l e d
"We are looking forward to
cutting edge technologies with
speeds, reliability and ease of
launching the E172 in collaboration
sleek design, Vodafone's customers
use. Our customers are seeing
with Vodafone and are confident
Huawei attains No.1 position in global IP DSLAM market
groundbreaking compact design."
Huawei launches solution to help operators cut base
station power consumption
Shenzhen, China, 14 January
Europe and the Middle East and Africa
2008 Huawei announced that
(EMEA). By the end of the third quarter
China, 18 January 2008
as traditional 40W base stations
according to a report published in the
of 2007, Huawei had shipped more
Huawei has launched a new
and high-efficiency power amplifier
third quarter of 2007 by the leading
than 70 million DSL ports to more than
solution that can reduce base
technologies that make convection
industry consulting firm Gartner, that
90 countries including the UK, France,
station power consumption by up
cooling, direct cooling, and intelligent
it is currently in the NO. 1 position in
Germany, Singapore, Thailand, Brazil,
to 60%. The Green Sites Solution,
cooling technology in a base station
the global IP DSLAM Market, with a
South Africa and China.
uses optimized hardware design,
possible. This reduces the need for
Huawei IP DSLAM is fully compliant
an innovative power amplifier and
air-conditioners that cause noise
with the TR-101 standard and enables
power consumption management to
pollution and helps to reduce a base
According to a Gartner, report,
carriers to provide excellent broadband
help operators realize a high level of
station's electricity consumption to
published on 18 December 2007,
networks with its powerful bandwidth
power saving.
less than 500W. Huawei's Green Sites
entitled "Market Share: DSLAM
handling capabilities and abundant
Equipment, Worldwide, 3Q2007" by
service features.
market share of 31.5%, and that its
DSL market share is continuing to rise.
Reducing the power consumption
Solution is also able to be integrated
of base stations has emerged as
with environmentally friendly energy
Gauri Pavate, IP DSLAM
one of the key concerns of telecom
sources such as wind, solar power,
port shipments are
operators around the globe.
and methane.
rapidly increasing and
Huawei's Green Sites Solution adopts
" H ua w ei h a s a l w a y s b e e n
in 3Q2007, accounted
leading power amplifier technologies,
committed to looking after the
for 77.3% of all
including DPD and A-Doherty, that
environment," commented Mr Yu
DSLAM shipments.
boost the power efficiency of base
Chengdong, president of Huawei's
Huawei holds the No.1
stations by 45%, reducing the overall
Wireless Product Line. "As one of
position in the global
power consumption of the facilities.
the leading telecom equipment and
IP DSLAM market
It also uses a distributed architecture
solutions providers, we are putting
and has increased
that allows 20W base stations to have
this goal into practice by designing
its market share in
the same output frequency coverage
environmental friendly products."
3 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Huawei to deploy first commercial mobile WiMAX
network in Central Asia
Huawei showcases innovative mobile solutions
at Mobility World Congress
Dushanbe, Tajikistan, 25
enable its subscribers to realize
Hong Kong, 14 December
CDMA solutions which adopt next
December 2007 Huawei has been
wireless broadband access. Upon
2007 Huawei showcased its
generation con-platform and multi-
selected by Babilon-T, the largest
completion of the network Babilon-
innovative wireless solutions at
mode integration solutions that
telecommunication operator in
T's subscribers will be able to enjoy
the "Mobility World Congress" in
provide operators with the means to
Tajikistan, to deploy the Central Asia's
high-speed Internet access, watch
Hong Kong from 3 to 7 December
implement ultra-mobile broadband
first WiMAX commercial network.
mobile TV, use VoIP at home, in the
2007. As senior sponsor of the
networks while reducing their costs.
Under the terms of agreement,
company, or even on the street by
congress, held by the CDMA
"Broadband mobile networks
Huawei will provide an end-to-end
using Customer Premise Equipment
Development Group (CDG) and
of the future ought to be based
mobile WiMAX network, including
(CPE) or a PC card provided by
other industry organizations Huawei
on IP in order to simplify networks
distributed base station, Wireless
Huawei.
reinforced its leadership in taking
and enhance their capabilities in
Access Service Node-Gateway,
"Babilon-T is looking forward
mobile networks to IP through
terms of transmission, diversified
Network Management Equipment
to implement wireless broadband
CDMA2000, WiMAX, UMTS/HSPA,
service expansion, and intelligent
and Terminals.
access infrastructure nationally,"
GSM demonstrations.
maintenance," said Mr Zhao
The network will cover the four
said Fayzullaev B, General Director
Huawei used the Mobility
Ming, vice president of Huawei
major areas of Tajikistan, including
of Babilon-T. "By introducing mobile
World Congress to exhibit its
Wireless marketing dept. during the
its capital Dushanbe. Rollout will
WiMAX technology, we will be able
mobile solutions with integrated
congress. "The major factors driving
start immediately and is expected
to provide our customers all over
4G mobile technologies and green
mobile networks towards IP derive
to launch during the first quarter of
Tajikistan with broadband access to
energy sources such as solar/wind/
from the need for operators to
2008.
the Internet."
firedamp energy that can help
reduce their TCO, the abundance
To meet the increasing demand
"This new technology will
operators reduce their equipment
of IP-based convergent commercial
for broadband, and taking
undoubtedly bring new market
consumption and reduce the
applications, and the smooth
into account the mountainous
opportunities for Babilon-T,"
discharge of carbon dioxide.
future evolution into LTE/UMB. All
terrain in Tajikistan, Babilon-T is
commented Mr Wang Kexiang,
adopting WiMAX technology to
President of Huawei CIS Region.
Huawei also showcased its FMC
technologies such as its IP-based
of Huawei's IP-based solutions will
help operators grow in the IP era."
TransTelecom selects Huawei to deploy commercial WiMAX network in Europe
Sofia, Bulgaria, 3 January
the country's increasing broadband
said Mr John Munnery, Chairman of
has exhibited total commitment to
2008 Huawei has been selected by
needs, and the operator has chosen
TransTelecom. "Extensive tests of this
the project throughout our selection
TransTelecom, a telecom operator
Huawei to deliver an upgraded
new technology have surpassed all our
process, and has proven them to be
in Bulgaria, to deploy a commercial
16e-based network. Huawei's
expectations. In particular, we witnessed
one of the leaders in this fast-developing
WiMAX network, covering central
16e-based WiMAX solution integrates
Huawei demonstrate one of the first
technology. What's more, we are also
business districts and hot spots in the
the most advanced technologies such
handovers of traffic from one base
impressed with Huawei's localized
country's major cities, including its
as multiple-input multiple-output
station to another in Europe. Huawei
engineering and delivery capability."
capital, Sofia, and Varna, Bulgaria's
(MIMO) and orthogonal frequency
largest harbor city. According to the
division multiple access (OFDMA),
contract, Huawei will supply an end-
which features high bandwidth,
to-end WiMAX solution working
wide area coverage, large capacity,
o n 3 . 5 G H z f re q u e n c y b a n d ,
as well as providing better mobility.
including terminals, as well as a
Huawei's new base stations,
major upgrade of the TransTelecom
enable TransTelecom to quickly roll
central exchange equipment for the
out innovative new services to its
operation of a fully mobile WiMAX
customers, while reducing Total Cost
network in 2008.
of Ownership (TCO).
In 2006, TransTelecom deployed a
"We are delighted to choose Huawei
16d-based WiMAX network to meet
as our WiMAX equipment supplier,"
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
4
EXPERT’S FORUM
WiMAX leads a new wireless broadband life
WiMAX
leads a new
wireless
broadband life
By Li Xiaojuan
5 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Huawei Technologies
The 3rd Global WiMAX Summit authorized by the WiMAX Forum was successfully held in Beijing,
in September 2007. In attendance were a range of high level industry experts from carriers,
vendors, government officials, and research institutes. Discussion focused on the global WiMAX
deployment and its convergence with 3G, and the search for methods of combining industry chain
strengths to effectively guarantee the global popularization of WiMAX.
A
s we know, WiMAX possesses
unique superiority in a range of
ways such as remote transmission,
high-speed broadband access
and multimedia communication. WiMAX
has entered the application phase, and has
already been successfully commercialized by
some mainstream operators. In China, 3G
is drawing nearer, and the mass testing and
deployment of WiMAX has gradually begun.
At the 3rd Global WiMAX Summit,
three experts: Mo Shakouri (Vice President
of the global WiMAX Forum), Hyun-Pyo
Kim (Director of the WiMAX Unit, KT) and
Cai Liqun (Ex-President of Huawei WiMAX
Product Line, is now in charge of Core Network
Product Line of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.)
offered their views.
WiMAX looking ahead to
prosperity
Mo Shakouri: The outcome of our
research in the U.S. indicates that wireless
broadband will emerge as consumers’
largest communications expenditure,
and this reflects a considerable shift
necessitating much investment. The
WiMAX industr y offers significant
opportunities as current technology and
networks have not yet been fully applied.
We know that in some emerging and
developed countries broadband forms a
precursor for increased GDP, economic
activity and social value - this is why
WiMAX possesses such enormous global
development potential.
Cai Liqun: WiMAX has already entered
a critical phase. In addition to traditional
operators, there are many new operators
focusing on WiMAX, such as ISPs. This
fully reflects the industry’s expectation
regarding All-IP based mobile broadband
applications. Currently, most operators
select wireless access to underpin WiMAX
breakthrough, and our mission is to help
them meet existing market demands for
wireless broadband access so as to realize
the WiMAX global strategy, accelerate the
industry’s development, and lay a solid
foundation for future mobile WiMAX
development.
Mo Shakouri: WiMAX is a supplementary rather than competitive technology.
Though it differs from the Internet in
terms of its business model, WiMAX is
rich in value. It can meet users’ demands
for wireless broadband technology, and
the number of users is certain to grow at
a rapid rate. This achievement has arisen
through unstinting efforts made over the
past 5 years.
At present, many operators are investing
heavily and orienting themselves to the
future, and this trend is anticipated in
the WiMAX industry. New capabilities
and functions are being added to cellular
networks, one of which is WiMAX, not
least because of its extra broadband and
Internet-based capabilities. We therefore
believe that both cellular networks and
WiMAX will grow rapidly over the
long term to reach maturity. Of course,
compared with cellular networks, WiMAX
is still in its infancy.
Over the next 5 years, however, WiMAX
wireless Internet technology is set to take
its seat as a significant contributor to
global broadband interconnection. We’re
committed to assist operators fully utilize
WiMAX to increase profit streams, while
allowing users better broadband and
content access. Users who demand more
bandwidth are not just concerned with
bandwidth itself, but with the derived
subsequent content.
Win-win industrial chain
cooperation
Hyun-Pyo Kim: KT Wibro has enjoyed
considerable success in terms of WiMAX
operations. Our first advantage is that we
have a range of equipment available for
end users, including terminals. Secondly,
we’ve priced our products at an affordable
level, for example, the promotional price
set for 1G capacity is only USD10. Thirdly,
we offer the best quality - compared with
existing 3G networks, mobile WiMAX
offers the highest uplink and downlink
speeds. In addition, we benefit from
an open IP-based platform to support
converged services, Internet access, and
mobile Triple-play services.
After receiving our WiMAX license in
January 2005, we began deploying the
network in some areas before embarking
on wide urban coverage including 17
universities, the suburban campuses for
which were joined under the scheme.
This was complemented by large-scale
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
6
EXPERT’S FORUM
EXPERT’S FORUM
Dr. Mo Shakouri: Board Director and Vice President of Marketing with the WiMAX Forum. He has 22 years of
experience in wireless system, microwave and fiber optic networks. In addition to his position with the WiMAX
Forum, Shakouri is on the board of directors for the Wireless Communications Association and was IEEE MTT-SVC
2004 chairman.
promotional and marketing activities
prior to its real commercialization in
April 2007. Since then we’ve completed
implementation, our network continues to
grow, and will soon be supported by the
performance enhancing MIMO.
Cai Liqun: To equipment vendors,
helping operators achieve fast and lowcost WiMAX networking is an important
factor that requires consideration. We
know a common problem that operators
face is website acquisition and, in view
of WiMAX’s high bandwidth and band
utilization, operators are mostly concerned
with issues such as identifying ways of
reducing the number of WiMAX websites
and how to utilize existing 2G & 3G
resources effectively to minimize auxiliary
investment. The WiMAX standard is
developing and progressing at a steady
rate, which requires us to provide a costeffective platform of products capable
of supporting a smooth evolution that
protects operators’ current investments.
7 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
The most essential
factor for deciding the
maturity of the WiMAX
industry and its future
growth pace should be
its required large scale,
diversification, and low
cost terminals.
The convergent solution is a key concern
for both mobile and fixed operators.
Integrating WiMAX with existing NGN
and ADSL networks must be realized
to offer a wired and wireless convergent
network solution, so as to lay a solid
foundation for the future strategy of
FMC deployment. Achieving this goal
is primarily a concern for fixed network
operators. Mobile operators, on the
other hand, are mostly concerned with
giving end users low-cost multimedia
service experiences anywhere, anytime
by combining WiMAX with 2G & 3G
networks to maximize the interworking of
their respective advantages. Therefore, our
convergent solution must aim at providing
a unified service experience for end users
through unified services and platforms,
unified core networks, unified billing
systems and authentication management
organization - this would maximally reduce
costs for existing operators in a manner
that adheres to business convergence.
Mo Shakouri: A crucial issue regarding
WiMAX is the authentication of its
standard. The first authentication laboratory
was set up in Spain in August 2005 and
the second in South Korea. We’re also
establishing laboratories successively in the
Huawei Technologies
Hyun-Pyo Kim: Director of Technology Cooperation Division at WiBro (Mobile WiMAX) Business Unit in KT
Corporation. His major responsibilities include WiBro standardization in TTA, IEEE and WiMAX Forum and related
technology cooperation activities in WiMAX area. Currently he is a board member of the WiMAX Forum.
US, mainland China, and Taiwan, and we’re planning
a laboratory for Japan. So far, some of the products
have already passed authentication, and notebook
computer will do so soon. Much more equipment
will be authenticated in the year 2009. In WiMAX
authentication, equipment represents the ripest portion
among all, and surely is a most important portion.
Cai Liqun: The most essential factor for deciding
the maturity of the WiMAX industry and its future
growth pace should be its required large scale,
diversification, and low cost terminals. The demands
of different operators vary depending on the stage of
WiMAX development and, since our applications
mainly rely on fixed and nomadic equipment,
the requirements for CPE and PC cards presently
dominate. However, mobile WiMAX development
will see mobile and multi-mode terminals integrate
WiMAX with existing 2G & 3G networks, and these
will inherit the mainstream position. In the future,
WiMAX, IT and electronic product convergence
will bring greater convenience and enjoyment for
users. Of course, such preconditions must occur on a
suitably wide scale and be underpinned by low cost,
diversified terminals and cutting-edge chipsets.
Hyun-Pyo Kim: There are various terminal
devices that people currently use based on specific
market demands, but multi-mode equipment is set
to dominate the market. Some products are already
available such as typical mobile devices including
Portable Media Player (PMP) with embedded portable
PC. Additionally, other electronic equipment such as
some digital cameras already integrates WiMAX.
Latest progress across the
globe
Mo Shakouri: Global WiMAX development
presents a gratifying situation. First if we consider
spectrum features, the main WiMAX spectrum
allocations include 2.3-2.7GHz and 3.5GHz. The
WiMAX network spectrum already covers 2.7 billion
people, which is hugely exciting. We must strive to
obtain more bandwidth as in some areas operators
still share a bandwidth of only 10MB. We hope to
help them increase bandwidth and thus accelerate
business growth by establishing a viable WiMAX
mechanism with an enormous customer base. This
will facilitate the efficient operation of the WiMAX
value chain.
It is well known that Sprint-Nextel has developed
many exemplary services and KT provides another
model example, having deployed WiMAX, and
covering 2,500,000 users. This is only the start as
WiMAX is being currently developed in a host of
countries including Pakistan, Chile, Russia and Brazil.
Cai Liqun: Since 2006, Huawei has been
strengthening WiMAX expansion in the context
of a global market platform. So far we’ve already
communicated with over 100 operators across the
globe to discuss the progress regarding the WiMAX
standard, as well as the technology, construction
and operations. We’ve already established 30 trial
laboratories in the Asia-Pacific, the Middle-East,
North-Africa, Europe, Russia, the US, and Latin
America, and we’re currently constructing 8 WiMAX
commercial systems.
Editor: Zhou Huajiao [email protected]
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
8
COVER STORY
Mobile IP surges across Europe
Mobile IP
surges across Europe
9 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Huawei Technologies
The new telecom era has unleashed a tide of IP that is advancing across the world through
mobile networks. Numerous operators have already started implementing their IP-based
network strategies as part of the inevitable trend. Europe represents a region replete with both
GSM and WCDMA technologies. It boasts the world’s most developed mobile communications’
market with a handset penetration rate approaching 110%, and is home to many leading
operators including Vodafone, Orange, and Telecom Italia. What decisions, plans and choices
have these operators made with the mobile IP wave surging across Europe?
By Liu Zhen
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
10
COVER STORY
D
ata services are forming a greater proportion
of operators’ overall income in the rapidly
expanding mobile communications
market. However, demands on mobile
networks are increasingly stringent due to the evolving
diversity and complexity that characterizes services such
as mobile video, voice, music, broadband Internet,
video conferencing and interactive gaming. Operators
must effectively respond to a range of key issues that
include identifying how to successfully decrease network
construction costs and deployment times while increasing
revenue and enhancing network performance.
Richard Deasington, Director of the UK
consultancy Network Effect, agrees that as mobile
operators mature as enterprises, serving highly
penetrated markets, they also become more concerned
than they used to be with finding ways to reduce
costs. “Mobile operators (in Western
Europe)
are out of
start-up
mode
and
into the business-as-usual phase. They need to show
investors ongoing profit growth. To do that, they need
to chip away at the cost side of the equation. Another
trend pushing them in that direction is the fact that
tariffs are falling, too,” he says.
Mobile network IP transformation describes an
extremely complex and systematic project that not
only demands a decrease in Total Cost of Ownership
(TCO) and the construction of end-to-end IP
capabilities, but also focuses on service innovations,
Quality of Service (QoS) improvements, futureoriented long-term investment protection and
cohesive development. The context of these challenges
has galvanized Vodafone, Orange and Telecom Italia
to orient their practices to promote IP transformation
in world mobile networks.
Vodafone extends its leadership
As one of the world’s largest operators, Vodafone is bombarded with competition.
Crucial measures to guarantee its continued leading position and market expansion
are OPEX reductions coupled with a boost in network performance. According to
an officer of Vodafone, “An operator must look at the total cost of ownership. At a
Mobile network IP transformation describes an
a decrease in TCO and the construction of E2E
improvements, future-oriented long-term investment
challenges has galvanized Vodafone to orient its
11 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Huawei Technologies
rough calculation, only 30% of the total cost of
ownership is directly related to product cost, the
remaining 70% has to do with product efficiency,
such as cost of installation, maintenance, operations
and transmission. It’s all about working jointly with
the vendor to find more efficient ways to run the
network.”
Vodafone Spain shining with
innovations
Vodafone’s headquarters of Wireless is situated in
Spain, and Vodafone Spain epitomizes the vitality
and key characteristics of Vodafone’s success. As
one of the group’s most outstanding and important
subnets, it supports 1.2 million 3G subscribers and
occupies 65.33% of the Spanish WCDMA market.
Maintaining this market lead is dependent upon
guaranteed network performance and a constant
service innovation platform that generates sufficient
profit levels.
Distributed Node B climbs up towers
easily
European network construction engenders
two major concerns for operators: environmental
protection and TCO reductions. Vodafone Group
is of course no exception, and in response to both
concerns, Vodafone Spain has adopted Huawei’s
small and lightweight next-generation Distributed
Node Bs for its 3G network.
These smart nodes possess several advantages.
Ropes rather than cranes are sufficient to load a
remote radio unit (RRU) onto a tower, and the
RRU’s location near the antenna allows optical fiber
connections with the baseband unit (BBU). With
feeder loss is decreased, coverage is greatly enhanced,
and site numbers are reduced, great savings are made
in network construction costs.
Previously each base station used huge amounts of
power to support uninterrupted 24-hour operations,
and air conditioners were essential to lower equipment
heat. “It’s mega-money,” says Richard Deasington,
referring to the enormous potential for savings that
many operators have not yet fully grasped. The
Huawei node eliminates the need for air conditioners
by supporting natural heat dissipation, and its power
amplification technology can utilize green energy
forms such as wind, solar and marsh gas. Each Node B
can reduce power consumption to below 500W and
CO2 output by 60%.
Statistics demonstrate that since Vodafone Spain
employed Huawei’s Node Bs to deploy its HighSpeed Packet Access (HSPA) network, 30% less
investment was required to facilitate a much more
environmentally friendly network. The Vodafone
officer mentioned above is quick to point out the
scale of the financial and environmental impact in
the context of thousands of Node Bs. Moreover,
Richard Deasington observes that operators can adopt
other measures to realize further savings, not least of
which is wise vendor selection. He estimates that the
operational technology difference between vendors
culminates in a cost discrepancy reaching “tens of
millions of euros”, which is exactly why Huawei
proved the right choice for Vodafone.
Lighting up El Gordo
On 22 December 2007, the Spanish Christmas
lottery El Gordo (‘The Fat One’ in English), was as
usual announced on schedule in Spain. As usual,
Lucy was enjoying a Swiss Christmas vacation with
her husband on 22 December. Vacationers like Lucy
have become used to browsing Internet news for the
numbers, unable to enjoy real-time anticipation,
extremely complex and systematic project that demands
IP capabilities, and focuses on service innovations, QoS
protection and cohesive development. The context of these
practice to promote IP transformation.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
12
COVER STORY
“Even if I don’t win, it’s still a real
disappointment not being able to enjoy
the live experience on TV.”
Developing from a small sweepstake
in southern Spain dating back 200 years,
it was gradually popularized to the rest of
the country and now forms a Christmas
tradition worth USD1.7 billion. Due to
its attractive probability, over 70% of the
nation’s 40 million population buy tickets
- which are also available in the U.K. - and
pin their hopes on the fall of El Gordo’s
150 year-old lottery balls.
The draw, which lasts 3 hours and
forms a prime slot on national TV to
which most Spaniards tune in, has not
historically been broadcast on mobile TV
due to poor network conditions. However,
2007 marked the first year when people
like Lucy joined in with the Spanish
festivities in real time.
After selecting Huawei for holistic
network construction in June 2006,
Vo d a f o n e S p a i n r e c o r d e d a 3 0 %
improvement in network performance
subsequent to scheme completion, and
this laid a platform for quick mobile
TV service deployment. Providing 10
digital channels for Vodafone Live’s 3G
subscribers including El Gordo, travelers
no longer have any problems accessing the
Spanish shows that are important to them.
Winning in HSDPA
benchmarking test
In May 2007, Vodafone Spain conducted
a test to compare its high speed downlink
packet access (HSDPA) benchmark with
those of other operators. The test result
illustrated that the HSDPA throughput
enabled by Vodafone Spain in its 29
coverage areas was unsatisfied - in these areas
Vodafone had adopted other vendors’ wireless
equipment to achieve network coverage.
Shocked by the result, Vodafone Spain’s
technical staff anxiously consulted Huawei,
and the two partners selected eight hotspot
areas in Madrid to be covered by Huawei’s
wireless network. The new network was
then put to the same HSDPA test as before,
and then optimized. The results exhibited
an HSDPA with far greater stability and
with a throughput that exceeded other
operators’ by over 30% on average.
Furthermore, after optimization, singlesite HSDPA throughput was significantly
improved. In the HSDPA benchmarking
test that followed, Huawei received high
recognition from Vodafone Spain.
Vodafone Iceland covering
120km of seas
Located near the Arctic Circle, Iceland
sits on the westernmost tip of Europe in
the middle of the North Atlantic. Being
the second largest European island, Iceland
has a 4,970km coast line and an economy
that is underpinned by fishing. The
numerous of boats leaving shore each day
necessitates high-level sea-based as well as
land-based network coverage.
Jack represents a typical Icelandic
fisherman who attaches great importance to
high-quality offshore communications. In
the past, these were inadequate, and while at
Table 1 Vodafone’s UMTS/HSPA network
Table 2 Other operators’ UMTS/HSPA networks
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13 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
sea, Jack and his fellow fishermen frequently
lost contact with the people onshore. “Seeking
help was impossible if we were caught in a
storm,” recalls Jack, whose family could do
nothing but worry for his safety during his
days and nights at sea.
R e s p o n d i n g t o Ic e l a n d ’s s p e c i a l
landform, Huawei proposed a solution that
sought to perfect offshore communications
and enhance 120km of sea coverage. In
May 2007, Huawei began reconstructing
Vodafone Iceland’s GSM network. By
using the dual-timeslot extended cell
scheme and effectively combining its power
enhancement, transmission diversity, and
4-way receiver diversity functions, the
system has achieved downlink gains and
higher receiver sensitivity. As a result,
the receiver function is now directionally
balanced for both uplinks and downlinks.
What’s more, Huawei took advantage of
the nation’s unique landform for high
terrain sites and mounted antennas at
suitable points to expand sea coverage.
Consequently, system coverage radius was
increased by 20% and the total coverage
area by at least 40%. The number of sites
was proportionally reduced by 30%, which
both curtailed investment and facilitated
greater environmental protection.
Since the project’s inception, the key
performance indexes (KPIs) of Vodafone
Iceland’s network have all improved
considerably. Network quality, subscriber
experience, customer satisfaction and
offshore traffic have all been greatly
enhanced, ensuring that Jack and his fellow
fisherman can benefit from the greater
safety that effective communications deliver.
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Huawei Technologies
GO, GO, GO!
Orange opens up the Belgian Grand Prix
In addition to other regions, Orange
operates in 22 European countries and
serves nearly 85 million mobile subscribers.
Regarded as the most capable European
operator in R&D terms, the company boasts
16 research institutes around the globe.
Positioned as a leading European mobile
operator, Orange has remained dedicated
to developing new services and solutions
to perpetuate its stature across the industry.
The company has also been searching for a
long-term strategic partner to help reduce its
TCO and increase its operational revenue,
and a strategic choice came to fruition with
the Belgian Grand Prix.
Sharing excitement on the
Spa-Francorchamps circuit
“GO, GO, GO KIMI!” On September
16, 2007, the Belgian Formula 1 Grand
Prix began in Spa-Francochamps amidst a
flurry of deafening screams and shouts and
a sea of mobile phone activity as countless
fans made video calls to share their
excitement, while reporters from all over
the world took full advantage of the HSPA
network to cover the race.
The Spa-Francochamps circuit is located
in the center of Belgium and has been the
venue for the Belgian Grand Prix since
1985. The 6.973-kilometer circuit is the
sport’s longest, and is generally regarded as
the leading world venue and home to the
best races. Tracing the uneven contours of
a hill, the circuit is considered to be one of
the most challenging Grand Prix circuits,
the downhill run providing an especially
breathtaking stretch. The rugged terrain
has always hindered network coverage
and high-speed mobile data services
have remained unfeasible, representing
a disappointment to the legion of fans
wishing to record the action.
In April 2007, Huawei began deploying
Distributed Node Bs in Belgium having
fully considered the topographical variations
among different spots in the circuit and
landform complexity. Huawei proceeded
to implement its wireless network planning
solution and antennas based on existing
sites surveys in a move to significantly save
the operator, Orange, network construction
costs by utilizing current equipment rooms,
site equipment and antennas. IP and multicarrier technologies were introduced to
Orange’s network so as to enable end-toend IP networking from the interior to
the exterior, while greatly improving the
system’s bandwidth throughput capability.
After network reconstruction, Orange
was able to provide subscribers with a
rich and flexible service experience that
included mobile broadband services, VoIP
and mobile TV. The communications
network covering the Spa-Francochamps
circuit has remained as a permanent
fixture that will benefit legions of fans and
reporters for years to come.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
14
COVER STORY
Telecom Italia: higher speeds and
newer experiences
Telecom Italia is the seventh largest operator in
the world and is famous for its innovation. It plays a
dominant role in its domestic market, and operates
in numerous European and Latin American regions
including Germany, France, Holland, Brazil, Argentina,
Bolivia and Cuba. Having already secured nearly 30
million fixed and 60 million mobile subscribers, the
company is seeking to expand its activities by investing
EUR14 billion between 2006 and 2008.
The constant development of the mobile
communications industry has necessitated continual
base station adjustment in Telecom Italia’s existing
network. Essential upgrades for HSPA and IP
radio access networks (RAN) increase costs and
endanger network performance. Telecom Italia
expects to strengthen its position by providing a
new network while decreasing capital expenditure
(CAPEX) to meet the fast growing requirements for
3G network capacity and the demand for the rapid
inception of new services. Huawei’s next-generation
Node B solution and its associated business model
are designed to save millions of euros in network
adjustment areas, and as such attracted Telecom
Italia’s interest.
15 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Mobile experiences on high-speed
railways
By 2008, Italy will deploy over 1,000km of
high-speed railway track, with the Rome-Naples
and Milan-Turin stretches already up and running.
The highest train speeds reach 300km per hour
and, in response to the public need for high-speed
Internet services while in transit, Telecom Italia has
planned to launch its high-speed Internet service
in partnership with the railway company. HSDPA
technology is adopted for back transmission through
which data is converted to Wi-Fi signals to facilitate
the Internet and other high-speed data services.
O n a h i g h - s p e e d r a i l w a y, c a l l t r a f f i c i s
concentrated in moving carriages, and solution
design in terms of construction costs and highspeed performance should be considered, especially
technical difficulties brought about by Doppler
frequency shifts at high speeds. Huawei’s unique
40W power amplifier enables bi-directional divided
linear coverage. Its unique high speed algorithm can
overcome influences from both the Doppler effect
Huawei Technologies
and excessive cell handovers. Multi-RRU
combination technology can improve
HSDPA performance, and BBU pool
technology can reduce BBU numbers and
thus construction costs.
To date, Huawei has completed the
solution design and network planning
for the trial section of the Rome-Naples
high-speed railway. In the near future,
subscribers can conveniently use highspeed Internet services on trains between
Rome and Naples with the same results as
office use.
Romantic, golden holidays in
Sicily
Sicily provided the scenic backdrop for
the award-winning movie Malena, and is
widely regarded by both ordinary tourists
and celebrities as a romantic island and
desirable get-away location. July and August
represent its peak-season months during
which tens of thousands of tourists descend
on the island to enjoy the sunshine, the
beach and the island’s rich history.
For Telecom Italia, the clusters of
tourists bring about huge business
opportunities as the more diligent tourists
utilize the HSPA network to keep up
with their business tasks, while others use
their mobile phones to send photos or
videos to relatives and friends. Telecom
Italia’s existing network, however, fails
to meet modern requirements and it is
almost impossible for subscribers to use
high-speed mobile data services in Sicily,
thus prompting the drive for network
enhancement.
Guided by the premise of high-quality
but low-cost customer solutions, Huawei
fully employed Telecom Italia’s existing
resources while ensuring high quality
integrity. Including towers, equipment
rooms, power supply systems and
transmission equipment, reuse has saved
Telecom Italia much investment during the
network reconstruction process. In terms of
performance, the download rate of Sicily’s
HSDPA network gradually increased from
1.8 to 7.2 Mbps, and more importantly,
the network was adjusted before the 2007
peak season. The KPIs have demonstrably
improved, and problems concerning
network congestion and poor indoor
coverage have been completely eliminated.
Network quality has been optimized
and improved, as enhanced customer
satisfaction and rapidly increasing traffic
rates testify. The new network is based on
full-rate HSPA technology and enables
Telecom Italia to deploy new services. Not
only do greater number of subscribers now
use Telecom Italia’s services during their
stay in Sicily, but also the increased average
revenue per user (ARPU) reflects a positive
gain for Telecom Italia.
Editor: Pan Tao [email protected]
Telecom Italia expects to
strengthen its position by
providing a new network while
decreasing CAPEX to meet the
fast growing requirements for
3G network capacity and the
demand for the rapid inception
of new services. Huawei’s nextgeneration Node B solution
and its associated business
model attracted Telecom Italia’s
interest.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
16
MAIN TOPIC
MAIN TOPIC
I
n the mid-1990s, the first generation
BTS with analog power amplifier (PA)
enabled people to have fun in their
mobile communications. In 2000,
the second generation BTS with digital
PA greatly accelerated the development of
mobile networks. In 2005, the distributed
BTS, which represents the third generation
BTS, brought substantial changes to
network construction. With the application
of the wideband RF and IP technologies,
the fourth generation BTS has now
becoming a highlight in the industry, and
fully displaying its features of “Convergence,
Integration, All-IP and Green.”
Convergence
The constant development of mobile
communications has accelerated the
upgrades of technologies and products.
GSM networks are heading to the enhance
data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE)
and EDGE+, while WCDMA networks
are evolving to high-speed packet access
(HSPA), HSPA+, and long term evolution
(LTE). Faced with different systems
including WiMAX, operators have to
invest much on operation and maintenance
if different networks are constructed.
Therefore, convergence has become a major
concern throughout the industry.
17 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
The BTS accommodating different
systems develops typically in two
directions. First is the initial stage, in
which the equipment room, antenna,
feeder and auxiliary equipment are shared,
while different networks use different
types of BTS. Second, the software defined
radio (SDR) technology is adopted to
unify the hardware of BTSs in different
technical systems. As a result, a hardware
module can be configured to support a
unique system such as GSM, WCDMA
and CDMA, or even support two systems
simultaneously. This can enable smooth
upgrades and reduce operation costs,
including the cost of service parts.
Integration
The need for greater capacity has been
increasing with the drive of high-speed
data services. BTSs adopting the multicarrier technology have higher integration
and lower power consumption, and they
can facilitate smooth capacity expansion.
Multi-carrier technology is the current
trend for radio frequency (RF) broadband
usage, and it is a key technology for the
fourth generation BTS.
Multi-carrier technology was first
applied in 3G BTSs. The 2G network
used single-carrier technology in its early
phase, but can now use multi-carrier
technology introduced from 3G networks.
In a traditional BTS using single-carrier
technology, each carrier includes a
transceiver and a power amplification
unit. Multi-carrier technology employs
wideband RF technologies, in which
multiple signals are combined through the
digital intermediate frequency (IF) and are
transmitted through a broadband power
amplifier. In each multi-carrier module,
the number of carriers can be flexibly
configured and power can be shared
among carriers. As a result, combiners
are no longer needed, enabling flexible
capacity expansion and reduced power
consumption.
In a grand expo four months ago in
China, the traffic was estimated 10 times
more than usual. The technical guarantee,
however, had been proven to be an easy
one. With the help of Huawei’s fourth
generation BTS equipped with multicarrier module, the network capacity
was expanded three times through data
configuration in one minute, without the
need of adding new cabinets or renting
new equipment room.
All-IP
The increase of data service has raised
Huawei Technologies
Apple gained a whopping success by wining 10% of operators’ revenue generated from iPhone users, which
raised a heated topic about changes in the value chain. In an industry with stiffer competition, transnational
operators have to fight tooth and claw to get a new market share from their competitors, while regional
operators are striving to grab a larger stage. “The industry is undergoing a hurricane,” a telecom analyst said.
Higher requirements have been imposed on the existing networks with the introduction of new services,
increased number of users and higher average minutes of usage. Facing decreased ARPU and increased OPEX,
operators need a future-oriented wireless network solution to handle these challenges and boost their profits.
By Xu Peizhong
higher requirements for bandwidth. Operators,
however, have to face various challenges in each
bandwidth expansion, such as replacing the existing
equipment at a large scale, or making drastic changes
in network architecture, especially in transmission
network. High cost has become a curse in opening
the door of broadband.
The fourth generation BTS can solve the abovementioned problems. Based on IP and wideband
RF technologies, the RF channel can be up to
20MB, while transmission interface can support
100MB traffic. As only data configuration is
needed to enable the changes between different
systems, operators can protect their investment
during network transformation. For example, a
3x4 GSM BTS can be configured to a 3x2 HSPA
BTS. This configuration does not require hardware
replacement, but the transmission speed can be
increased from 2MB to 20MB.
Huawei’s fourth generation BTS has gained
a leading position, thanks to the company’s rich
experience in broadband and IP. In 2006, Huawei
succeeded in deploying an All-IP HSPA network
in Japan, which marks the very first time that IP
technology is introduced into mobile networks.
At the end of 2007, Huawei helped an operator
establish its networks in Szechwan, China, using the
GSM BTSs based on a wideband platform.
Green
A major drive behind the development of the
fourth generation BTS is to reduce resources
like equipment room and energy. Highlyintegrated BTSs with low power
consumption are the key to green
communications.
boasts enhanced features in its
integrity and power consumption.
Take a 12-TRX BTS of 3 sectors for example. A
traditional BTS requires three cabinets and 8000W
power consumption if air conditioning included.
The fourth generation BTS, however, needs only
one cabinet and 2000W power consumption even
in an equipment room with higher temperature. By
comparison, costs on auxiliary equipment can be
reduced by over 30%, while power consumption
of BTSs can be saved more than 75%. For an
operator in South Africa, its traditional BTSs can
consume energy equaling to USD1.2 billion in a
five year period. If all the BTSs use Huawei’s fourth
generation ones, a total of USD0.75 billion can be
saved.
The year 2008 will be characterized by network
transformation. An innovative and quick-response
partner is needed in operators’ effort to explore the
“blue ocean”. Relying on customer-based innovation,
Huawei positions its technical development on
“Green, Convergence, Broadband and Evolution.”
Huawei has taken the lead in releasing the fourth
generation BTS in the industry, and will always be a
partner in building a future-oriented network with
operators.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
18
MAIN TOPIC
2G BTS draws on
3G technologies
T
wo highlights in the rich
development of the 3G networks
are advanced technologies and
high efficiency. However, the
GSM network is the most widely applied
network in the world. After a decade of
development, the GSM network is still
favored and constantly evolves due to the
maturity of technical applications and
business models.
Reviewing the 2G developments
from 3G commercial applications, people
may ask: Is it possible to apply the highefficiency and energy-saving technologies
of the 3G systems to the 2G systems? Can
we smoothly evolve the 2G systems to
the 3G systems? Huawei’s new-generation
EnerG GSM solution will offer you the
best answer.
Multi-carrier technology
for 2G
In the traditional GSM base transceiver
station (BTS), a radio frequency unit
(RFU) can only process one carrier signal,
therefore, a 12-TRX macro BTS needs 12
RFUs. Each BTS is cumbersome when
equipped with the necessary combiners
and duplexers. With technical innovations,
each RFU can now process two radio
frequency (RF) signals, and a 12-TRX
19 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
macro BTS needs only 6 dual transceiver
units (DTRUs) and less combiners and
duplexers. Compared with the BTS with
single-TRX’s RFU, the new-generation
BTS is smaller, leaner, and offers better
radio performance.
Currently, Huawei is the only vendor
who has developed a QTRU - a type of
RFU based on multi-carrier technology.
Each QTRU supports the processing of six
RF signals. Digital intermediate frequency
(IF) combining technology is also used. Six
RF signals are combined in the QTRU,
and no independent combiner is required.
Power of the six RF signals can be shared
to improve radio performance. The QTRU
based on the multi-carrier technology is
the same size as a DTRU, but has three
times the capacity of the DTRU.
Multi-carrier technology can bring
noteworthy improvements to 2G
networks. Take Huawei’s indoor macro
BTS3012 for example, since the QTRU
a n d D T RU a r e t h e s a m e s i z e , t h e
BTS3012 is able to support both the
QTRU and DTRU at the same time. The
DTRU-based BTS3012 can support up
to 12 TRXs and needs combiners. The
QTRU-based BTS3012 can support up to
36 TRXs without combiners. To construct
a S12/12/12 site, an operator needs three
DTRU-based BTS3012s or only one
QTRU-based BTS3012 with no combiner.
By Pang Yingwen
High efficiency 3G PA
technology for 2G
To deploy a wireless network with
overall coverage and good performance,
thousands of BTSs may be needed. As a
result, the costs of BTSs account for the
biggest proportion of overall network
construction costs. In each BTS that
works as a radio transceiver, the RF power
amplifier (PA) is the most important
component. The linear PA accounts
for about 1/3 of the total cost of each
BTS, and the RF PA is a main power
consumption unit of BTS.
To cut BTS costs, an effective method
is to decrease the costs of the RF PA unit
for each BTS. This requires the use of a
PA that has wide bandwidth, high linear
features, and increased efficiency.
The “DPD + Doherty” high-efficiency
digital PA technology does quite well. The
digital pre-distortion (DPD) technology
enables signal pre-distortion. A predistorter is cascaded over a PA. Because the
non-linear distortions enabled by the predistorter are equivalent to those enabled
by the PA in quantity but are opposite in
function, thus high linear PA output can
be achieved.
The Doherty PA technology has two
main parts: the carrier (C) amplifier and
Huawei Technologies
the peak (P) amplifier. The carrier PA works constantly,
while the peak PA works only at the preset peak. The
carrier PA works in a nearly saturated state to get higher
efficiency, and it amplifies most signals. The peak PA works
only at the peak value, and does not consume power most
of the time. The linear area with combined output and
input features has been greatly expanded from the linear
area of a single amplifier, which enables high efficiency
when signals are in the linear area.
Huawei’s new-generation GSM RF PA improves
efficiency up to 50% while saving over 49% in power
consumption when compared with a traditional BTS.
This is accomplished by coupling power amplification
technology with some innovative PA power consumption
management technologies like intelligent shut-off of PA
power and dynamic adjustment of PA voltage.
If existing sites are replaced by Huawei’s newgeneration BTSs that adopt the 3G high-efficiency PA
and the multi-carrier technology, a medium-sized city
with 2,000 sites can save 33.29 million kilowatts (KW)
of electricity each year. The environment is spared 22,000
tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and the operator
saves money too.
Distributed architecture for
2G BTS
To reduce 3G network construction costs, Huawei
pioneered in launching 3G Node Bs based on the
distributed architecture in 2005. In the distributed
architecture, the baseband unit (BBU) and the remote
radio unit (RRU) are separated and connected through the
standard common public radio interface (CPRI).
The distributed architecture divides the traditional
Node Bs into two small modules, BBU and RRU. This
facilitates site acquisition, simplifies installation, and
drastically cuts 3G network construction costs. Based
on its mature design and application experience in 3G
distributed Node Bs, Huawei launched the DBS3036, a
GSM distributed BTS with large capacity, high integrity
and high reliability.
By applying advanced 3G RF technologies like multi-
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
20
MAIN TOPIC
carrier technology and the high-efficiency digital PA to
the 2G system, Huawei will soon launch the RRU3036
for new-generation 2G distributed BTSs. Each
RRU3036 can support up to 6 carriers. For an S6/6/6
site, only three RRU3036 modules are needed. In the
future, big, bulky BTSs with high power consumption
will be phased out in 2G network construction.
End-to-end IP technologies
The GSM and the WCDMA belong to the same
standard system and support smooth evolution. The
IP radio access network (RAN) technology used in 3G
systems has many similarities to the BSS IP technology
used in 2G systems. The IP technologies adopted in 3G
systems can all be used in 2G systems and guarantee the
sustainable development of 2G systems.
In product platform development, the BSC and
BTS of the GSM system are both based on an All-IP
platform. This dramatically improves the integration
of 2G products, decreases power consumption and
maintenance costs, and enables smooth evolution to 3G
systems. In the past, 5 to10 cabinets were needed for a
BSC that supports 2,000 TRXs, including the packet
control unit (PCU) and transcoder (TC). Now only
one cabinet is required with Huawei’s new-generation
BSC6000 designed with the IP platform technology. The
BSC6000 and the radio network controller (RNC) are
both based on the PARC IP platform. The BSC6000 can
be upgraded to a RNC by a simple software upgrade and
replacement of a few interface boards.
In networking, Huawei’s new-generation distributed
BTS provides IP interfaces for 2G networks. The
Gb interface, Abis interface and A interface are all
designed to support IP connection directly. As a result,
the structure of the 2G network is simplified, the
transmission expenses in 2G networking are curtailed,
and increased requirements for digital services can
be accommodated. For example, the 3G network of
EMOBILE in Japan has saved up to 95% lease expenses
on transmission devices each year after adopting
Huawei’s IP RAN solution.
When 3G IP technologies are used in 2G product
development and IP networking, the reliability and
efficiency of 2G networks can be greatly improved.
Through IP networking, such functions as the BSC
pool or the MSC pool can be conveniently enabled.
If a BSC or MSC in the network fails in transmission,
another BSC or MSC can take up the services and
system services will not be interrupted.
Huawei has diversified and upgraded mobile
applications by introducing advanced 3G technologies
to the 2G system. By adopting the same technologies,
2G and 3G products will naturally evolve from technical
convergence to product convergence.
21 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Link
Huawei’s next
genaration GSM
distributed BTS
By Yin Dongming & Xu Yan
3G distributed Node Bs are maturing and GSM
operators have begun to cooperate with telecom vendors to
explore the possibilities of applying distributed BTSs in the
GSM field. However, many products are simple imitations
of 3G distributed Node Bs in appearance, installation
features and transmission media. The fact is that GSM
networks are significantly different from universal mobile
telecommunications system (UMTS) networks, especially
in capacity, evolution and environmental impact.
Not mere imitations
GSM distributed BTSs are not mere imitations
of the 3G models, but are definitely inheritance and
improvement based on the original. Hardware sharing the
same platform represents the idea of modular design and
product maturity. As the smallest and lightest BTS in the
industry, Huawei’s next-generation GSM distributed BTS
is based on the latest platform that is applicable to UMTS
networks and even long-term evolution (LTE) networks.
The next-generation GSM distributed BTS’s baseband
unit (BBU) inherits high integrity from the 3G distributed
Node Bs. Its common public radio interface (CPRI) and
board structure are of mature designs, while the remote
radio unit (RRU) has been greatly improved. By adopting
the natural heat dissipation mode and compact size, the
RRU is of higher stability, larger capacity, and greater
output power. The distributed BTS’ maturity has been
shined based on in-depth commercial test data, and the
BTS features optimized radio frequency (RF) components,
heat dissipation, and antenna system.
A basic requirement for GSM networks is the
assurance of smooth evolution to future networks.
Huawei’s next-generation GSM distributed BTS enables
GSM and UMTS systems to share the same platform,
fully supporting coexistence of 2G and 3G networks
and smooth evolution to future networks. The product
also adopts the IP platform design mode and uses IP
Huawei Technologies
technologies from the core to interfaces.
Based on extensive experience in the IP
field, Huawei has pioneered in using
the IP clock server to transfer clocks
on IP networks and realized IP mobile
networking from network elements to the
overall network architecture.
Full display of distributed
features
Differing from Node Bs in 3G
networks, GSM BTSs require larger
c a p a c i t y. A t p r e s e n t , m a n y G S M
distributed BTSs in the industry support
only two carriers due to technical
limitations, which seriously limits coverage
scenarios. These BTSs can only be used
as components for macro BTSs or for
small-capacity indoor coverage. To utilize
distributed features, the next-generation
GSM distributed BTSs must support
large-capacity networking and provide
the capabilities of macro BTSs in terms of
coverage and expansion.
Huawei’s next-generation distributed
BTS stands out from all the GSM
distributed BTSs that can be installed
on towers for its support of S4/4/4
configuration and S12/12/12 after
upgrades. The application performance
with 30W cabinet-top output power is
equivalent to that of a macro BTS.
By using Huawei’s next-generation GSM
BTS, operators can have up to 36 carriers in
baseband processing, and can add two BBUs
to expand each single BTS to support 12
cells and 72 carriers. This can greatly enrich
the application scenarios of GSM distributed
BTSs and handle the requirements of heavytraffic users and highly-integrated services,
whether indoors or outdoors. In each sector,
a single RRU of Huawei’s next-generation
GSM distributed BTS can support 4 carriers,
and the capacity can be further expanded
through cascading. Since the unit supports
transmit diversity and 4-antenna receive
diversity, the receive sensitivity can be up
to -112.5 dBm at normal temperature.
Operators can stop worrying about degraded
quality of service (QoS) and won’t need to
construct more sites or plan more networks,
while enjoying the features of distributed
BTSs.
With the purposes of reducing
energy consumption, noise pollution,
electromagnetic radiation and interference,
Huawei has transplanted a “green” idea
into the design of its next-generation
GSM distributed BTS. By adopting digital
power amplifier and intelligent power
control technologies, Huawei’s nextgeneration GSM distributed BTS achieves
a power amplification efficiency of more
than 40%. As a result, power consumption
is further decreased while the same output
power is maintained.
Experience promises a
bright future
Engineering experience from 3G
networks is greatly helpful in deploying
GSM distributed BTSs. With its 3G
distributed Node Bs, Huawei helped
Vodafone Spain migrate the networks in
Madrid and Barcelona. By installing RRUs
on towers to improve coverage, Vodafone
Spain greatly improved its voice quality
and high-speed packet access (HSPA) data
throughput.
In Hong Kong, where features the
most complicated wireless environment
and great difficulty in site acquisition,
Huawei used the ray-tracing model and
3G distributed Node Bs to build a highquality network, while saving space and
rental costs.
In Singapore, Huawei used distributed
Node Bs to realize the coverage of two
different scenarios in downtown areas and
residential areas. By using fiber extensions
and reading directly the original network
configuration data, Huawei managed to
speed up the network optimization with
a record-setting delivery of 100 sites per
week.
In Japan, Huawei tailored its
distributed Node Bs to meet the operator’s
rigorous requirements for earthquake
resistance, moisture resistance, natural heat
dissipation, and reliability, and succeeded
in constructing the fastest mobile
broadband network nationwide with more
than 70% coverage.
Although the mature application of
3G distributed Node Bs have significantly
influenced the GSM network deployment,
operators are still looking forward to a
next-generation distributed BTS solution
tailored for GSM networks, rather than
equipment that enables simple separation
in physical architecture. The nextgeneration GSM distributed BTS can
truly help operators build high efficiency,
high quality and quickly operable GSM
networks that provide competitive services
and products.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
22
MAIN TOPIC
Green BTS gives fresh breath
Green BTS
gives
fresh breath
G
lobal telecom equipment
suppliers are rolling out their
own green BTSs. However,
each might have a different
understanding on the definition of a green
BTS since currently there is no defined
standard in the industry.
If we analyze the one-time capital
expenditure (CAPEX) before launch time
and the operational expenditure (OPEX)
afterwards, it is apparent that a real green
BTS should incorporate environmental
protection into product design and produce
to significantly lower the total cost of
ownership (TCO) while saving energy.
The green BTS benefits mobile
operators mainly in these three important
areas: auxiliary equipment, network
deployment, and environmental protection
and resources utilization.
Reducing sites and
saving auxiliary cost
As the cost of BTS often occupies only
around 30% of one site CAPEX, while
in Europe and other developed countries,
t h e p ro p o r t i o n i n C A PE X i s a b o u t
15%. Reducing the site related auxiliary
equipment will directly decrease CAPEX.
Higher integration is thus demanded.
Suppose a GSM site with S12/12/12
typical configuration in dense urban, the
footprint of site with traditional BTS will
be over 1.5m 2 . If the footprint can be
decreased to 0.5m2, acquisition of 10,000
23 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
sites will save operators over USD120
million in Europe. Due to small dimensions
and light weight, more than 70% civil
works can be reduced at the same time.
With increasing price of fuel, more cost on
OPEX could be further saved.
In the industry, promoting integration,
adding external combiner, or shortening the
backup time by reducing battery facilities is
commonly used to make the site acquisition
easier. Due to low BTS integration and site
limitation brought by tower, space, cost etc.,
the number of feeders and antennas will
be consequently restricted. To realize that
multiple carriers share the same feeder and
antenna, an expensive external combiner
has to be added.
The green BTS will be able to provide
4 to 6 carriers by one common port. For a
S12/12/12 site, only 1 to 2 battery cabinets
are required, about 0.5m2 occupied, which
makes site acquisition more convenient
and flexible, saves CAPEX, and shortens
the network planning and rollout period.
Power consumption cut
by 50%
Environmentally friendly products
generally feature lower power consumption,
less noise, less electromagnetic radiation,
and lower environmental impact. That
is precisely what the green BTS aims to
achieve.
For example, a typical GSM S4/4/4 site
with a traditional macro BTS consumed
By Wu Wujun
1,600W in 2007, and the total power
consumption of the site was around
3,000W. If power consumption of both
BTS and auxiliary equipment can be
optimized, a site with less than 450W
power consumption will lead to 85%
decrease in total power consumption,
which is about 22,000 kilowatt hours per
site every year. That means 70 million
liters of fuel, accounting for USD400
million, and would be saved for an African
GSM operator with 10,000 outdoor sites
in 5 years.
To achieve this target, Huawei green
BTS adopts enhanced Doherty technology,
the latest power amplifier chipset, and
brand new hardware design to realize
energy conservation and environmental
protection by a three-tier approach.
First, the latest power amplifier chipset
and high efficiency scheduling algorithm
can effectively reduce more than 60% of
the static power, substantially avoiding the
unnecessary waste of energy.
Second, industry-wide power amplifier
efficiency was less than 33% in 2006,
but with the latest chipset and enhanced
D P D & Do h e r t y t e c h n o l o g i e s , t h e
amplifier efficiency is improved from
33% to 45%. It is safe to forecast that
the power amplifier efficiency will be
improved to 50% by the year 2008. As a
consequence, power consumption will be
further decreased, and fuel consumption
and emission of carbon dioxide will be
significantly reduced. By using highefficiency power amplifier technologies
Huawei Technologies
and the latest amplifier chipset, the internal heat
generated by the BTS components is greatly
decreased. The traditional heat dissipation methods
such as air-conditioning and heat-exchange can
be replaced by convection cooling or natural heat
dissipation, eliminating noise and saving energy.
Third, according to a number of industr y
consulting firms, 750W power supply is a dividing
line between green energy and fuel engine. If a lessthan 750W BTS uses green energy, investment
balance can be reached within three years compared
with that uses a fuel engine. For small BTSs or
distributed BTSs in low traffic areas, such as the
BTSs of one sector and less than 2 transceivers,
their power consumption is far less than 750W.
Therefore, the green energy such as solar, and wind
can be used to power the BTSs. This not only saves
the investment, but also takes full advantage of using
natural energy to eliminate environmental pollution.
Easier installation
the industry’s average. These enable the distributed
BTS to support up to 12 transceivers per sector. The
capacity bottleneck has been eventually broken.
The modular design is an innovative new type
of BTS, which simplifies wiring between different
modules and enables the BTS to be stacked or
assembled in various ways like a building block. This
makes site construction simpler, expansion smoother,
and civil works costs related to site lower. Operators
will benefit from convenient installation and easier
site acquisition, reducing the investment on site and
shortening network deployment time.
The green BTS is an effective means of ensuring
profitability and assisting operators to rapidly lower
TCO in an increasingly competitive environment.
As a leading telecom equipment provider, Huawei
is making persistent efforts to innovate based on
customer demands. Its series of green BTSs will
bridge the standards gap to realize multi-system
integration, and help operators to lower TCO
through a green way.
Editor: Chen Yuhong [email protected]
It is well known that a traditional BTS is
composed of many modules including baseband, RF,
combiner, transmission, operation and management.
These cause very complicated wiring and rigid
installation mode, making site construction and
expansion difficult.
In 2005, distributed BTS with open common
port radio interface (CPRI) was developed as the first
modular BTS. As the distributed BTS is physically
divided into baseband module and RF module
interconnected through optical fiber, the flexibility of
site acquisition and installation is greatly enhanced.
With regard to the dimensions, a baseband module
that is 3U to 4U in height can enable the installation
on the existing equipment such as an automatic
power management (APM) cabinet, transmission
equipment cabinet or remote equipment room.
Thanks to its light weight, the RF module supports
various installation modes including installation
on tower, pole, or against wall. Because of its
small capacity (one or two carriers), a traditional
distributed BTS is only applicable to indoor coverage
or small capacity application scenarios.
In 2008, Huawei’s full range of the fourth
generation BTSs will be highly modularized. All
BTSs will be unified to baseband and RF modules.
Due to introduction of multi-carrier and broadband
radio technology, the capacity of baseband unit will
be improved by five times, and meanwhile the height
will be further reduced to 1U to 2U. In terms of RF
module, the dimensions remain unchanged but one
single module can support 4 to 6 carriers, accounting
for 2 to 3 times capacity increase compared with
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
24
MAIN TOPIC
What can wideband RF bring for GSM?
What can wideband RF
bring for GSM?
Wideband RF technology had been put into commercial use only in WCDMA and CDMA systems during its earliest stage.
The application of this technology to the GSM system will deliver with it a breakthrough in traditional mobile networks,
which will greatly assist GSM operators to lower TCO and achieve a low cost for rapid expansion. Moreover, it will offer
smooth future evolution potential.
By Feng Baoshun
W
ith today’s flourishing global
mobile communications
development, operators are
increasingly aiming to
reduce TCO and identify cost-effective
methods of expanding mobile networks.
This is necessary to cope with the rapidly
growing needs of users that, to date,
exceeds any previous time.
GSM forms a narrow-band digital
communications system, and its present
base stations commonly adopt single
carrier technology. Specifically, each carrier
corresponds to an independent RF channel
as illustrated in Fig.1.
If a cell needs to configure multiple
carriers (for example, 6 carriers) to meet
the capacity requirements, the signals
must be combined through a traditional
combiner before being sent to the antenna
- for the purpose of saving antennas.
However, each time when signals are
combined, base station power output
drops by at least 50%, which of course
25 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
represents an unwelcome situation in largecapacity networks. Given the combiner’s
significant losses, a carrier’s transmission
power needs to be increased to meet
coverage requirements.
Wideband RF technology will help
solve this problem by utilizing MCPA - the
multi-carrier power amplifier technology
- which represents one of the key means
of allowing a module to be configured
with multiple wireless carriers according to
Baseband
DAC
PA
Baseband
DAC
PA
Baseband
DAC
PA
capacity requirements, helping operators
to lower TCO.
The core concept of wideband RF
technology involves signal combination on
the digital IF module followed by output
through the broadband power amplifier, as
shown in Fig. 2. Wideband RF technology
was first put into commercial use in
WCDMA and CDMA systems. However,
due to the shift to network convergence,
breakthrough progress has been made its
Fig. 1 Single carrier power amplifier
Analog RF
The necessity
Huawei Technologies
application in GSM narrow-band digital
communications systems.
The greatest challenge regarding MCPA
in WCDMA and GSM systems is achieving
power amplifier linearization and efficiency.
Current WCDMA equipment vendors have
so far adopted the digital pre-distortion
(DPD) technology in WCDMA systems,
and achieved excellent commercial results.
DPD technology allows a PA to cascade
over a pre-distortion device - the predistorter
- to realize a cascaded linear system.
W i t h t h e u s e o f M C PA a n d t h e
application of 3G power amplification
technologies such as DPD in GSM
systems, operators can substantially lower
TCO and achieve smooth future network
evolution. Therefore, wideband RF forms
a necessary technology in terms of nextgeneration base station design.
Three key benefits
Smooth expansion and easy
maintenance
Multi-carrier linear power amplification
technology can be adopted to enable the
power amplification of baseband signals
for multiple carriers after the combination
on the digital IF module. Carriers can
thus share one power amplifier, and base
stations can be seamlessly expanded. GSM
operators can, for example, use three
MCPA modules to establish an S4/4/4
site during the initial phase. The increased
number of subscribers may require the
expansion to an S6/6/6 site. In this case,
engineering personnel only need to
modify the software configuration in the
equipment room, without interrupting
base station services. Meanwhile, they do
not have to replace hardware or change
cable distribution by re-accessing the site.
After MCPA technology is adopted, each
cell in a typical configuration needs only
one MCPA module, and it is unnecessary
to configure the traditional broadband
or filter combiners. Therefore, the cable
distribution of the base station is greatly
simplified, and reductions are made in
technical requirements for maintenance
personnel and the probability of cable
misconnection.
Large capacity and wide coverage
The typical capacity of a traditional
GSM base station is 12 carriers, which
can increase to a highly integrated, single
cabinet capacity of 36 carriers if multicarrier technology is adopted. Moreover,
this technology does not require broadband
or filter combiners, thus decreasing the
fault points of equipment and insertion
loss. Coverage performance does not in
any way decline compared with that of a
traditional GSM base station.
Using 6-carrier configuration as an
example, multi-carrier technology incurs
an insertion loss of only 1dB, compared
with 3dB for a filter combiner and 7dB
for a broadband combiner in a traditional
GSM base station. Coverage performance
is increased by the use of multi-carrier
technology that allows power resource
sharing among different carriers and needdependent idle channel allocation.
Lower power consumption and
cost
Baseband
Digital IF
Baseband
DAC
PA
Baseband
Fig. 2 Multi-carrier power amplifier
Multi-carrier technology enhances base
station power amplifier efficiency. As each
carrier can share power resources, then
resources can be dynamically and flexibly
allocated according to different carriers’
traffic volumes and power requirements.
Savings can be made in ordinary
combiners and this substantially decreases
both power losses and carrier output
power demanded for base station coverage.
With the help of multi-carrier technology,
power consumption and OPEX of base
stations can be reduced substantially. For
example, the typical power consumption
of a multi-carrier GSM base station under
a S12/12/12 configuration can be less than
2,000W, which is an impossible feature for
traditional GSM base stations.
Alluring prospects
The linearization and efficiency of
power amplifiers are two key issues for
wideband RF technology, and vendors will
continue prioritizing its R&D. Following
the successful utilization of MCPA in
WCDMA systems, GSM equipment
vendors have already begun researching
the introduction of multi-carrier
technology to GSM systems, and have
already incorporated it into their products.
At present, dual-mode and multi-mode
technologies have been developing rapidly
in the global mobile communications
market. The inception of multi-carrier
technology in GSM systems will lay the
foundation for the multi-mode base
stations that can share carrier modules.
Furthermore, software defined radio
(SDR) will play an important role in
multi-mode base station deployment.
In the near future, SDR research and
production will emerge as key technical
goals, the commercialization timeframe for
which will be elevated by the introduction
of MCPA to GSM systems. Huawei
is set to adopt SDR in its products
during 2008. SDR permits a set of
equipment to simultaneously support a
variety of technical systems and software
configuration is the only measure required
to realize evolution from GSM singlemode to GSM/WCDMA dual-mode or to
WCDMA and LTE directly.
Editor: Liu Zhonglin [email protected]
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
26
MEDIA INSIGHT
Harvesting in the US, India and China
Huawei makes it large in CDMA
Persistence and unflagging effort underline the “Never Give Up” ethos integral to success. Indeed, 2007 richly rewarded
Huawei’s perseverance and capabilities with its entry into the world’s three largest CDMA markets: the United States,
India and China.
By Li Chuantao from the Communications Weekly
27 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
H
uawei’s greatest breakthrough in the
CDMA field was made last year in
India. By mid 2007, Huawei had
secured equipment contracts worth
USD300 million with Reliance and TATA, two
major Indian CDMA operators who both occupy
places in the global top ten CDMA operators.
Leap Wireless (Leap) is the fifth largest CDMA
operator in the United States. Leap’s initial
cooperation with Huawei began in 2006, and the
company recently selected Huawei to deploy CDMA
networks for Cricket Communications (Cricket) and
Denali Spectrum (Denali), both of which are wholly
owned subsidiaries of Leap. The new networks cover
the Great Lakes region, which comprises one of the
United States’ key economic areas.
After a lengthy stagnancy in the CDMA market
in China, Huawei was exclusively awarded China
Unicom Tianjin’s CDMA substitution project in late
2007. The project involves 1,600 TRXs, which make
up over 40% of Tianjin’s total CDMA network
capacity.
Sweet harvest
As the cradle of CDMA technology, the United
States is home to the largest number of CDMA
subscribers. Two of the three largest operators in
America utilize CDMA technologies, covering
over 100 million subscribers. Among the 46
operators globally who have deployed or intended to
implement CDMA2000 1x EV-DO Rev.A networks,
eight are from the United States, including the
transnational operators Sprint Nextel and Verizon
Wireless. With CDMA data services contributing
20% of operators’ revenue worldwide, the United
States receives the largest proportion for CDMA
data services, followed by Japan and South Korea.
The Great Lakes region covers Chicago and
its neighboring areas, and describes the most
important economic and industrial center in the
United States, next to New York. With modern and
developed cities, high population density, heavy
traffic and typically tall buildings, the Great Lakes
region remains a network coverage headache for
telecom operators. Naturally, it was positioned as
a focus for network deployment by Leap, who is
licensed to provide mobile services in 35 states.
Since its foundation, Leap has been striving for a
competitive edge with high-quality network services
and low service charges. Fully satisfied with Huawei’s
equipment and services in 2006, Leap selected
Huawei to construct 1,300 base transceiver stations
(BTSs) and deploy a new network in the Great Lakes
region.
While the United States remains the largest
CDMA market in the world, India is recognized to
be the fastest growing one. According to CDMA
Development Group (CDG) statistics, India’s
CDMA subscriber base increases by an average of
nearly 2 million each month, with a total number of
60 million subscribers recorded in 2007. Coupled
with a market scale lying next to the United States,
India is viewed by CDMA equipment suppliers as
one of the most attractive markets in the world.
Reliance is the second largest telecom operator in
India and one of the most rapidly growing CDMA
operators in the Asia-Pacific region. Its 36 million
subscribers account for 25% of the total mobile
communications market in India. Positioned as a
domestic leader in terms of network coverage, overall
call quality and customer service, Reliance was
awarded “Operator Leadership” by CDG in 2007.
On December 29, 2006, Reliance signed
a contract with Huawei for the commercial
deployment of 60% of its CDMA network.
The project marked the first time that Reliance
introduced a non-U.S. vendor into its existing
network. In early May 2007, Reliance sought
cooperation with Huawei once again, contracting the
company to undertake a CDMA network expansion
project that involves nearly 9,000 BTSs and will
cover more than 40% of the nation’s territory.
TATA is the second largest CDMA operator
in India with a 38% domestic market share. In
March 2007, TATA began implementing its goals
for improving network quality, attracting CDMA
subscribers and further increasing its market share.
Launching its large-scale network adjustment
project, TATA deployed Huawei’s All-IP CDMA
core network and wireless access equipment in a
number of major cities including New Delhi and
Calcutta.
China Unicom, the second largest CDMA
operator in the world, boasts more than 40 million
CDMA subscribers. By November 2007, China
Unicom had attracted 4.277 million new subscribers,
and this figure is still growing quickly. Offering
huge market potential, China is expected to surpass
South Korea and become the world’s third largest
CDMA market in the near future. In late 2007,
Huawei was solely awarded China Unicom Tianjin’s
CDMA substitution project. With its network key
performance index (KPI) commanding one of the
top five positions, China Unicom Tianjin represents
a solid example of effective network operations.
Huawei will construct a 1,600-TRX network for
China Unicom Tianjin, equaling to more than 40%
of the existing CDMA network capacity in Tianjin.
China Telecom Tianjin also plans to replace the
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
28
MEDIA INSIGHT
remaining equipment of the network with Huawei’s in one
or two years.
Keys to success
All-IP
Huawei’s success can be attributed to its accumulated
expertise in the All-IP field. Compared with traditional
networking modes, Huawei’s All-IP networking offers
greater flexibility and its softswitches and IP BTSs can save
more than 60% in transmission costs. All-IP networking can
help operators provide diversified mobile broadband services
such as the transmission of emails with large attachments,
online video camera, mobile TV, and video on demand
(VOD).
After All-IP network cutover, Leap’s existing network
KPI was significantly improved. After network migration,
the covered areas have changed from “problematic areas”
to “outstanding performance areas”, and the drop call rate
(DCR) has decreased from 1% to 0.5%. Moreover, the
All-IP networking saves at least 50% in construction costs
and OPEX. Leap’s CTO, Glenn Umetsu, praised Huawei’s
capabilities: “Our strategic partnership with Huawei allows
us to further enhance our focus on delivering the highest
quality networks and consumer services while maintaining
our leadership position on cost, especially as we bring
Cricket services to new markets.”
Reliance has adopted Huawei’s new-generation
CDMA2000 All-IP BTSs and BSCs based on the universal
carrier-class IP broadband platform and these adopt a
modular design supporting IP interfaces. To cover 1,000
square kilometers, the number of required BTSs is halved,
and the IP transmission mode reuses existing IP network
resources and saves between 40% and 80% in mobile access
network transmission expenses.
Fast response
Huawei’s rapid response capability has played a key role
in making numerous breakthroughs and has won broad
recognition from operators.
Leap’s CDMA network previously supported 56K
signaling, which falls below the international standard
of 64K. For this reason, Huawei had to pass an array of
stringent testing criteria when it first entered the network.
Huawei’s response speed was amazing - only 7 days were
used to finish the whole process that covered protocol
analysis, problem relocation, development, testing,
commissioning, and online interconnection. According
to John Saboe, Leap’s engineering Vice President, “It
would take other vendors a month to solve such network
problems.” Reliance’s Logistics Director offers further
testimony: “Huawei is outstanding in terms of delivery
29 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
and, compared with other vendors, has delivered greater
equipment quantities in a very short time. Under Huawei’s
effective coordination, it took Reliance just 4 months to
complete the work that would take other operators several
years. Huawei provides professional guidance for long-term
network evolution, enhancing Reliance’s future confidence.”
Localized solutions
To successfully expand its international market position,
an enterprise must possess strong localization capabilities.
During its cooperation with operators, Huawei put into
play its design expertise to establish CDMA solutions that
fully satisfy customer requirements.
In the first-phase project with Leap, Huawei’s BTSs were
deployed in Reno, Nevada. Situated near the desert, its
outdoor summer temperature exceeds 40 degrees Celsius for
a long time, which melts many vendors’ BTS connectors.
Conversely, Huawei’s outdoor BTSs remain resilient to the
extreme conditions, thanks to their unique heat exchange
technology.
In a further example of localized solutions, India’s
geography also required condition-specific BTSs given the
nation’s complex landform, monsoons, high temperature,
tendency for power failures and instability, and fire and
theft risks. Widely deployed in Reliance’s network, Huawei’s
BTS 3606AC-R is designed to handle high temperatures
and power failures in India. The product includes built-in
batteries that enable 4 hours of uninterrupted power supply,
and its heat exchange technology has led to savings of 60%
in power consumption.
Equipment rooms in some Indian regions are small and
simple, and road conditions are poor for transportation.
For these areas, Huawei supplied its BTS3606C-R which
supports 4 TRX and 6 sectors and promotes minimal labor
and rapid installation. To date, the BTS3606C-R has been
widely deployed in dense urban areas, such as Gujarat and
Tamil Nadu. Costs associated with site leasing, installation,
and operation and maintenance (O&M) have all been
greatly reduced.
India, North America and China are three major markets
in the global CDMA industry. CDG statistics indicate that
there are 421 million worldwide CDMA subscribers, which
has increased by more than 100 million per year since 2005.
The Asia-Pacific and North America continue to boast the
widest CDMA technology application and largest subscriber
quantities, with 49% of all CDMA subscribers residing in
the Asia-Pacific region and 32% in North America.
Huawei’s 2007 successes have paved the way for its
subsequent development and achievements in the CDMA
field. Huawei’s continuous investment and innovation will
no doubt contribute to the global CDMA development.
HOW TO OPERATE
Fixed network transformation - An imperative for NGN
Huawei Technologies
The international roaming service is bringing greater profits for mobile operators, and currently comprises 10% - 18%
of European mobile operators’ business revenue. Nevertheless, as the demand for lower tariffs for international
roaming becomes more pervasive, major mobile operators are beginning to research methods globally for
providing the lowest international roaming tariffs, while delivering services that are similar to those of a home
network. This, of course, is under the precondition that operators’ business revenue remains ensured.
International roaming
leads everywhere
By Xiao Qian
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
30
HOW TO OPERATE
International roaming leads everywhere
A
t the end of November 2007,
around 30 top global
operators including NT T
DoCoMo, AT&T, Vodafone
and T-Mobile convened in Beijing to
discuss International Roaming Services’
Cooperation for the 2008 Beijing Olympic
Games. Held by China Mobile, the
conference focused on identifying ways to
yield high-quality and convenient mobile
roaming services to visitors from all over
the world during the Games. Mr Wang
Jianzhou, the president of China Mobile,
suggested that operators should greatly
reduce their international roaming tariffs,
including those for voice services and
data transmission. As such, China Mobile
would be willing to provide preferential
services for all international operators.
Cooperation for the Beijing Olympic
Games represents only one of the trials
involving international roaming services
that have occurred over the past few years.
Depending on the scenario, international
roaming can be categorized in two ways.
The first concerns roaming among a single
transnational group network and the
second across different group networks.
The latter, moreover, can be subdivided
directionally into inbound and outbound.
Roaming in a single
group network
Roaming among a single transnational
group network leads itself to lower charges,
given that the benefit is exclusively enjoyed
within the group, and associated services
are more easily acquired due to uniform
group deployment.
Vodafone Passport
As early as July 2005 Vodafone Group
launched a Passport plan in which all
mobile subscribers who registered for this
service could benefit from close to local
prices when roaming through Vodafone’s
subnets and preferential networks.
Cu r re n t l y, t h e n u m b e r o f g l o b a l
networks joining the Vodafone Passport
plan has reached 21, including some nonEuropean countries and regions such as
Australia and Japan. Vodafone UK, for
example, allows a British subscriber to
31 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Roaming among a single
transnational group
network leads itself to
lower charges, given that
the benefit is exclusively
enjoyed within the group,
and associated services
are more easily acquired
due to uniform group
deployment.
roam to another network for an additional
£0.75 for each connection, while other
fees remain the same as in the UK.
Calculations exhibit that a 1-minute call
gives a tariff saving of nearly 10%, which
rises to 50% for 2 minutes, before peaking
at 90% after 4 minutes. The Passport plan
has successfully reduced roaming tariffs via
a roaming alliance that has demonstrably
stimulated international roaming traffic
growth and enhanced high-end subscriber
loyalty to mobile services.
By June 2007, the number of registered
Passport subscribers had reached 6 million,
including 62% of Vodafone’s highend customers. Moreover, commercial
customers increased their average
international roaming call duration by
15%, post-paid individual customers by
39% and prepaid individual customers
by 105%. Vodafone Passport represents a
successful attempt to lower international
roaming tariffs, despite the fact that it has
not yet joined its service to the networks
of different operators.
Celtel’s One Network
In September 2006, Africa’s Celtel
Group launched One Network, the world’s
first transnational international roaming
service. At first, the Tanzanian, Ugandan
and Kenyan subnets in east Africa were
included, and Celtel subscribers could
roam between them while retaining their
home country numbers at a local tariff rate
for local calls. A nominal 10% was added
for international calls between the three
countries, while received calls remained
free. Prepaid subscribers, moreover,
could recharge their accounts with a
Celtel rechargeable card in any of the
three countries. In the end of 2007, One
Network was expanded to twelve Celtel
African subnets, with existing plans in
place to gradually extend this to fifteen.
Confronted with the reality of Celtel’s
competitive advantage following One
Network’s inception, other operators in
Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya - MTN,
Vodacom, and Safaricom - quickly formed
a roaming alliance under which their
KamaKawaida plan was launched in
January 2007. This allowed mobile phone
calls to be made and SMs (short messages)
sent among the three countries at the local
tariff. Safaricom’s statistics indicate that its
international traffic has increased by 400%
since KamaKawaida implementation.
However, Celtel’s comparative superiority
is reflected by its better coordination
in increasing or decreasing different
countries’ roaming revenue. The loss of
revenue in one country, for instance, can
be compensated by the international traffic
and subscriber increase in other countries.
For MTN, Vodacom and Safaricom, lower
roaming revenue can only be compensated
by increasing network traffic and
subscribers.
The reduction of international roaming
tariffs remains in its infancy, and most
roaming subscribers focus on tariff
comparisons. The greater convenience
of the One Network service and thus its
enhanced long-term development potential
will become gradually evident only if sharp
competition spirals international roaming
tariffs closer to cost, giving broadly
homogenous pricing strategies among
operators.
Roaming across different
group networks
Domestically or regionally confined
mobile operators lack the luxur y of
transnational network resources, and
larger-scale or transnational operators
usually formulate higher international
Huawei Technologies
roaming tariffs to maintain customer
loyalty. Thus a significant challenge
arises for those operators in terms of
avoiding expensive international roaming
settlement to provide competitive services?
Fortunately, the answer is embodied by
Single IMSI Multi MSISDN (SIMM),
a transnational roaming service that is
divided into inbound and outbound.
Inbound SIMM
Inbound SIMM allocates a temporary
local number to a roaming subscriber
for making and receiving local calls, and
the tariff is set at a local rate. These are
processed through the local network, along
with service availability, billing, recharging,
and other associated services. The ease of
applying for inbound SIMM adds to its
value given that entry into another country
initiates an SM from the SIMM service,
the activation of which is determined
by the receiver’s reply to the SM. This
strong promotional tool increases traffic
by actively pursuing subscribers, and the
service attractiveness is enhanced by the
fact that a local SIM card is unnecessary
to gain network admission. Moreover,
inbound SIMM’s prepaid status eliminates
deliberate fraud and payment default risks.
Nevertheless, inbound SIMM has
its defects. The need to recharge before
use causes some subscriber loss, and the
difficulty of dealing with a non-extendable
remaining balance discourages some from
taking up the service. Moreover, significant
numbers of international roaming
subscribers activate SIMM to benefit from
local tariffs, and a number of operators are
concerned with potential reductions in
international roaming revenue as a direct
result of SIMM. Actually, the answer
to this problem is whether operators
can compensate for revenue losses due
to international roaming services by
increasing both traffic and subscribers.
These two aspects -traffic and subscribers
- are to an extent symbiotic, and exert a
multiplier effect on operators’ revenue.
Marketing via advertising and
promotions prior to a given subscriber
traveling provides an effective, proactive
tool to increase subscriber numbers. Flight
brochures can be utilized to introduce
service registry and use procedures, which
encourages SIMM usage after reaching
a destination. A rational approach can
be taken with regard to service tariff
formulation, such as a 10% - 20%
increase on local tariffs, so as to reduce
the influence on international roaming
revenue settlement.
Effective service package design can
stimulate traffic, and number reservation
with a rental fee will encourage the loyalty of
frequent travelers to a given destination. The
difficulty operators’ face in terms of balance
return can be ameliorated by offering a
small-amount recharge mode, extending the
marketing channels for recharge cards and
promoting recharge convenience.
Given the enormous number of
Muslims who embark on a pilgrimage to
Mecca each year, Saudi Arabia reflects a
country with optimum inbound SIMM
conditions. At the end of September 2007,
Saudi Arabia STC officially launched its
inbound SIMM for commercial use by
issuing a complimentary call fee of 5 Riyals
(USD1.5) beforehand, thus obviating
the need for prior recharge. Promotional
activities could be comfortably simplified
to short welcome SMs, and this was
demonstrated as the first month of the
service secured 50,000 subscribers, a fact
that testifies to the service’s potential.
Outbound SIMM
Outbound SIMM allocates a local
number to a subscriber from a visited
country’s cooperative operator before
entering the country. Arrival stimulates
network access and preferential tariff
activation. Host operator cooperation in
the visited country is essential in terms of
number and mobile service resources, while
the subscriber’s home country operator
should be responsible for service provision,
billing, number management and
marketing, and fee forwarding to the host
operator for number and network rental.
Therefore, the role of the operator of
the home country is more like a special
mobile virtual network operator (MVNO),
which rents the host operator’s network
and number to provide the outbound
subscriber with mobile services in the
visited country.
For the home country operator, the
outbound SIMM service possesses the
advantages of avoiding a high international
roaming cost, extending the service range
for network subscribers, enhancing QoS,
brand equity and subscriber loyalty, and
reducing the ratio of local SIM cards used
by outbound subscribers. For host country
mobile operators, the outbound SIMM
service gains considerable high-level
roaming subscribers from the cooperative
operator, thus greatly enhancing their own
network traffic.
The current outbound SIMM business
describes an “MVNO network traffic
wholesale and number resources rental”
international roaming model. This reflects
a shift from the previous system within
which the host country operator controlled
pricing, while the home country operator
passively operated. The outbound SIMM
surrenders operational initiative to the
home network, thus facilitating a win-win
situation through cooperation.
In March 2006, China Mobile
Guangdong and China Resources
Peoples Telephone Co. Ltd., Hong Kong,
partnered up to launch a GuangdongHong Kong SIMM service, targeting
China Mobile GoTone subscribers who
frequently travel between Guangdong and
Hong Kong. To date, around 200,000
people have subscribed to the service, and,
to register, a GoTone subscriber sends the
SM “BLYKDH” to 10086 before receiving
a Hong Kong number that is allocated
by the system. Subscribers have to pay a
monthly rental fee to retain the number,
thus guaranteeing that China Mobile’s
SIMM service revenue does not fall below
that of the previous international roaming
service. Furthermore, the actual rise in
traffic has in turn increased income.
Over the past two years, there have
been various international roaming services
with diversified features and different
requirements for operators. In the context
of local conditions, mobile operators
must make available the most appropriate
roaming services, and the prevalent current
problem remains low tariff provision.
However, innovation is sure to mitigate
this issue and, in the future, international
roaming will cover ever ywhere with
service experiences that mirror domestic
conditions.
Editor: Xu Peng [email protected]
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
32
HOW TO OPERATE
Intelligent “heart” of mobile Internet
Intelligent “heart” of
mobile Internet
W
ith the fast development
of mobile Internet, mobile
data traffic volume increases
rapidly. However, restricted
by technical means of service control, mobile
operators have been mainly adopting the
traditional “pipe lease” operation model, and
only earning limited pipe rental fees. As a
result, the traffic volume has tremendously
increased but the income has not kept
pace. Then how to implement intensive
management of bandwidth resources and
maintain continuously growing profits?
Intelligent packet core
network
The traditional mobile packet core
network is no more than a transparent
channel for service bearing. Since it can’t
distinguish from the varied streams of
services passing through the channel,
all services are processed as bit streams
33 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
without discrepancies. Such a channel is
usually known as a “dumb pipe”.
Since packet core network can not
identify different services accurately,
operators have to use pipe lease billing
based on traffic or time instead of their
virtual values to perform flexible billing,
management and control. For example, P2P
download of flat rate users has accounted
for 50% - 80% total traffic, and munched
a great deal of bandwidth resources, but
generated zero additional income.
On one hand, volume-based billing
system is confusing and unattractive for the
ordinary users because “data traffic volume”
is difficult to understand and measure.
On the other hand, the simple time-based
billing system, especially the surge of data
traffic catalyzed by monthly flat rate billing,
has worsened the pipe transparency for
operators day by day, tipping the balance
between operation and profit.
How can operators promote mobile
data business effectively, and continuously
By Chi Zhentao & Zhang Baoguang
make a profit on the surging data traffic by
shifting from “pipe lease” operation model
to intensive operation?
The transition of mobile data service
operation calls for the emergence of an
intelligent packet core network, which,
based on service awareness, has abundant
functionality like content-based billing,
service control, bandwidth management,
service analysis and personal firewall,
etc. The intelligent packet core network
gives new vitality to mobile data service
operation, and is regarded as the intelligent
“heart” of the mobile Internet.
Service awareness means to distinguish
the various services carried by the
network through deep inspection into
the service data packets. Operators can
charge according to the services that the
users actually use, as is called contentbased billing. The control of services is
totally dictated by the operators, who can
strategically control the access of services
to the network, and assign different
Huawei Technologies
bandwidth resources to different services.
For example, with P2P services, operators
can deploy specific restriction manners or
billing policy to allow network resources
to converge towards the value services.
With service awareness, operators
can accurately grasp the characteristics
of user behaviors when introducing and
deploying new services. In this way,
operators can then implement and finetune the strategies according to the service
implementation.
The commercial application of mobile
broadband means more demanding
security requirements. Precise service
awareness allows you to control and filter
services that might threaten network
security. Meanwhile, operators can provide
flexible rules and policies for users, and
set up personal firewalls to improve the
security level for commercial customer
services and steer the smooth deployment
of commercial applications.
Here is the best choice
The intelligent packet core network has
realized effective control and management
on data services, bringing operators not
only profits but also challenges.
First of all, service awareness requires indepth analysis of the data packets, which
takes up a great deal of system resources.
This will seriously degrade equipment
capacity and performance, causing a huge
impact on the network. Also, an intelligent
packet core network involves obtaining user
and service information, service control,
and the deployment of billing policies. A lot
of different equipment entities or interfaces
are needed to realize those functions.
During the deployment process, the 3GPP
incompliance of equipment and interfaces
will lead to high-cost transformation,
upgrade and maintenance.
Finally, in regard to the complex and
varied mobile data services, consumer
demand changes fast. Those who can’t
support and respond rapidly may lose
market opportunities.
Through years of efforts, Huawei has
launched the high-performance intelligent
packet core network solution, effectively
solving these problems and winning a
great reputation in the industry.
In order to reduce the impact of service
awareness on network performance,
Huawei’s high-performance intelligent
packet core network is built on its inhouse advanced router platform. It
adopts the separation of control and
data, and features a unique distributed
architecture for the independent deep
packet inspection engine. Signaling, data
plane and service awareness are based on
different processors respectively. This helps
obviate your worries since it not only
can enhance service analysis ability, but
also avoid degrading system capacity and
performance, after deep packet inspection
is enabled.
Hu a we i’s i n t e l l i g e n t p a c k e t c o re
network effectively protects your
investment, which is fully compliant
with 3GPP standard and thus guarantees
convenient equipment purchasing, service
Link
component interoperability and service
upgrades. It also makes deployment
flexible, reduces the comprehensive cost,
and secures the stability and continuity of
service policies.
The deployment of intelligent packet
core network is not accomplished in one
move. New applications and services are
constantly emerging. The key to success
in the mobile data business is the rapid
deployment and adaptation of new services
to meet user needs and improve user
experience. With its sophisticated and highperformance router platform, powerful
research and development strength and
abundant experience in the IP field, Huawei
is able to implement in-depth optimization
and customized development efficiently,
helping you to quickly deploy new services
and win the competition.
Huawei to build European Packet Switched
Core Networks for T-Mobile International
In December 2007, T-Mobile of Deutsche Telekom chose Huawei to build its
intelligent packet core network in Europe, covering five European countries, including
Germany, England, Austria, Holland, and the Czech Republic. Mr Joachim Horn,
the technical director of T-Mobile said, “Through adopting Huawei’s leading solution,
T-Mobile expects to offer excellent and reliable services to the users, and realize our
strategic commercial goal. We see Huawei as a reliable and trustworthy partner, and
we look forward to long-term cooperation with each other. ”
"We are delighted to continue our work with T-Mobile," said William Xu,
President of Huawei Europe Region and Executive Vice President of Huawei,
"We look forward to commencing work on this latest project. At Huawei, besides
providing advanced solutions featured with large capacity, high performance,
intelligent billing and full 2G/3G integration, we are committed to providing fast
delivery and excellent service, ensuring a win-win outcome for T-Mobile."
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
34
HOW TO OPERATE
V
odafone, by mid-2006 had deployed
high-speed downlink packet access
(HSDPA) services in most Western
European countries, providing
Vodafone’s 3G subscribers with varied and richer
mobile data service experiences. This also ramped
up the development of global mobile data services
like mobile Internet, music download and online
gaming, leading to a marked increase of data traffic.
The mobile backhaul transport network is saddled
with increasing pressure from bandwidth limitations.
Since 2006, Vodafone has been searching for and
verifying new transport solutions. After numerous
discussions with leading vendors in the industry,
Vodafone gradually settled on adopting the PTN
platform to optimize and reconstruct its mobile
backhaul transport network.
Many other mainstream parties are highly
interested, including BT, DT, Orange, Huawei, Alcatel
35 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Lucent, Nortel and Cisco, as well as important
standardization organizations like the ITU, IEEE and
IETF.
Various solutions and strategies have been put
forward after heated discussions. Some questions
still remain unanswered: Is the next-generation
synchronous digital hierarchy (NG SDH) already
at the end of its lifecycle? Which technology is
preferred, transport multi-protocol label switching
(TMPLS) or provider backbone transport (PBT)? Is
PTN now a mature technology?
The solution lies in one two-part question. What
is the proper method for enabling the evolution
from NG SDH to PTN, and when should it be
implemented?
It is now commonly accepted in the industry
that compatibility is the key to seamless evolution
in the mobile backhaul transport network from NG
SDH to PTN. Why?
Huawei Technologies
Seeking for
a winning
PTN strategy
In light of the All-IP trend for mobile networks, it’s crucial that mobile backhaul transports are
optimized and reconstructed. What is the best strategy for the mobile backhaul transport network
evolving into a packet transport network (PTN)?
Service development
requirements
The All-IP concept is so popular in
the telecom industry that a discussion
not based on All-IP is outdated. People
have great expectations for All-IP network
a r c h i t e c t u re t h a t c a n b e a r s e r v i c e s
through IP technologies while providing
high flexibility and efficiency in service
management and control. The All-IP
represents a long-term pursuit of service
flexibility and controllability.
At present, all talks about the transport
platform in the All-IP architecture are
based on the assumption that the network
will complete its evolution to All-IP very
quickly. Many discussions emphasize that
IP transformation is actually emergent
at all network layers due to the rapid
development of data and video services.
Data services have been developing fast
over the past few years and in some areas,
the annual compound growth rate has
been over 300%. Yet, data services have
contributed only a small portion to the
total revenue of telecom operators. Even
in Western Europe, where data services are
widely used, the average proportion of data
service revenue to the total telecom revenue
is less than 15%. An optimistic estimation
is that in 2010, data services will contribute
to 30% of total revenue. At present, data
services might be the only way to stop the
average revenue per user (ARPU) from
declining. But it is hardly possible that
such services will become a major revenue
source to telecom operators in the coming
years. Therefore, real-time voice services are
By Bian Mingang
still vital for telecom operators in the short
run and remain a focal point for network
optimization and reconstruction.
The trend of service revenue changes
indicates that the evolution to All-IP will
be a long process. From the perspective of
service bandwidth, and after discussions
with mainstream operators based on the
worldwide development of mobile services
and subscribers, we conclude that various
granules will coexist for a long time on the
Bandwidth
IP RAN
R99/R4 IMA E1
GSM TDM
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013 Year
Fig.1 Evolution trend of various granules
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
36
HOW TO OPERATE
access side of mobile networks, as shown in Fig. 1.
Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) granules
will exist for a long time with the introduction of
3G. In 2008 - 2009, the IP radio access network
(IP RAN) will be introduced and gradually begin
large-scale applications. Later, the IP RAN will bear
most mobile data services. The service bandwidth
of the GSM network might be slightly decreased
as subscribers migrate to 3G networks. However,
Cost
Results from multiple
technology choices
PTN
70%
NG SDH
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
with GSM/R99 base stations in at least 3 - 5 years,
or gradually replace GSM/R99 base stations. Base
station equipment of different systems will coexist in
mobile networks for a long time.
With the understanding that All-IP is a long-term
and complicated evolutionary process, compatibility
becomes a basic aspect to be considered in the
optimization and reconstruction of transport
platforms. Such compatibility involves not only
PTN compatibility with TDM, ATM and IP
services, but also its compatibility with NG SDH,
covering services, network features, management
and maintenance. Compatibility is actually the most
important feature of the PTN platform.
2013 Year
Fig.2 Cost curves for NG SDH and PTN
PTN is a next-generation transport platform
gradually recognized by the industry after years
of discussions. The name indicates two important
characteristics: packet and transport. PTN will be a
packet-orientated network solution that supports basic
features of the transport platform. It will not only
enable packet-based switching, flexible broadcast/
multicast, flexible QoS control and GE/10GE
interfaces, but also realizes end-to-end service
PTN is a next-generation transport platform gradually recognized
by the industry after years of discussions. The name indicates two
important characteristics: packet and transport.
because the original bandwidth of GSM services is
not high, a lot of subscribers will remain in the GSM
network due to their needs for basic telecom services
like voice services and short messaging service (SMS).
Time division multiplexing (TDM) granules will exist
in the network for a long time. Operators have been
consistent in the overall development trends despite
their differences in service development plans, user
backgrounds and operation modes.
In addition to granules, service revenue and
networking equipment will experience a long
evolution process, and the network structure
adjustment will also be lengthy. HSDPA services are
still concentrated in business areas or urban areas,
despite rapid development. The IP RAN will coexist
37 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
management, end-to-end operation and maintenance
(OAM), protection switching, synchronization,
timing, and native processing of TDM services.
The major technologies that support PTN are:
TMPLS, PBT, multi-protocol label switching
(MPLS) tunnel control, service encapsulation
represented by pseudo wire emulation edge-to-edge
(PWE3), as well as IEEE1588 clock synchronization,
generalized multi-protocol label switching (GMPLS),
and other technologies under development such as
OAM and protection switching.
As most of the technologies above are still being
considered, they have aroused controversy. Most
disputes are about the choice among the three tunnel
control technologies, namely, TMPLS, PBT and
Huawei Technologies
MPLS. In 2006 - 2007, after in-depth discussions
about technical maturity, compatibility, inheritability
and upgrading capability, there is a consensus in
the industry that the technologies supporting PTN,
have much more in common than differences.
The technologies might adopt different processing
mechanisms in encapsulation formats and protocol
labels, but they realize and support the same network
features. Examples include multi-service bearing,
end-to-end protection on virtual channels, SDHlike maintenance and management operations. Such
features are the transport requirements described in
the PTN platform, and they are also basic features
inherited from the NG SDH platform.
The choice of technology is closely related to the
application scenarios and implementation costs.
Whatever technology is selected, the basic standard
is that it should be compatible with the NG SDH
network while enabling network transport features.
Need for investment protection
Many TDM ser vices cannot be discarded
during network evolution. In addition to TDM
services, existing TDM network resources cannot
be discarded either. After the quick development of
mobile services over the past few years, most mobile
operators have more or less constructed NG SDH
transport networks due to the burden of leased line
costs. Carriers that lease circuits to mobile operators
have built large NG SDH networks.
Other important assets for operators, apart from
the physical equipment resources, are actually the
end-to-end circuit management and maintenance
modes formed in transport networks, their rich
experience, and human resources. Then how can
operators maximize inheritance of existing resources
during network optimization and evolution?
During gradual evolution, SDH-like management
and maintenance as well as SDH interfaces will
help PTN equipment make minimum impact
on the existing network. More importantly, they
can be a reserve for the existing management and
maintenance modes and teams.
Most cost-effective evolution
scheme
Network evolution is a long process and many
evolution schemes are available. Evolution costs
should be the next consideration. Two factors to
consider are timing and cost: When will operators
start using the PTN equipment? What is the real
cost of switching from NG SDH to PTN?
After years of large-scale commercial applications,
NG SDH equipment is quite cheap in procurement
and maintenance. In contrast, as the PTN equipment
adopts a lot of new technologies and is not put to largescale commercial applications, and as the R&D and
trial application costs of vendors are not amortized,
costs of PTN equipment are much higher than those
of NG SDH equipment. The cost of a TDM E1 in
a PTN is 2 - 3 times as much as that in a NG SDH
network, and the cost of a GE interface in a PTN is 1.5
times as much as that in a NG SDH network.
The network evolution costs should be calculated
according to the service evolution trends. NG SDH
and PTN enable TDM/ATM/IP multi-service
transport through various technical systems. Due
to the differences in the basic technical systems,
different costs might arise in different service
scenarios. By calculating different scenarios for
service evolution, we have worked out the following
two cost curves for NG SDH and PTN, see Fig. 2.
The conclusion made by analyzing different
scenarios and considering such elements as technical
cost decrease and chipset maturity in the future is:
When the packet traffic occupies over 70% of the
bandwidth, the application cost of PTN will be
lower than that of NG SDH. However, this won’t
occur until 2009 or later.
NG SDH will remain a most important solution
in most network applications for 2008 in terms of
service requirements and technical costs. But PTN
will be gradually deployed in network layers where
packet services take a big proportion. Therefore,
compatibility of PTN will be of great importance.
PTN construction will result in significant
optimization and reconstruction on the existing NG
SDH network, or the PTN will possibly replace the
NG SDH network. What evolution strategy should be
taken to maximally decrease costs during this process?
In long-term network evolution, IP services will
gradually become the mainstream granules. TDM and
ATM granules will still exist for a long time, although
they will be gradually decreased. In a NG SDH
transport network, service interface cards account for
60% - 70% of the equipment investment. Whether
or not the huge number of TDM and ATM service
interface cards configured in the existing NG SDH
networks can be inherited in the PTN is one of the
most important concerns for the industry.
The service interface cards in Huawei’s PTN
equipment are compatible with those in the existing
NG SDH networks. As a result, 60% - 70% of
existing equipment investment can be protected
when the NG SDH networks evolve into PTNs.
Currently, this is the most cost-effective PTN
evolution scheme available in the industry.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
38
The Ferrari
of Telecoms:
racing towards record prosperity
By Wang Yudan
39 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
INTERVIEW
T
elecom Italia is a complete telecommunications group, spanning fixed-line and mobile telephony,
Internet access, multimedia content, TV, news, and so on. The group combines tradition and
experience with innovation and quality through the Telecom Italia, Alice, Telecom Italia Mobile
(TIM), La7, APCom, MTV Italia, and Olivetti brands. Its tradition and experience also underpin the group’s new
technology offerings. The group currently serves 35.3 million mobile customers in Italy, 29.2 million mobile
customers in Brazil, 22.8 million fixed-line customers in Italy, and 10.7 million broadband users across Europe.
A reporter with Huawei Communicate recently interviewed Mr Maurizio Marcelli - director of IES Wireless
Access, TIM - on Telecom Italia’s perspective on innovation, indoor coverage with UMTS 900M, TCO saving,
wireless access infrastructure, and more.
Reporter: How does Telecom Italia develop its
competitive advantage and maintain its leading position
in such a competitive market? We know that Telecom
Italia has always considered innovation as a key element of
market positioning.
Maurizio Marcelli: Okay. I’d like to describe how
Telecom Italia sees innovation. In Telecom Italia, particularly
within our technology department, the Telecom Italia Lab is
our way to approach innovation. More than 700 people are
working in this area specifically to support innovation, new
product engineering, and new services.
Our competence center, the Telecom Italia Lab, has
internal knowledge related to all elements of the value
chain, starting from the handset, home environment,
and also various technologies, fixed and mobile. This
investment is very important to our operations. The main
center is in Turin, but our Rome and Milan facilities are
also involved in these specific activities.
We have put a lot of efforts in generating innovation
through patents and in supporting initiatives with our
manufacturers, as well as with our partner Huawei, to
provide value through new ideas and innovations. So
for us, this is a key element in a market that is based on
standard products and standardization. We are totally
committed to having differentiation and proven quality for
the end users in the product and new services areas.
Reporter: Telecom Italia is now progressing with 3G
deployment, and has already launched HSDPA. What
do you think will be the most outstanding technological
innovation in your network within a time frame of 2 years?
Maurizio Marcelli: You know we had a positive
experience in the 2G world and it is a success story. Telecom
Italia Mobile is a leading provider in Italy and we also have
much important experience abroad. The strategic factor for
repeating this success story in the 3G arena is to keep in
mind a few important facts.
First of all, 2G is success because of its economy of scale
and capability for providing a global solution. Up to now,
this is something that is really true in the market. 80% of
the mobile market today is GSM.
Second, the dream now is that in a few years, 3G could
replace 2G as another success story. To guarantee this really
lucky path, we, operator and manufacturer, all the ecosystems, must work together, to target the standardization
of the long-term evolution (LTE) architecture. We are really
committed to implementing as soon as possible, this kind
of architecture in the field. We can then ensure that our
company maintains its current position in the global market.
Furthermore, this is a great opportunity to have
standardized solutions that could provide duly priced
terminals, duly priced infrastructure, and guarantee top of the
line voice service as well as SMS, the basic service.
Last but not least, we have to build a new business
model that is dedicated to data. We expect that in 2 years,
we can set up a business model for data on top of voice
and SMS, 3G standard architecture, while having LTE
architecture as our target.
Reporter: I see. So you believe that data development
in the 3G field will be a main focus in your 3G market?
Maurizio Marcelli: Absolutely.
Reporter: Which is more about the indoor coverage
of the UMTS signal? We know that sometimes in very
complex cities with thick walls, maybe the indoor
coverage is not as good as the 3G case that you refer to.
So what is your opinion about that? How is Telecom Italia
strategizing to recover this gap?
Maurizio Marcelli: I absolutely agree with you. The
opportunity to provide our end users with a real quality
service indoors is a key factor to ensure that in addition to
voice and SMS service; also data service could be perceived
as a quality factor. And no doubt about the fact that 3G
today doesn’t perform indoors.
This is an element that doesn’t allow us to have the
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
40
ramp-up we would expect for this kind of new service. So
we are really committed to investigating and supporting
the solution that could improve dramatically the indoor
level of quality.
Currently, we see two approaches that are realistically
possible. The first approach is to share with other operators
and regulatory entities to define the opportunity to reuse
the 900MHz frequency we use today for GSM services
that could also be used for 3G. This will enhance the
performance that we can obtain from 900MHz indoors
and also allow for better redesign of outdoor coverage
infrastructure. This is a general approach.
The other innovative approach that could provide us also
with the synergistic contribution from the fixed line, is to
adopt a solution based on the Femto Cell. This is something
new. It could be seen not only as a way to implement
a better level of signal indoors, but also to provide new
services. We are in the process of defining a new way for the
end users to have in the home environment, a new device
that could be a great tool for supporting new and complex
services. So these are two ways to improve quality but also
new approaches to multimedia offerings for the customer.
Also the Femto Cell could give us a more flexible approach
for the defining services.
Reporter: Now I want to ask your opinion on managing
another important issue: how to save TCO. We know that
all operators nowadays are extremely interested in lowering
the equipment cost and expenditure, but it is no more
than 30% of TCO. As a matter of fact, the OPEX has
always been the biggest part of all the expenditures. Are
you analyzing ways to benefit from innovation to lower the
OPEX in your network? How could Huawei contribute?
Maurizio Marcelli: We absolutely believe that Huawei
can make a valuable contribution. One of the reasons
that Telecom Italia selected Huawei was their ability to
substantially contribute. I would like to highlight the fact
that on the last occasion we had for providing HSDPA in
the Telecom Italia network. Another reason that we selected
Huawei is also due to our evaluation in the TCO, and the
solution you can provide for us to minimize OPEX.
It is safe to say that we are paying maximum attention to
this topic. And also in the future, we have the intention to
stress this as a value, an absolute value for Telecom Italia.
How significant is innovation in this matter? Our
consumption, square meters, and innovation could provide
us with a competitive advantage while having the same
results for the end users. Once again, I would like to stress
that we have hundreds of people devoted to innovation in
Turin, Rome, and Milan and we expect that Huawei will
cooperate with our team in investigating the best way to
minimize TCO.
In the future, we do not want non-standardized
technology in our network. We can maximize the final
results, having the best know-how, the best conditions
41 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
for investigation, while maintaining the integrity of the
Telecom Italia infrastructure, the Telecom Italia technology,
and the Telecom Italia approach to our market. Together,
we can have superior results that could be the differentiator
between us and our competitors, and realize the best return
on investment, such as HSDPA for instance.
Reporter: We are now stepping into the All-IP era.
How does this affect the wireless access infrastructure in
your network? Are you looking for new equipment to
cover this All-IP criterion?
Maurizio Marcelli: As you know, I am responsible for
wireless access in Telecom Italia. We started a couple of
years ago trying to maximize our competitive advantage
and have Italy’s biggest IP backbone. Since then, we have
tried to connect all of our network elements to this IP
backbone. So the IP interfaces in all network elements
could help Telecom Italia to maximize the economical
benefit from the investment we have in the IP backbone.
This is a general trend and up to now we have seen
many cases that are valuable and efficient solutions
interconnected to our IP backbone and network elements.
So the cooperation with Huawei in the area could help
us to have this kind of solution in the field, and to have
return on our investment in the IP backbone network in a
very short time.
Reporter: Finally I have to ask the most important
question in regard to the selection of a new partner. We
know that the selection of a new partner, or new vendor
from your vendor list is a very strict process in Telecom
Italia. We have been cooperating for quite a number of
months. Which criteria do you use to select Huawei as
your new working partner? How about the progression of
cooperation with Huawei? Any suggestions on improving
this cooperation?
Maurizio Marcelli: We are very happy to have Huawei
as our partner and vendor in mobile access. We expect you
continue to emphasize the value. There are several reasons
why we selected Huawei for HSDPA. The first is that in
the competition arena, you are a player that is quite able to
emphasize the economic scale to the cost, with the highest
grades for functionality and innovation in your products.
According to the opportunities in the competitive market,
you provide the best economic results for the operators, and
excellent performance for the end users. So these are the two
key factors we expect you to keep your eyes on regarding the
top 10 topics you will discuss in the future with Telecom Italia.
In the end, I’d like to emphasize that, it’s essential to listen to
your customers, as the customers know what they want.
Reporter: Thank you again for the ideas you shared
with me, and we hope to talk more with you again in the
future.
INTERVIEW
Vitality of mobile broadband
A
t the beginning of 2007, Huawei set up a goal, “In the next five years, Huawei will be committed to leading
telecom networks and services to the All-IP FMC era, and thus becoming a reliable partner of operators in
their transformation and development.” The Wireless Network Product Line of Huawei chose “Leading Mobile
Networks to IP” as its theme. What are the significance and value of IP to mobile operators? How do overseas operators
view the IP-based network evolution? What changes will IP bring to operators’ network operation and maintenance? With
these questions in mind, a journalist with Communications Weekly interviewed Zhao Ming, Vice President of Wireless
Marketing Dept, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
By John Lee from the Communications Weekly
Mr Zhao Ming is the vice
president of Wireless Network
Marketing for Huawei Technologies.
He is responsible for product
management in the Wireless Network
Marketing Department.
Reporter: What are the significance
and value of IP to mobile operators?
Zhao Ming: First of all, the future
development of mobile broadband is
sure to be integrated with IP, which
is the source of vitality of mobile
broadband. There is a more and more
obvious tendency for wireless mobile
communications to evolve in the direction
of broadband, and for GSM to evolve into
GPRS and EDGE. More and more mobile
data services will be introduced during the
process of such an evolution.
In terms of 3G, the peak uplink/
downlink rate was only 384Kbps when
the 3GPP launched the R99 version.
However, after HSDPA is introduced at
the R5 phase, the maximum downlink rate
will amount to 14.4Mbps. The year 2007
has seen widespread applications of the
7.2Mbps downlink rate worldwide. After
HSUPA is introduced at the R6 phase,
the actual and the theoretical maximum
uplink rates will reach 1.92Mbps and
5.76Mbps respectively. At the HSPA+
phase, the maximum downlink rate can
reach 42Mbps and the maximum uplink
rate can reach 11Mbps. In the 4G era,
the peak downlink rate may amount to
140Mbps or even higher, with the peak
uplink rate exceeding 50Mbps.
Under this circumstance, it becomes
harder and harder for the traditional
transmission mode to meet the
requirements of the evolution of mobile
networks in the direction of broadband.
The annual rental fees for one E1 in
Europe are about EUR5000, and one
E1 only provides a bandwidth of 2MB.
If HSPA is to support a downlink rate
of 14.4Mbps, a transmission resource of
about 20MB is required even if the average
traffic is about 6Mbps in a community
and 3x1 base stations are deployed. In this
case, 10 E1s have to be rented, incurring
total annual rental fees of EUR50,000
to EUR60,000. In view of this, if the
problem with transmission is not solved, it
will be very hard for mobile broadband to
become a reality.
Se c o n d , v i e we d f ro m t h e m o b i l e
communications platform, the core
network and the bearer network are
already IP-based. The IP-based platform of
the wireless access network is conducive to
the improvement of the overall efficiency
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
42
of mobile networks.
Last but not least, viewed from the trend of service
development, all services in future will be carried over
the packet switched domain. Thus, the network will
eventually evolve in the IP direction. There is no longer
such a concept as “circuit switched domain” in Long-Term
Evolution (LTE), which best illustrates this point.
Reporter: What is Huawei’s advantage in leading
mobile networks to IP?
Zhao Ming: Currently, competition in the mobile
communications field is no longer limited to power
amplifier and baseband processing technologies. Instead,
the focus of competition has shifted to the overall
capabilities in transmission, integrated products, IP, radio
frequency, algorithm, and understanding of the networks.
Compared with other vendors, one of the advantages
of Huawei is that it has the most comprehensive range of
communication product lines in the industry. For example,
in products like base stations and controllers, we have
integrated advanced technologies in fields like broadband,
transmission and data communications. Huawei is capable
of integrating technologies, experiences and capabilities
from different fields into our base stations.
This also reflects another trend of the industry:
Instead of being a mere pipe, the access network should
be perceptive to services. In other words, the access
network should be optimized to cater to the voice service,
broadband access, instant messaging, and the various
mobile multimedia services according to the characteristics
of different services. The access network in future is
required to be perceptive to services.
After mobile communications has developed to a
certain degree, more and more fields will be involved.
Future competition in the mobile communications field
is surely not specific to one product line; instead, it will
involve multiple fields such as broadband, transmission,
data communications and even services. Basically, Huawei
is among the top 3 in each of these fields. By integrating
all these fields, we will be able to provide the most
competitive products and end-to-end solutions.
Currently, we have become fully aware of where our
core competitiveness is.
Reporter: Just now you mentioned “perceptive
capability to services”. How can this capability be
developed?
Zhao Ming: The access network is required to be
perceptive to key parameters of relevant services, and give
top priorities to the guaranteeing of these parameters as
much as possible during the service access. For example,
the index for the end-to-end delay should be guaranteed
for the voice service.
Besides, the access network gets to know about the
status of the service by identifying system information at
43 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
the network side. Currently, Huawei has made relevant
optimization oriented at many services at the access side.
Our main focus is user experience. We need to focus on
customers other than technologies in network construction
and optimization. That is also the direction of future
development.
Reporter: Will early investments in IP technologies
increase operators’ CAPEX?
Zhao Ming: In the long run, application of new
technologies will help reduce costs. Though investments
in a single site or single equipment may increase a little in
a short period of time, the CAPEX will actually be greatly
reduced if you take into consideration saving of costs in
transmission and services as well as future evolution.
Currently, more and more services are carried over
the Internet. In future, more and more such services will
appear. As mobile networks evolve in the direction of
broadband, all services will be carried over IP networks.
Thus, IP is beneficial to operators’ overall investments.
If IP has already been in place, there is no need to
invest more in the ATM of the transmission network. If
operators fail to construct future-oriented networks earlier,
they may find problems with their initial investment in the
foreseeable future.
Reporter: When Huawei communicates with overseas
operators about All-IP, what are their concerns?
Zhao Ming: Since the end of 2004, we have started
to discuss with operators the issue of saving transmission
resources. After HSDPA appeared in 2005, we put forward
the concept of IP transmission. However, we were facing a
very big problem then: QoS of IP of the entire network is
hard to guarantee.
Under this circumstance, we put forward the concept of
“mixed IP”, that is, voice services are still carried over the
TDM but data services are carried over IP. In 2005, we put
forward such a “mixed-IP” transmission solution, which was
successfully put into commercial application in countries
like Japan, the United Arab Emirates, and Singapore.
IP networks in Japan are All-IP-based, with guaranteed
QoS. But we adopt “mixed IP” in the United Arab
Emirates and Singapore. Currently, one base station of
Huawei can support two protocol stacks; and Huawei
is now the sole vendor worldwide to provide such base
stations.
Through communications with operators, we find their
top concern is the QoS issue brought by IP. Generally, top
operators require long-time tests and trial applications, as
they have too many worries: whether the existing services
will be affected, whether security will be guaranteed, how
to evolve into the IP-based public network, and how to
avoid being attacked, etc.
Reporter: What changes has IP brought to operation
INTERVIEW
and maintenance of mobile networks?
Z h a o Mi n g : T h e I P t e c h n o l o g y h a s b r o u g h t
revolutionary changes to network optimization and
maintenance. For example, before softswitch was adopted,
the number of MSCs of a mobile operator amounted
to several dozens, or even hundreds. If new services are
deployed, every MSC has to be upgraded and uploaded
with services. And one MSC involves hundreds of
thousands of users, which makes remote operations
impossible. Consequently, several months is needed for
service deployment at a time.
After IP is introduced, the MSC server is just deployed
at the regional level; and each province just needs to
upgrade several MSC servers, which makes operation and
maintenance of the entire network much simpler.
Besides, IP has also flattened the network, and thus
reduced the system delay, which will in turn greatly
improve user experience. Meanwhile, the network has
become much more secure. After the IP technology is
adopted, the network can support the N+1 backup and
the “pool” functions.
For example, if a certain controller is faulty, data
packages on it can be routed to other controllers, thus
guaranteeing the reliability of the entire network.
However, even though the “N+1” backup may be realized
in theory in the TDM era, the cost of doing so is too high,
thus making the “N+1” backup hardly feasible.
Reporter: Have any operators raised any special
requirements for IP?
Zhao Ming: When discussing a 3G network
construction with EMOBILE, an operator of Japan, we’re
required to put RNCs only in several key cities in Japan,
thus raising very high requirements for delay.
We conducted a test by putting RNCs in Tokyo and
Osaka and base stations in Hokkaido. We also tested
HSPA by configuring an IP transmission simulator in the
system, which can be used to change the delay.
We and EMOBILE spent quite a long time in verifying
our system, and finally proved that our system could
fully meet service requirements. Besides, EMOBILE has
no traditional networks. Thus, how to realize the clock
function is another issue concerned about by EMOBILE.
Reporter: What is the goal of Huawei at the next phase
in leading mobile networks to IP?
Zhao Ming: At the initial phase, we mainly solved the
deployment issue of IP-based mobile networks. In future,
we will pay attention to the performance of IP-based
mobile networks. We will focus our attention mainly on
quality and stability of IP-based mobile networks. Our
goal is to guarantee the basic network performance even if
the QoS of some networks is not so good.
Besides, IP will still be a topic frequently discussed
in the development of mobile networks. How to realize
finer management and how to provide networks to cater
to requirements of the various services will be our main
focus in future. In future development of the entire
Wireless Network Product Line, Huawei will take into full
consideration the evolution into the All-IP era rather than
limited to WCDMA.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
44
SOLUTION
WiMAX maximizes your potential
WiMAX
maximizes your potential
In October 2007, ITU consolidated WiMAX as a 3G technology by adding it to the official IMT-2000 standards. As
operators such as Vodafone, Brasil Telecom and NTT further commit themselves to WiMAX development, the WiMAX
market is rapidly expanding. According to the report of Infonetics Research, the worldwide sales of fixed and mobile
WiMAX equipment increased by 6% to USD206 million in the third quarter of 2007, followed by a 14% jump in the fourth
quarter. WiMAX is gaining momentum.
By Liu Wang
I
n 2007, Huawei unveiled its new
generation WiMAX commercial
s o l u t i o n s t h a t f e a t u r e LT E /
UMB co-platform infrastructure
and integrate 4G technologies such as
multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO)
a n d o r t h o g o n a l f re q u e n c y d i v i s i o n
multiple access (OFDMA). The solutions
include gateways, distributed base stations,
transmission, network management
systems and terminals. In these solutions,
WiMAX can be integrated with GSM,
CDMA, IMS, NGN and DSL networks,
which helps operators to provide a variety
of high-speed mobile broadband services.
Solutions fit into your
expectation
With its long commitment to WiMAX
research since 2001, Huawei to date has
more than 1,200 engineers involved in its
R&D. As a major member of the WiMAX
forum, Huawei holds more than 100
WiMAX patents and remains committed to
16E 1X and 16 M standards’ optimization.
Within the company, Huawei has adopted
a platform sharing strategy to ensure the
45 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
interoperability of different products and
specifications.
Through the global deployment of GSM,
UMTS, and CDMA networks, Huawei
can facilitate WiMAX network deployment
based on its rich experience and knowledge
regarding customers’ needs. Huawei’s
convergent solutions cover WiMAX
independent networking, and convergent
networking between WiMAX and NGN,
GSM, CDMA, and UMTS networks.
Wireless DSL
Huawei’s wireless digital subscriber
line (DSL) solution forms a highlight in
voice service provision over the WiMAX
network. To meet the unique requirements
of different network stages, operators
can configure their network elements
(NEs) flexibly, and can maximize the
speed and economy of WiMAX service
delivery. Huawei’s wireless DSL solution,
for instance, can be applied to rapidly
deploy a network during the initial stage,
so as to realize high-speed Internet access
and unmanaged voice services. With the
increasing of customer base, the integration
of WiMAX with IMS/NGN will ensure the
reliable evolution of network, and provide
customers with manageable VoIP and
converged services.
Huawei’s wireless DSL solution also
provides two or three level VPN services
and end-to-end QoS solutions to meet the
varied requirements of individuals, families
and enterprises. Moreover, Huawei’s
WiMAX system can run on a spectrum
ranging from 2.3/2.5GHz to 3.5GHz.
WiMAX + IMS
The wireless “WiMAX + IMS” solution
combines the advantages of IMS core
networks and wireless access technologies,
enabling the delivery of various services
across a unified broadband platform.
With its future-oriented network
architecture, the IMS simplifies the
service development process, increases
service innovation speeds, and reduces
OPEX. The IMS provides rich multimedia
applications and a platform for killer service
development. The WiMAX network is
characterized by high-speed wireless access,
wide coverage, stability, and can provide a
platform for innovative multimedia service.
Huawei’s “WiMAX + IMS” solution
Huawei Technologies
benefits from simple operational and
management systems and provides services
such as unified authentication and billing.
Available multimedia services include
SharingX (bundled voice and multimedia
services), Push to X (one key service access),
VCC (voice call continuity), multimedia
conferencing, convergent Centrix, and
ringback tones.
WiMAX + 2G
For operators with 2G networks,
WiMAX facilitates service differentiation
possibilities. It boasts the capability of
forming a 2G/WiMAX hybrid network, in
which a data network rich in multi-media
services can be realized by employing the
high spectrum and low cost per bit rate of
the WiMAX network.
Challenges arise when considering how
to effectively utilize existing 2G resources in
a WiMAX network. Huawei’s “WiMAX +
2G” solution adopts the same site for both
WiMAX and existing 2G base stations,
and uses the same feeder for transmission.
This reduces site space and enables rapid
network launch time. The WiMAX and 2G
networks also share the same core network
for authentication and billing, and these
factors combined have little negative impact
on user experience. With network evolution,
the virtual channel connection (VCC) in an
IMS network can ensure seamless switching
between different networks.
Serving STC
Saudi Telecom (STC) began deploying
the first WiMAX 802.16e-based network
in the Middle East in August 2007,
covering cities including Riyadh, Jeddah
and Dammam. STC, however, faced major
problems in broadband coverage and
network convergence.
Unlike the developed market with
universal ADSL access, the broadband
penetration rate of Saudi Arabia is less
than 2%, leaving many remote areas
unconnected. Broadband service provision
via cables incurs both high costs and a
lengthy construction time, prompting STC
to select WiMAX as its major method of
realizing broadband coverage. Considering
coverage requirements, Huawei partnered
with STC to establish a mobile WiMAX
solution that reduces the number of sites
by employing technologies such as MIMO
and OFDMA.
In response to the difficulty of site
acquisition, Huawei applied the distributed
base stations in the WiMAX network. Based
on Huawei’s application specific integrated
circuit (ASIC) and powerful amplifiers, STC
saved over 30% in TCO. The distributed
base stations are also highly integrated,
small in size and light weight, which meets
operators’ requirements concerning coverage,
installation, and maintenance.
STC already possesses 2G and 3G
networks into which it hopes that Huawei’s
solutions can be fully integrated. Based
on All-IP technologies, Huawei’s WiMAX
solutions work smoothly with NGN, IMS
and Wi-Fi networks, and are compatible
with Long Term Evolution (LTE). This
significantly reduces network construction
and maintenance costs, and the solutions
seamlessly integrate various NEs spanning
applications, transmission, rating,
authentication, and security mechanisms.
“ Hu a we i h a s t h e e x p e r i e n c e a n d
technology advantages in the WiMAX field
and its WiMAX 16e solution enables the next
generation network evolution,” commented
Bandar M. Al Qafari, general manager of
STC’s Network Department. “Huawei
has successfully delivered more than 5,000
wireless projects, and I’m confident that it
will provide us with an excellent network that
will allow us to provide wireless broadband
access service to our subscribers.”
As a leading WiMAX solution supplier,
Huawei has assisted operators to launch
their commercial or trial WiMAX
networks in Africa, Europe, Russia, United
States, and South America. Huawei will
continue to play an active role in the
development of WiMAX.
Editor: Huang Zhuojian [email protected]
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
46
SOLUTION
E
volution from 2G to 3G to 3.5G and to
4G in the future is mirrored each time
with significant changes in mobile
access technologies, which compels operators to
upgrad their networks again and again. However,
repeated hardware-based upgrades bring with
significant challenges, and have led operators
to question - whether this describes the most
effective and economical way of achieving
network modernization?
47 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Huawei Technologies
Moving towards
multi-system
integration
By Liu Ping
A new platform is
required
Wireless network integration represents
an inevitable trend that subsumes a
transition from multidimensional
competition. To enhance this process,
Huawei has proposed a unique base
transceiver station (BTS) platform strategy
which merges the platform and design of
its wireless products for various systems.
Including BTSs and base station controllers
(BSCs) for GSM, UMTS, CDMA, and
WiMAX networks, the concept focuses on
the advantages of individual products and
integrates them to form a product series
that harmonizes pattern, architecture,
installation and maintenance.
Unified platform
The future oriented, IP-based BTS
platform delivers high capacity and
powerful data processing capability via
fewer, smaller modules that are fully
concordant with inevitable technical
development trends. Currently, all GSM,
UMTS, CDMA, and WiMAX series’
BTSs are based on this new integrated
platform. Meanwhile, the BSCs of all
systems are deployed under an advanced
new platform that incorporates All-IP
hardware architecture and expands both
capacity and reliability. The unified dualstar and dual-plane switching network
meets mobile network development needs
via its powerful switching capability, high
board reuse rate, modular design, flexible
service combination, and easy expansion
and evolution potential.
Multi-system support
be otherwise required for tasks such
as surveying and installation. Quicker
deployment and commercial application
can be therefore achieved. In addition, it
is possible to use one BTS to construct
networks on two bands for operators who
utilize both core and extension bands. One
is allocated for voice services and the other
for data, and this is especially beneficial to
3G operators who only have a bandwidth
of 5MHz on a particular band.
From GSM to UMTS to HSPA or
HSPA+, and finally to LTE, cabinet
replacement is not necessary to upgrade
a network, and only a corresponding
baseband processing board is needed.
Like wise, the radio frequency (RF)
component adopts software defined radio
(SDR) technologies, and only requires
software upgrades in order to support
different systems. Since the baseband
processing boards for GSM, UMTS, and
LTE systems are all the same size, different
boards can be mix-plugged into the same
cabinet, with different systems supported.
As a manufacturer capable of providing
multiple wireless access products, Huawei
has for some time prioritized multi-system
integration and has made a significant
commitment to its R&D. Its longterm experience in this field has solved
a broad range of difficulties, leading to
the launch of its platform-based multisystem integrated BTS that has laid a solid
foundation for multi-system integration.
Multi-band support
Modular design
One BTS can be configured with two
RF components that support both 2.1GHz
and 900MHz and share the same baseband.
As a result, an idle GSM 900MHz band
can be used for deploying a 3G UMTS900
network, thus realizing significant human
and material resource savings that would
Design represents an important
consideration for a multi-system integrated
BTS platform. A BTS is composed of a
few modules, which are shared by different
systems and possess identical specifications
such as weight and size. A UMTS BTS, for
instance, features just three types of basic
How to carry it out?
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
48
SOLUTION
Moving towards multi-system integration
modules: the base band unit (BBU), the
remote radio unit (RRU) for Distributed
BTSs, and the radio frequency unit (RFU)
for cabinet BTSs. These can be combined in
different ways to become BTSs of specific
patterns that can cater to different scenarios.
All-IP frame
Broadband networking is an inevitable
trend for the future development of mobile
networks, not least because it provides
higher transmission rates, enhanced
user experience, and a wider data service
application range. Accordingly, the
requirement for transmission bandwidth
will increase, meaning that traditional E1s
and SDHs will fail to meet data service
requirements for transmission resources.
IP transmission fills this gap as it not only
reduces network construction costs, but is
also capable of providing wider transmission
bandwidth, higher transmission efficiency
and easier transmission resource acquisition.
Wireless access network equipment must
support IP transmission, and Huawei leads
the industry in terms of its All-IP solution.
All interfaces support IP transmission,
thus facilitating transmission network
construction, and IP technologies are
utilized for internal BTS and BSC switching
modules. This greatly enhances switching
capability, lowers internal switching
complexity and elevates product reliability.
Distributed architecture
From the modular design, it can be seen
that the essential aspect of the integrated
BTS platform is its distributed architecture,
which refers to both the Distributed BTS
that comprises BBU and RRU, and the
cabinet-type BTS that comprises BBU and
RFU. These have a common feature in
that the previously inseparable baseband
and radio frequency modules are divided
into two parts, thus forming distributed
architecture. This decreases construction
costs and OPEX, and allows the wireless
a c c e s s n e t w o r k t o b e c o m e s m a l l e r,
develop more effective coverage, and
offer more flexible installation and greater
environmental adaptability. The distributed
and cabinet-type BTSs complement each
other and support both distributed and
centralized installation, alleviating site
deployment difficulties for operators and
increasing implementation speed.
Large capacity and high integration
A multi-system BTS must have
different baseband boards to process the
related baseband components to support
different systems. If each baseband board
is not highly integrated and has limited
capacity, the restricted baseband slots can
support fewer subscribers. This is obviously
unacceptable to areas with continually
increasing mobile subscriber penetration
rates, but Huawei’s technical progress has
realized baseband board integration and
raised their capacity, and thus paved the
way for the launch of its multi-system BTS.
Superior benefits
Wireless technologies are undergoing
continuous and rapid innovation coupled
with the move towards upgraded BTS
technology that will respond to a new
generation. Viewed from the development
process of the BTS itself, its products will
become adaptable to various complex
wireless environments. Macro BTSs
will develop as all-modular, which will
simplify their configuration in a manner
that resembles laying bricks, thus greatly
expediting expansion and upgrade
convenience. The flexible Distributed BTS
alters traditional network construction
49 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
modes in a way that gives it a leading role
in various complex wireless environments
and, in compliance with development
orientation, Huawei’s multi-system
integrated BTS platform demonstrates its
superiority in a number of ways.
Multiple: Future mobile networks will
differ from the 2G models that provide only
voice services. Data services may coexist
with voice services or even substitute the
latter completely, hence creating a multisystem coexistent environment for access
network. The integrated BTS platform
that supports multi-system integration will
naturally surpass any others.
Efficient: Rapid network construction
reflects a key requirement for operators. The
BTS platform boasts numerous benefits
with its modular design, high performance,
light weight, small size, ease of site
selection, convenient installation, flexible
deployment and low configuration costs.
Its construction time is reduced by about
a third in comparison with the traditional
macro BTS, and it will inevitably garner the
favor of the majority of mobile operators.
En h a n c e d : Hi g h p e r f o r m a n c e i s
prerequisite for network operations. The
BTS platform features high integration,
large capacity and IP architecture so that
it assures a mobile network that delivers
effective coverage, excellent performance,
high reliability and abundant services.
Economical: Saving investment and
maintenance costs is a particular priority
for operators when site resources are
lacking, given the context of network
coverage and performance in terms of
multiple service provision. Thus, selection
of a wireless BTS that complies with
development trends has emerged as a key
concern for operators.
Multiple system coexistence represents
the future mobile network developmental
pattern. Many operators have become
aware that hardware upgrades do not
form the most economical and effective
method. Huawei’s multi-system integrated
BTS platform allows software upgrades to
support a network’s smooth evolution, and
its superior “Multiple, Efficient, Enhanced
and Economical” characteristics have
raised the bar with respect to multi-system
integration.
LEADING EDGE
Huawei Technologies
VoIP over HSPA:
running in the fast lane
By Li Xuanbo
If calls carried over the R99
circuit switched domain are
regarded as a short path in a
village that you can glance and
see its end, VoIP over HSPA
can be considered as a super
highway without a speed limit
leading out of town. Despite
the fact that the road is under
construction and the end is not
in sight, it promises a quicker
and more rewarding journey.
A
ll-IP is a hot trend in wireless
network evolution. The IP
transformation has been
broadening the service platform,
core network, access network, and even
the entire wireless network architecture, so
end-to-end All-IP services are also on the
agenda.
At the PT/EXPO COMM CHINA 2007,
Huawei took the lead in demonstrating its
IMS-based VoIP audio and video services
that are compatible in different wireless
network standards, especially VoIP over
HSPA. In addition, the early stages of AllIP services were shown.
Cu r re n t l y, t h e n u m b e r o f H S PA
mobile broadband subscribers has been
growing quickly, with more than 58
countries already deployed over 115 HSPA
networks. Gartner - a leading research
and advisory company - estimated that
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
50
LEADING EDGE
VoIP over HSPA: running in the fast lane
1000
HSPA mobile broadband subscriber forecast
Millions
800
600
400
200
0
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Fig. 1 HSPA mobile broadband subscriber forecast (Source: GSMA 2007 Q2; Gartner)
DL: ~141Mbps
UL: ~50Mbps
LTE
DL: ~42Mbps
UL: ~11Mbps
~100ms
HSPA+
DL: ~14.4Mbps
UL: ~5.76Mbps
HSPA
~70ms
DL: ~384Kbps
UL: ~384Kbps
~45ms
3G-WCDMA
~15ms
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012 or later
Fig. 2 HSPA evolution roadmap
Voice users
AMR 12.2Kbps voice users per cell
No detail emulate data
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
R99 CS Voice
VoIP over HSPA
VoIP over HSPA R7
VoIP over LTE
Fig. 3 Comparison of voice capacity between VoIP over HSDPA and R99 CS
51 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
there would be over 200 million HSPA
subscribers by 2009.
With the substantial amount of HSPA
subscribers, the trend towards an All-IP
wireless network is clear and VoIP over
HSPA has a lot of room for development.
On one hand, HSPA networks that have
VoIP services attract more customers with
higher quality and more varied offerings.
On the other hand, VoIP over HSPA will
become a problem for operators as the
HSPA network is moving to HSPA+, flat
LTE architecture and All-IP.
VoIP is not a new concept in fixed
networks. Several operational modes
already exist, such as Skype that uses the
Internet and intelligent terminals, and
Yahoo! BB that is carried over VoIP.
Despite some disagreements about the
operational modes of VoIP networks, the
convergence of various VoIP services will
be accelerated. Full consideration will be
given to factors such as convergence of
mobile and fixed networks, introduction
of IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), and
the use of session initiation protocol
(SIP). Operators will then be able to
solve problems in operation, maintenance
and management. Yet, some questions
remain such as: What benefits can VoIP
over HSPA bring to customers? What can
operators do to deal with the challenges?
Larger capacity
For the wireless and fixed networks
o f f e r i n g Vo I P s e r v i c e s , t h e b i g g e s t
difference lies in air interface resources.
The development of wireless networks
is mostly driven by the fact that wireless
networks can provide greater service
bandwidth with less spectrum bandwidth.
The VoIP service provision emerges in the
WCDMA R99 and HSDPA phases with the
presence of intelligent terminals. However, in
the R99 architecture, the VoIP is incapable of
offering more benefits than CS voice service
does. VoIP is a service requiring symmetrical
bandwidth in the uplink and downlink. Even
in the HSDPA phase, therefore, problems still
exist in providing outstanding performance
due to bandwidth imbalance in the uplink
and downlink of the HSDPA. As a result,
the VoIP over HSPA takes a center stage only
after the high-speed uplink packet access
Huawei Technologies
(HSUPA) is deployed on a large scale starting
in 2007.
HSPA’s development is further driven
by the introduction of new channels,
hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ)
and soft combination functions, as well as
an advanced Node B scheduling algorithm.
HSPA enables the downlink data rate up
to 14.4 Mbps and uplink data rate up to
5.75Mbps, with the latency reduced to less
than 70 ms.
Currently, the general and commercial
downlink data rate of the industry is constant
at 7.2Mbps due to restrictions on terminal
chips. In addition, along with the introduction
of HSPA+ and LTE, the downlink data
rate can achieve over 140 Mbps and the
uplink data rate is 50 Mbps with the
latency further reduced to 15 ms. These
features enhance the vast potential of VoIP
applications in the future.
Apart from the available bandwidth,
another key influencing subscriber
numbers is the required bandwidth traffic
for each voice subscriber. The 12.2 Kbps
adaptive multi-rate (AMR) audio codec is
widely used in the traditional GSM and
UMTS CS voice services. As for a typical
VoIP protocol stack, it adopts routing
table protocol (RTP) and user datagram
protocol (UDP) packets that are carried
by IP. Apparently, in case each IP packet
is added a standard RTP/UDP/IP header,
the typical voice after standard VoIP
coding requires a bi-directional data rate of
32 Kbps or 64 Kbps for transmission.
This is a big waste for a wireless system
that already needs more air interface
resources, but there is now a workable
solution: employment of robust header
c o m p re s s i o n ( RO H C ) . T h e RO H C
technology can minimize the packet length
to 1 byte, thus making the required bit
rate of the VoIP only 10% to 20% higher
than that of CS service of the same code.
The maximum number of supported
subscribers is not simply calculated by
dividing the total bandwidth by the
bandwidth of each voice subscriber. In
actual cases, the interference of the radio
environment, system capacity, and end-toend time delay also need to be considered.
Allocating longer latency and scheduling
time can lead to more subscribers
simultaneously supported by the system,
yet longer latency reduces voice quality. A
balance point between latency and system
capacity should be selected to split the
difference. In Fig. 3, we can see the increase
of subscribers brought by VoIP services.
Air interface resources limit the number
of voice service subscribers over the R99 CS
domain. Even if factors such as interference
can be well controlled, the actual number of
users per cell has trouble exceeding 80, due
to the restrictions on user code quantity and
soft handover overhead. Theoretically, the
VoIP over HSPA is free from code restriction.
Although the VoIP over HSPA does not show
evident advantages at the HSPA initial phase,
the emergence of HSPA R7 has doubled
the system capacity of the VoIP over HSPA
compared to that of VoIP over CS.
Wider range of services
The voice service provided by VoIP
over HSPA can be a killer application,
but what really attracts operators is not
the simple capacity expansion for voice
service subscribers. The point is that VoIP
can be combined into diverse services
with the further development of end-toend and IP-based radio networks. Service
combinations can include those with IM,
information query, web, call center, voice
conferencing, and more.
In addition, with the fixed and mobile
convergence implemented by the IMS,
operators can enhance the control
and operations over the VoIP service.
Meanwhile, the combination of the IMS
and IP-based mobile bearing networks,
together with the technical guarantees
such as MPLS, enables full control of
the end-to-end QoS for each new service
and makes possible barrier-free services
anytime and anywhere for any terminal.
By paying higher service fees, users can
have a high quality voice or video channel
for important business services. For the low
end users, operators can offer discounted
common chat services by using idle radio
resources with decreased QoS. Most price
conscious subscribers don’t mind the
intermittent decreased voice quality and are
quite pleased to get a whopping discount.
Most insiders believe that services like
voice, high-speed data, and multimedia
services will be more effectively integrated
in the near future. Using IP technology
to carry voice, high-speed data, and
multimedia services simultaneously,
operators can have effective management
over the network, reduce OPEX, and
introduce new services easily.
Compared with the existing traditional
services controlled by signaling No.7, the
service development on the IP layer is
based on a relatively open architecture,
allowing a radio network to smoothly
inherit the previously successful service
modes in the fixed network. After HSPA
is deployed, many fixed services can also
promote mobile features and services
that are directly added, like video-sharing
sites that can be easily migrated to mobile
phones. The end-to-end IP service over the
HSPA network is also gradually perfected
with the introduction of VoIP, providing
an outstanding platform for all message,
interactive, and communication services.
Evolution to an All-IP
network
Another advantage is that the VoIP
over HSPA, an end-to-end IP service,
can be smoothly carried by a variety of
technologies such as WCDMA, HSPA,
HSPA+, LTE, or even the forthcoming
4G technology. In terms of development
trends, all the evolution technologies of the
UMTS move towards an All-IP network. At
the LTE phase, the work division of CS and
packet switched (PS) domains on the access
network is removed, and the network uses a
unified IP-based packet access.
At present, Huawei takes the lead in
introducing the LTE UMTS multi-mode
base stations, which utilizes software to
evolve the existing UMTS network into
HSPA+ and LTE networks. Experience
shows that evolution is usually not
completed in a short period, and multiple
access modes can co-exist for a long time.
The emerging VoIP over HSPA provides
a universal voice solution. Since the VoIP
over HSPA is carried above the IP layer,
different access modes can be avoided.
The good news is that VoIP over HSPA
is adaptable regardless of future network
development, allowing operators to focus
on service development and operations.
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
52
LEADING EDGE
LTE,
are you
ready?
By Xu Yan
Act 1: Imagine that you are traveling on a high speed
train in Europe and you urgently need some documents for
an unscheduled project meeting. Exceeding 1GB, however,
these documents include files and pictures that can be
downloaded quickly providing that your computer and data
card are connected. This would remove the headache of
having to jump off the train and rush to an Internet cafe.
Act 2: Suppose now that you are traveling in Fiji and
have just recorded the torch lighting ceremony with your
high definition camera. The several hundred MB files can
be uploaded onto YouTube.com within one minute through
your mobile phone connected with your camera, enabling
people around the world to share your experience.
…
53 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
Huawei Technologies
I
Taking the initiative to
secure users
n a mobile broadband world based
on long-term evolution (LTE), these
scenarios are no longer just dreams.
As a solution for future 3GPP
UMTS/HSPA evolution, LTE can reach a
peak downlink data rate of 100Mbps and
a uplink data rate of 50Mbps, increasing
frequency efficiency by two to four times
when compared with 3GPP R6.
In October 2007, Huawei successfully
demonstrated its LTE-based multichannel HDTV in an air interface. Results
showed that the downlink data rate
reached 140Mbps and uplink 50Mbps.
According to the latest statistics, 80% of
LTE standards were confirmed in 2007
and LTE will see its commercialization in
2009. In a research company’s November
2007 report, LTE is set to emerge as the
successor of mobile broadband technology
over the middle and long-term, with an
estimated user base of 24 million by 2012.
Huawei has already performed LTE
demonstrations with leading operators
such as T-Mobile, Orange, Vodafone,
Telefonica, and Telecom Italia. A belief
that LTE has a bright future is far from
enough, then how operators can best
accelerate the arrival of the LTE era?
experience in the field. Operators globally
have begun to do so. In Europe, Vodafone
Spain has deployed its HSPA network and
has recorded its elevated performance, and
Telecom Italia has implemented its HSPA
services in Italy. In the Asia-Pacific region,
Singapore’s StarHub has deployed the very
first commercial HSUPA, and EMOBILE
has released the fastest HSDPA network in
Japan. Choosing Huawei’s HSPA solutions,
these operators now provide their users
with high-speed services boasting 7.2Mbps
uplink and 1.92Mbps downlink.
I n t h e n e a r f u t u r e , Hu a w e i w i l l
help operators introduce LTE and 4G
technologies into existing networks,
employing technologies such as 64QAM
and MIMO in the HSPA+ phase. This
will provide 21Mbps downlink and
28.8Mbps uplink mobile broadband
services to assist operators to secure LTE
user groups. Operators need therefore to
provide LTE-like services to help users
form their using habits, and to spearhead
the smooth evolution to actual LTE
services. Multimedia broadcast multicast
service (MBMS) has been specified in
the performance requirements of an LTE
evolved universal terrestrial radio access
Users have for some time demonstrated
a solid demand for high-speed data
services. The 3G R99 remains unable to
carry services such as video sharing, high
definition television (HDTV) and online
gaming, given its time delay and limited
speeds. On the other hand, users are
expecting anywhere, anytime broadband
services. Facing a market replete with
competition, operators cannot afford to
just wait for LTE, but must instead lead
the way to enhanced broadband service
provision.
Fig. 1 illustrates that, in terms of
network evolution, HSPA/HSPA+ can
provide higher bandwidth and a faster
network speed, which can even match
that of a fixed network. HSPA/HSPA+
represents a powerful tool to meet existing
market needs.
When constructing or upgrading
mobile broadband networks, operators
need to select solutions that support allperformance HSPA and HSPA+ roadmap,
and select par tners with long-term
PON 1~10Gbps
VDSL2
>200Mbps
600ms
100Mbps
ADSL2
12Mbps
LTE 25~100Mbps
ADSL2+
24Mbps
10Mbps
600ms
HSDPA+ R8 42Mbps
HSDPA+ R7 28Mbps
HSDPA 14 Mbps
ADSL
1.2Mbps
1Mbps
200ms
150ms
ADSL
256Kbps
R99 384Kbps
100ms
Analog
28.8Kbps
Analog
56Kbps
100ms
70ms
45ms
GPRS 53.6Kbps
< 1990
1995
2000
2002
50ms
20ms
2005
2007
2009
2011
20ms
2015 Year
Fig. 1 HSPA+ enables similar performance as fixed broadband
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
54
LEADING EDGE
LTE, are you ready?
network (E-UTRAN).
Correspondingly, mobile TV services
such as HDTV and holographic television
will become killer applications. With
MBMS Phase1 already successfully
o p e r a t i n g i n Ho n g Ko n g a n d w i t h
Huawei’s successful tests with Qualcomm,
MBMS has already undergone actual
commercial application, and MBMSbased mobile TV services are increasingly
garnering the attention of operators.
Based on Huawei’s Mobile TV solution,
each cell can carry four 128KB or eight
64KB TV channels. The forward access
channel (FACH) and MBMS share lub
transmission resources, removing the need
for additional bandwidth after Mobile TV
deployment. Huawei plans to enhance its
MBMS solution in 2008 with each cell
able to carry fourteen 128KB or sixteen
64KB TV channels, giving users an
improved HSPA-based service experience.
Once MBMS across an HSPA/HSPA+
network is accepted, smooth evolution
to LTE-enhanced MBMS services will be
seen, including the evolution of service
usage modes and user habits.
Building a network for
smooth evolution
Ne t w o rk l i f e c yc l e e x t e n s i o n a n d
smooth evolution play important roles in
operators’ unceasing drive to reduce TCO.
The impending arrival of LTE networks
has encouraged operators to use software
to upgrade their existing networks,
especially wireless access networks, so as to
realize smooth evolution and save legacy
resources.
55 FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
As a mature solution, Huawei’s next
generation base stations construct a
unified-wireless access platform. Via these
base stations, operators can build a base
station platform in which various systems
coexist. The platform facilitates the
changes of network systems and capacities
by adjusting radio frequency (RF) and
baseband modules. Operators can realize a
dual-mode network by inserting GSM and
UMTS modules into the same cabinet,
along with LTE RF modules. These can
share the same power, transmission,
antenna feeder, and baseband resources,
and modules can be added to cope with
increased user and service quantities.
Huawei has also proposed the
innovative idea of evolving networks by
introducing software radio technology.
Simple software operation allows operators
to switch a GSM RF module to a UMTS
or LTE one, or use a single RF module to
support two network systems. This delivers
the advantageous capability of adjusting
network performance and service models,
as well as defining network attributes based
on service needs.
Paving your way to All-IP
Telecom and Internet networks are
becoming further converged with an
increasingly vague boundary between
telecom and IT technologies. The telecom
world is undergoing an evolution to AllIP and FMC, including fixed network and
future-oriented LTE.
Traditional architecture will differ
significantly in an LTE network, with
the base station controller (BSC) or radio
network controller (RNC) integrated into
the access or core layers in a dual network
structure. Base stations are connected to
the system architecture evolution (SAE)
through IP, and services are accessed
through gateways. The traditional circuit
switched domain is removed and service
access, bearing, switching, coordination,
charging, and control are packet domain
a n d I P - b a s e d . Mo b i l e n e t w o r k I P
transformation can be realized through
three steps.
First comes the IP transformation of
interfaces. IP transmission can be used
between 3G base stations and BSCs. In
this case, lease and construction costs
are reduced in traditional time division
multiplexer (TDM) transmission, and
sufficient bandwidth is provided for highspeed data services. In the GSM system,
the IP transformation of A interfaces can
reduce transcoder (TC) and network costs,
enabling transcoder free operation (TrFO)
and enhanced voice quality. Interface IP
transformation has less impact on the
entire network architecture and is easy
to achieve. Successful examples can be
seen with StarHub in Singapore, Etisalat
in Saudi Arabia, EMOBILE in Japan,
and China Mobile, who have all selected
Huawei’s IP RAN/IP BSS solution to
deploy their networks.
The second stage involves the IP
transformation of the kernel. As the keys
for mobile network IP transformation,
prerequisites to avoid failure are strong
network capabilities and a thorough
knowledge of transmission and data
communications. The Huawei-developed
BSC features an IP kernel and supports
the IP interfaces between base stations
and core networks, it also realizes IP-based
switching and achieves control. Data sent
from a base station to the BSC through
IP is not switched or decoded, but is
transmitted to the core network directly
through an IP switch. Highly-integrated
digital signal processing (DSP) and
multi-kernels can be applied to enhance
equipment performance, reduce power
consumption and save resources.
The final stage describes the IP
transformation of services. When NEs
and the entire network are transformed
to IP, service access can be simplified to a
connection between servers and gateways.
With the help of an OSS/BSS system,
operators can deploy and manage telecom
services just as Internet service providers
run their Web services.
The IP transformation of the mobile
network is an important step for LTE AllIP and flat network architecture, and also a
preparation for LTE network architecture.
The evolution from existing networks
to LTE is a smooth and gradual process
through mobile network IP transformation.
It is thus time to get ready for the rise of the
LTE mobile broadband network.
Huawei Technologies
Reach for the sky and
transform your vision into reality.
Realize Your Potential
FEB 2008 . ISSUE 38
56

Pointing the wind vanes for BTSs

Transcription

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