Release of 18.12.2013
- LTE roaming allows high-speed surfing also when abroad
- New LTE signaling service as basis
- Considerable development potential forecasted for the wholesale business going forward
With up to 150 Mbit/s, LTE (Long Term Evolution) is the quickest commercially available mobile broadband technology globally. The Telekom Austria Group offers LTE in numerous countries across Central and Eastern Europe. In Austria, LTE has been made available by the market leader, A1, since 2011. The company currently provides LTE network coverage to almost 35% of the Austrian population. Due to increasing to LTE, customers’ demand to use high-speed internet abroad is growing. With LTE signaling service, the Telekom Austria Group Wholesale provides the technical basis for this demand.
Without Signaling Neither Voice Nor Data Would be Possible
Signaling allows telecommunications providers to authenticate customers, set up connections and bill the data volumes consumed. In order to support high-speed Internet surfing beyond their borders, network providers need to put in place a high-performance signaling infrastructure in addition to establishing a contractual base with their counterparts. The same procedure applies to voice applications.
Signaling as Outsourcing Service with Huge Growth Potential
Not every provider can rely on a proprietary international signaling network. In many cases, telecom companies outsource these services to specialized providers. The Telekom Austria Group’s wholesale business is one of the major signaling outsourcing partners worldwide for numerous international network providers. The existing mobile services portfolio was extended by LTE Signaling on an IPX (Internet Protocol Exchange) network basis in order to be prepared technologically for international data roaming. IPX is an IP-transport network specified by the GSMA with different classes of service which ensures guaranteed quality for various services like signaling, voice or data. In the case of LTE, signaling is transferred by a so-called diameter protocol. Diameter Router Agents (DRA), which are specialised servers are used which take over routing, mediation and security.
Going forward, LTE roaming on the IPX basis will be a major driver for the global signaling market, according to the consulting company Booz&Company. The total number of signaling messages for roaming is expected to grow by more than 150% by 2016. According to Booz&Company’s forecasts, commissioned by the Telekom Austria Group, data volumes generated by LTE will also show a strong upward trend going forward, increasing by 92% per year until 2015. This development will be mainly driven by Asia and Europe. “We are positioning the Telekom Austria Group as a leading player in Eastern Europe in the growth market of LTE. We want to convince our customers with our tried and tested quality of service and our long-standing signaling expertise”, said Stefan Amon, Head of Wholesale, commenting on the launch of the LTE signaling services. The Telekom Austria Group plans to finalize a number of LTE roaming agreements with different international providers and include its own operating companies to the service over the next few weeks and months.
Make or Buy? Analysis-Tool Available on Corporate Website to Support Decision-Making
The Telekom Austria Group offers wholesale customers targeted information about its IPX network and LTE data roaming on its website. Blog entries from experts are aimed at helping potential wholesale customers making a decision on LTE signaling: when comparing total operating costs of an in-house solution versus a hub-solution of an international carrier, the difference for most telecommunications providers is considerable. With the hub-solution, the Telekom Austria Group functions as a central hub which connects Wholesale customers with many other providers.
Moreover, extracts from the analysis carried out by Booz& Company will be made available upon request. This will allow providers to determine their concrete demand for signaling services, facilitating their decision-making process, while helping them chose between a proprietary network solution or an outsourcing model. The Booz analysis is currently available at http://www.telekomaustria.com/en/wholesale.