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Nokia Promises An Easy Way To Kill Mobile VoIP |
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Written by Adam Gosling
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Thursday, 23 November 2006 |
Mobile network and device maker, Nokia, has announced a network
operator solution that is designed specifically to kill peer-to-peer traffic
such as Skype and other IM-style Voice solutions.
The peer-to-peer traffic control product helps mobile
operators "better manage their data traffic" says Nokia as it allows them to "control
the use of network resources by bandwidth hungry applications such as file
sharing and Voice over IP telephony".
The centralised solution is nothing more than a software
upgrade to the company's Flexi Intelligent Service Node (ISN) and will be
commercially available during the first half of 2007.
The Nokia Flexi ISN acts as a centralised control point for
data services, providing cellular network users with data connectivity.
What the upgrade does is to improve the service, subscriber,
and access awareness capabilities of the network node to allow it to identify
data traffic according to the type of service.
They can then treat that "traffic in a way that best optimises
the use of network resources according to the operators' business strategy,"
says a Nokia statement.
In other words, please buy our data pipe, but we'll decide
what you can put down it.
"With the explosion of affordable high-speed mobile
data access, operators are now being challenged to make the best possible use
of their networks, especially when peer-to-peer applications increase their
traffic load and compete with their own services," says Roberto Loiola, VP,
Marketing and Sales, Networks, Nokia, trying to put a good face on it.
While peer to peer applications may increase network
traffic, that's the objective of having a network isn't it? We suspect this upgrade
is less about keeping a lid on P2P traffic so it doesn't impact on other service
types and is more about giving operators a way to cripple free voice
applications to sure up traditional mobile voice minutes.
Many operators fear the increased availability of affordable
wireless data will assist customers to migrate their voice calls from traditional
mobile voice minutes to take advantage of low cost calls using VoIP technology.
This fear is holding back the introduction of cost effective
data plans.
One operator, Hutchison's 3 Mobile
is taking a different approach announcing it plans to introduce flat rate data
plans on its 3G networks betting that increasing the ARPU by offering a range
of data services will offset the risks to traditional voice revenues which are operating
under generous capped plans already.
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