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IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) to be widely adopted by mobile operators within five years, despite a slow start, says Analysys
IMS (the Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem), the latest so-called “must have” technology for telecom operators, will be widely adopted within the mobile operator community within five years, according to a new report, Delivering Strategic Benefits with IP Multimedia Subsystem(IMS), published by Analysys, the global advisers on telecoms, IT and media.
IMS is an open, standardised, relatively easily deployed network architecture that enables more flexible control and billing of multimedia services delivered by IP networks using SIP (Session Initiation Protocol).
Shrouded in technical complexity and hype, IMS is being heavily promoted by vendors as the next big thing for both fixed and mobile operators, promising diverse service opportunities and cost benefits.
According to the Analysys report, while vendors of IMS are eager to point to the immediate service opportunities to justify its short-term deployment, the examples currently proposed do not, in themselves, provide strong justification for IMS deployment. Consequently, warns Analysys, operators should avoid being distracted from their core revenue opportunities in voice and messaging into making rushed decisions about implementing IMS in order to launch as yet unproven services such as push-to-talk, mobile VoIP, video sharing, IP Centrex and instant voice messaging.
"Many services are relatively weak or unproven, and in some cases proprietary solutions may provide quicker, cheaper or better-tested alternatives, " says co-author Dr Alastair Brydon. The report cites a number of weaknesses in short-term services enabled by IMS, including uncertain demand, risk of revenue cannibalisation, quality of service, interworking and handset availability. "Operators should maintain their focus on the most attractive service opportunities, not just those enabled by IMS," says Brydon.
The report is more upbeat on the prospects for IMS in the slightly longer term. "IMS presents operators with valuable capabilities to support enhanced services, and service and network convergence, " says co-author Dr Mark Heath.
For mobile operators there is a strong, longer-term business case for deploying IMS in order to support a wide range of mobile services flexibly and cost effectively. "IMS will enable enhancements to basic 3G circuit-switched voice services, such as presence information, advanced voice and text messaging capabilities and improved ease of use. These will help to position mobile voice services as significantly superior to PSTN (public switched telephone network) services, to accelerate fixed-mobile substitution, " says Heath.
IMS can also support service convergence, with a common set of services across fixed and mobile networks, and network convergence, providing cost savings with a single core IP network. "While we see a number of early movers, such as BT, France Telecom and Sprint, widespread service and network convergence is unlikely within five years," says Heath.
"Complex technical, commercial and regulatory issues need to be addressed and early movers may need significant customised developments. "
The new report studies specific mobile, fixed and converged services proposed by IMS vendors, assessing their market potential and barriers. It also considers the role of IMS in supporting strategic initiatives, such as fixed-mobile substitution, converged broadband-to-mobile services and integrated all-IP networks. The report provides specific recommendations to network operators, to guide their decisions on IMS deployment, and to equipment vendors, to strengthen their propositions.
The report is available to order from http://research.analysys.com priced at GBP1400 plus VAT.
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