As 4G LTE and VoLTE expand globally, the IPX market is thriving and will continue to flourish for some time to come. With the growth of newer networks and technologies, demands will also increase for IPX services with enhanced performance, more reliable connectivity and higher quality. That’s why it is crucial to take steps that will further evolve the entire IPX ecosystem in regard to interconnection, interoperability, quality, roaming and security.
Against this background, and with the knowledge that improvements to the current state of IPX are urgently needed, Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier is developing a new product called Premium IPX. It will offer end-to-end service-level agreements, end-to-end quality of service and improvements in key performance indicators. These are important for massive IoT scenarios such as smart cities, logistics, or fleet management. But they are fundamental services for critical IoT use cases which require high reliability and quality connectivity, including autonomous driving, healthcare, real-time manufacturing or remote surgery. And implementation of these technologies will expand as 5G and Edge developments progress.
To move forward with IPX enhancements that will benefit the entire industry, Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier is conducting two proofs of concept (POCs) in partnership with Orange International Carriers. One aims to substantiate the value of establishing E2E KPIs using blockchain technology. With the transaction transparency it allows, IPX providers could monitor their own network and share data without fear of later manipulation. The second POC is concerned with optimizing system architecture for IPX HUB breakouts. By sharing regional peering with other IPX providers, direct interconnection could be established for IoT data traffic, instead of home routing. This would be more cost-effective and significantly improve latency and delay difficulties.
In order to deliver the quality that customers of critical IoT require, it is necessary to have standardized service level benchmarks for both telecommunication service and IPX providers. Telco providers need to work together to offer SLAs for their roaming contracts that are in effect globally, for internationally operating critical IoT business. Providing such agreements will be a high-level differentiation factor which will lead to new opportunities and, potentially, new client bases. For this reason, Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier is collaborating with other IPX providers and theGSMA to establish standards for E2E SLAs and QoS.
Rolf Nafziger, Senior Vice President Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier, said, “We have our fingers in a variety of IPX enhancement projects. Besides our own Premium IPX innovation, the POCs with Orange International Carriers, and our GSMA involvement, we’re also working with the Global Leaders’ Forum (GLF) on improving IPX network architecture. We understand the importance of driving advancements with IPX for 5G, Edge and other upcoming challenges.”
Until now, there has been a lack of clarity regarding E2E QoS criteria. Yet, to face a fast-moving future, it is necessary to shift from reactive to proactive, service-oriented incident management. Technical upgrades must take place so that issues such as network availability, delay, jitter and packet loss be remedied. An online E2E KPI monitoring and reporting mechanism needs to be established. Agreement is necessary in regards to E2E QoS parameters, and new peering contracts with SLAs should be negotiated. Those are just some of the items that will necessitate multiple party involvement and cooperation.
The goal of Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier is to provide clients with guaranteed E2E SLAs, higher quality KPIs and expanded capabilities for critical IoT, 5G or other advanced technological scenarios. These are the ultimate advantages the Premium IPX product intends to offer: Giving customers the crucial advantage needed to stand out in today’s highly competitive IPX service marketplace.
