It’s IPTime

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MAR 2008 ISSUE

Its IPTime !

IP relievesbackhaul pain

Mobile backhaullandscape

Technology choices formobile backhaul

Vodafones splendidtransform on transport networks

Seize today for tomorrow


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the simplest of ideas, to ultimate success.


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Sponsor:

Editorial Department of

Huawei COMMUNICATE,

Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.

Consultants:

Hu Houkun, Xu Zhijun, Xu Wenwei

Tao Jingwen, Ding Yun, Huang Chaowen

Chen Junhua, Wu Chuanwen, Tang Xinbing

Editor-in -Chief:

Gao Xianrui ([email protected])

Editors:

Liu Zhonglin, Pan Tao, Xu Peng, Xue Hua

Xu Ping, Chen Yuhong, Huang Zhuojian, Yao Haifei

Zhou Huajiao, Li Xuefeng, Zhou Shumin

Contributors:

Gao Ji, Cai Jueting, Du Wei, Li Hongsong

Liu Xiheng, Ma Hongzhong, Zhu Nianguo

Xi Zixue, Peng Bo, Jiang Shumiao, Zhang Bing

Liu Danting, Zhao Changcheng, Liu Haosheng

Zhou Yuchun, Hu Chang, Yang Xi

Sun Yifeng, Xie Juan, Liu Qingliang

Yu Zewang, Cui Jiang, Pu Yun

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Yue B No.10148

The information contained in this document is for

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Copyright 2008 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All

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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.

People strongly elt the global trend towards mobile broadband at the Mobile World

Congress 2008 held earlier this year in Barcelona, Spain. Evolving rom 2G to 3G,

HSPA, and LE at an unprecedented speed, new mobile communication technologies are

becoming widely available all over the world. With a rich variety o mobile applications

and a wide range o mobile terminals, mobile communications have a ar-reaching impact

on society, and are now an integral part o peoples daily lives.

Currently, ALL IP is the development trend o mobile networks and mobile broadband

has become the ocus in the industry. Mobile content, basic networks, terminals and the

like are gradually maturing. Yet, operators are acing a variety o challenges, one o which

is rom the transport network supporting the development o mobile services.

Te rapid development o mobile broadband services has brought explosive growth o

bandwidth requirements, which orces operators to continuously expand their networks.

Te growth o bandwidth has not brought positive linear growth in their revenues; on the

contrary, the revenue per bandwidth unit has a tendency to drop.

raditional DM-based transport networks eature low bandwidth utilization rates, and

the rising need or bandwidth has put operators under great pressure in regard to transport

costs. Consequently, the traditional transport network no longer suits the development

o todays mobile broadband services. IP technology with eatures such as statistical

multiplexing and bandwidth compression can help operators to greatly improve transport

eciency. Introducing IP technology into transport networks is the only viable solution in

the era o mobile broadband.

raditional IP technologies, however, have disadvantages in reliability, manageability,

network synchronization. o realize carrier-class service transport, its necessary to optimize

the traditional IP technology into transport technology. raditional DM-based transport

networks have managed to provide carrier-class assurance or mobile service transport

by using connection-based SDH technology. Ater IP technologies are introduced in

transport networks, operators have to consider how to realize carrier-class IP transport

networks.

We have invited some industry experts to explore IP transport networks, and share their

experiences and opinions to keep you inormed o the latest solutions and developments.

A discussion o various methods or the successul transormation o transport networks

towards ALL IP is also on the agenda. As a global leader in mobile broadband and

transport networks, Huawei has successully launched the IP ransport Inrastructure

or Mobile Evolution (IPime). Te era o IP transport networks has nally arrived! Its

IPime! ogether, we will lead mobile transport to ALL IP.

Taking mobile transport to ALL IP

Tang Xinbing

Vice President of HuaweiNetwork Product Line


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Cover Story

09 Seize today for tomorrowVodafones splendid transform ontransport networks

As mobile broadband networking gains popularity,

traditional TDM-based transport networks areno longer keeping pace with Vodafones rapid

development, and ALL IP transformation of

transport networks ranks high on its agenda.

By Zhou Yuchun

Whats inside:

P.09 P.32

Experts Forum

05 Mobile backhaul landscapeBy John Lively

02 Google to put down trans-Pacifc cable

03 Huawei unveils comprehensive IP Transport

Infrastructure for Mobile Evolution at

MWC 2008

Global Digest

01 Vodafone uses HSPA+ to head the mobile

broadband race

26 Achiving a carrier-class packettransport network

By Cui Jiang

23 Transport mode evolution in themobile broadband era

By Li Hongsong & Chen Zhidan

How to Operate

29 Networking microwavecommunication

By Liu Haosheng

Main Topic

19 Its IPTime!By Li Hongsong

Booming mobile broadband services and rapidly evolving

mobile network technologies have pushed mobile networksinto an ALL IP era.



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P.29 P.4P.43

41 Fixed broadband access boostsmobile broadbandization

By Zhang Yufen & Wang Peng

43 Evolving mobile transport NMSBy Wang Shaosen

50 To build IP-based broadband mobilenetworks, you need

The packet microwave solutionBy Cui Jiang

Media Insight

35 IP relieves backhaul painBy Anthony Plewes

Lets 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 indus

32 Can Abis optimization really payoff?

By Chen Ni

The rapid development of mobile services has increased

pressure on mobile backhaul bandwidth, especially in terms

of 3G service provision. Abis optimization can to some extent

ameliorate this situation by enhancing transport efciency,but how great is the value generated?

Solution

37 IPTime for allMulti-scenario applications challengemobile transport networks

By He Chaohua

Mobile operators need different transport solutions when

building mobile transport networks and need the rightsolutions for different stages of development, challenges

and requirements.

Leading Edge

46 Technology choices for mobilebackhaul

By Pu Yun

You can choose from various packet transport network

technologies, including PBB-TE, IP/MPLS, and T-MPLS. Which

one is the most effective for mobile backhaul?


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GLOBAL DIGEST

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 391

News

China Mobile joins Verizon, Vodafone, in LTE tests

China Mobile has confirmed

plans to trial next generation wireless

technology LTE (Long Term Evolution),in a three way partnership with

Vodafone and Verizon Wireless.

At the Mobile World Congress in

Barcelona, the Chinese carrier said that

the trials would encompass LTE FDD

(Frequency Division Duplex) as well as

TD-LTE (Time Division Duplex version

of LTE), as an evolution of China's

home grown TD-SCDMA technology.

China Mobile is expected to be

required to deploy TD-SCDMA when

3G licenses are nally awarded in the

country, an event many expect tohappen prior to the Beijing Olympics

which kick off in the summer.

Verizon's interest in LTE has been

recognised as something of a coup

for the GSM-community, seeing as

Verizon's existing network uses rival

CDMA2000 technology. However,

Vodafone has financial interests in

both Verizon Wireless and China

Mobile.

Sprint, T-Mobile advocate white space for backhaul

Sprint and T-Mobile have told

the Federal Communicat ionsCommission that they support the

idea of opening up white space

spectrum - the unlicensed spectrum

that sits between airwaves currently

licensed to TV broadcasters.

While Google, Microsoft and

others have been lobbying the FCC

to open up white space spectrum for

unlicensed super Wi-Fi devices, Sprint

and T-Mobile are advocating that

white space spectrum be granted

on a fixed-license basis for wirelessbackhaul services.

"Because backhaul comprises a

signicant cost for wireless carriers,

and incumbent local exchange

carriers' special-access charges

are exorbitant, Sprint Nextel and

T-Mobile must nd more affordable

alternatives to the ILECs' special-

access offerings," the operators

told the FCC.

Orange launches high speed mobile service

Orange France is rolling out a

new high speed HSDPA service for

corporate customers, beginning in

Lyon. The new service will deliver

up to 7.2Mb/s download data

speeds. Deployment in other major

cities and towns across France

should be underway by the summer

of 2008. Dubbed 3G + HSDPA, the

new service will also offer upload

data speeds of up to 1.4Mb/s.

Orange is the only operator in

France offering three types of

mobile phones compatible with 3G

+ HSDPA that can be adapted to

laptop computers.

Vodafone uses HSPA+ to head the mobile broadband race

Vodafone is to trial HSPA+, an

evolution of todays radio access

HSPA technology, to assess its

potential to deliver even higher

data rates through the upgrade of

existing network equipment.

Vodafone will work alongside

Huawei, Qualcomm and Ericsson to

trial Release 7 HSPA+ (also known

as HSPA Evolution) which has the

potential to handle data even

more efficiently than todays HSPA

technology.

The initiative will help to establish

whether HSPA+ is capable of

delivering data throughput rates of

up to 28.8Mbps compared to the

14.4Mbps maximum offered by

todays HSPA networks. If successful,

the technology has the potential

to extend the life of todays HSPA

infrastructure still further.

The project builds on early

technical assessments that Vodafone

has already carried out where the

MIMO version of HSPA+ recorded

high data throughput rates for users

in a simulated urban macrocellular

network.

Last year Vodafone launched a

3G broadband service based on High

Speed Packet Access (HSPA) with

downlink peak rates of up to 7.2Mbps

in selected hotspots within some key

markets. Vodafone plans to carry out

software upgrades to more of these

selected hotspots to deliver up to

14.4Mbps from the end of the year

as part of the existing HSPA roadmap

subject to device availability.

AT&T to invest USD1 billion in network

AT&T announced that it has

budgeted USD1 billion this year to

upgrade its international network.

The company said that amounts to

double what it spent in 2006 and

more than 30% higher than 2007s

network investment. The USD1 billion

will go toward expanding the carriers

global network reach and capacity,

and to upgrading networks to handlenew technologies, including demand

for Internet protocol services, such as

voice transmissions.

AT&T said its network upgrade

plans include: new sub-sea fiber-

optic cable capacity to Japan

and Asia; new core MPLS routers

in Europe, Asia and the United

States; new network-to-network

connections to extend reach

into high growth markets in Asia

Pacific, Eastern Europe and South

America; increasing data center

hosting capacity; integrating and

developing unified communications

capabilities from its recent acquisition

of Interwise; and offering global IP-

based audio-conferencing services.

The carrier said these network

investments will help it continue tocapitalize on the ongoing shift in

network traffic from voice to data,

and IP-based data as customers

migrate from legacy packet networks

to MPLS-based VPNs and managed

applications. AT&T customers can

currently make calls on six continents

and in more than 200 countries, and

access wireless data roaming in more

than 145 countries.


9/60MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39 2

Data

211

Seven out of every eight 3G/

WCDMA operators have launched

HSDPA services according to the

latest figures from the Globalmobile Suppliers Association (GSA).

A total of 211 WCDMA operators

have launched commercial services

in 91 countries, of which 185

operators (87.6 percent) have

also launched HSDPA - High

Speed Downlink Packet Access.

HSDPA mobile broadband services

are now commercially availablein 80 countries. There are 103

commercial HSDPA operators in

Europe, 36 in APAC, 24 in the

Middle East and Africa region, and

22 in the Americas.

154%

According to a recent report

from ComScore, U.S. Internet usage

via mobile broadband increased

154 percent during 2007. The

study looked at data collected from

computers that accessed the Internet

via mobile broadband service

providers. Verizon Wireless and

Sprint Nextel took the lionshare of

the mobile broadband market, while

AT&T recently announced plans

to increase its coverage. The study

found that 59 percent of the trafc

came from work computers while 41

percent came from personal home

computers.

375 million

Research and Markets announced

the addition of 4Q07 Global 3G/4G

Deployments & Subscribers Tracker

to their offering. 4Q07 was a strong

quarter for HSPA deployments, with

8 HSDPA and 9 HSUPA deployments.

More than half of the HSUPA

deployments for the quarter were

in Western Europe, which is no

surprise, given that Western Europe

is a hotbed for WCDMA/HSDPA, and

Western European operators are now

embracing HSUPA to add throughput

on the uplink. There were 6 Mobile

WiMAX deployments, with half of

these occurring in the Latin & South

America geographic segment.

3G/4G subscribers (i.e., those

subscribers to WCDMA/HSPA, EV-

DO, TD-SCDMA, WiMAX, and LTE

networks) grew 91% over the course

of 2007, and a 63% growth rate over

the course of 2008 was expected,

with subscribers expected to rise from

230 million in 2007, to 375 million in

2008.

1 trillion

A new report from Port ioResearch confidently predicts that

the worldwide mobile industry will

be worth USD1 trillion by the close

of 2008.

There are numerous highlights in

the report, which will prove happy

reading for even the most challenged

Mobile Network Operators and the

thousands of companies that support

this still fast growing industry.

Perhaps one of the most re-assuringtrends is the continued growth in

the number of mobile subscribers

worldwide from 3.1 billion at the

end of 2007 to an estimated 5 billion

by 2012. All non-voice Value Added

Services (VAS) continue to grow with

forecasts showing the worldwide

market for non-voice services to be

worth a quarter of a trillion USD by

2012.

China Telecom plans mobile network rollout in 21 provinces

China's largest fixed telecom

service operator China Telecom

is accelerating Wi-Fi deployment

and plans to launch a new round

of bidding for procuring mobile

network equipment in 21 provinces,

Shanghai Securities News reported.

The large-scale deployment

indicates the business focus of China

Telecom is moving to the mobile

network sector, which further

indicates the company may abandon

PHS service in 2009, said an industry

insider.Reports said China Telecom will

take over the CDMA network of

China Unicom in China's telecom

industry reshuffle. After that, it will

transfer its PHS users into CDMA

users smoothly through marketing

tactics, the insider predicted.

T h e s o u r c e a d d e d t h a t

deployment of mobile network

will lift the customer loyalty for

China Telecom, which will sharpen

the competitive edge of its mobile

service.

Google to put down trans-Pacific cable

Web giant Google is headingup a consortium of six international

companies, which this week

forged an agreement to lay a high-

bandwidth subsea fibre optic cable

linking the United States and Japan.

The construction of the trans-

Pacic infrastructure, called Unity, will

cost an estimated USD300 million.

The consortium is a joint effort by

Bharti Airtel, Global Transit, Google,

KDDI Corporation, Pacnet and

SingTel.Unity is expected to address

broadband demand by providing

much needed capacity to sustain

the growth in data traffic between

Asia and the US. The new cable is

expected to initially increase trans-

Pacic lit cable capacity by about 20

percent, with the potential to add up

to 7.68Tbps of bandwidth across the

Pacic.

"The Unity cable system allows

the members of the consortium

to provide the increased capacity

needed as more applications and

services migrate online, giving users

faster and more reliable connectivity,"

said Unity spokeswoman Jayne

Stowell.

According to the TeleGeography

Global Bandwidth Report, 2007,

trans-Pacific bandwidth demand

has grown at a compounded

annual growth rate (CAGR) of 63.7percent between 2002 and 2007.

It is expected to continue to grow

strongly from 2008 to 2013, with

total demand for capacity doubling

roughly every two years.

The 10,000km Unity link will

provide connectivity between

Chikura, located off the coast near

Tokyo, to Los Angeles and other West

Coast network points of presence.


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GLOBAL DIGEST


Huawei News

Unveils comprehensive IP Transport Infrastructure for Mobile Evolution at MWC 2008

Barcelona, Spain, 12 February

2008 Huawei has unveiled the

industry's most comprehensive IP

Transport Infrastructure for Mobile

Evolution (IPTime) at the Mobile

World Congress 2008 held in

Barcelona.

Huawei's IPTime is an ALL

IP based transport solution that

creates enhanced broadband

experiences and TCO reductions in

2G/3G mobile networks for carriers.

Huawei also used the event toshowcase key components of the

IPTime Solution, including PTN

series packet transport networks

equipment as well as the SmartAX

series multi-service access modules.

Huawei's IPTime provides GPS-

grade packet clock synchronization,

SDH-like OAM and protection

capabilities, supporting world-

leading end-to-end carrier-grade

performance in packet transport

network. The architecture also

provides PWE3 (Pseudo-Wire

Emulation Edge to Edge) capabilitya n d s u p p o r t s a b u n d a n t o f

interfaces, such as TDM, Ethernet,

microwave, xDSL and xPON,

helping carriers achieve smooth

evolution from 2G to 3G, HSPA or

LTE.

Huawe i has ga ined so l id

technical expertise and extensive

experience in both mobile and

ALL IP broadband networking. The

company's mobile solutions have

been widely deployed in more than

100 countries around the world

and the company has recentlywon 44 new UMTS contracts.

Huawei's mobile NGN/3G bearer

networking products have served

more than 700 million subscribers

and over 90 operators worldwide,

making Huawei the world's largest

provider in the area. According

to the reports published by Ovum

RHK and Gartner in the third

quarter of 2007, Huawei is the

world's fastest-growing equipment

provider in the optical network

market, ranking No. 2 in the global

optical market and No.1 in IPDSLAM shipments.

ALL IP mobile transport solution successfully completes

EANTCs mobile backhaul interoperability tests

Berlin, Germany, 5 February 2008

Huawei has announced that its ALL

IP Mobile Transport Solution has

successfully participated in the mobile

backhaul interoperability tests set by

the European Advanced NetworkingTest Center (EANTC) at EANTC's

laboratory in Berlin, Germany.

Huawei was one of fifteen

vendors to participate in the testing,

co-organized by the EANTC, an

authoritative European testing agency

with the support of the Metro

Ethernet Forum and the IP/MPLS

Forum, which certifies that next-

generation mobile backhaul solutions

using Carrier Ethernet services can

be implemented over diverse fixedand mobile network transport

technologies including MPLS, PBB-TE

and T-MPLS.

In the testing, Huawei's ALL IP

Mobile Transport Solution, including

packet transport network equipment

and multi-service access modules,

successfully interoperated with

equipment from multiple vendors

in the three domains of MPLS, PBB-

TE and T-MPLS and demonstrated

high-precision clock synchronization

technology. The solution also

demonstrated carrier-class reliability

through supporting high-quality

mobile backhaul services.Huawei's ALL IP Mobile Transport

Solution is part of the first public

multi-vendor Mobile Backhaul

Interoperability Demonstration on

show at the MPLS and Ethernet

World Congress in Paris, 5 - 8

February, 2008, and at Mobile World

Congress in Barcelona, 11 - 14

February, 2008.

Becomes China Netcoms largest supplier of optical

access solutions

Shenzhen, China, 7 March 2008

Huawei announced that it is to

supply nearly 40% of China Network

Communications Group's (China

Netcom's) optical access solutions,

making it the operator's largest

partner in the optical eld.

As a partner of the 2008 BeijingOlympic Games, to provide fixed-

line communication services, China

Netcom decided to centralize

the purchase of its optical access

equipment to provide ult ra-

broadband services to end-users.

A dozen suppliers in the industry,

including Huawei, submitted bids.

After rigorous tests, China Netcom

offered Huawei the biggest share

of the work because of

its innovative product

design, cutting-edge

technologies , s table

equipment performance

and rich experience incommercial applications.

Accord ing to the

contract, Huawei will

provide its world-leading

optical access equipment, the

SmartAX MA5600T series, to deliver

the best optical access experience

to China Netcom's broadband users

nationwide. The SmartAX MA5600T

series is the only system in the

industry that enables real blockless

terabit full-optical access. It satisfiescustomer requirements for ultra-wide

bandwidth with a unied full-optical

access platform to access the PON

and P2P traffic, and provides more

choices for the customer to increase

their user-experience, enabling

China Netcom to provide innovative

multi-play services to its subscribers,

including voice, video and data

services.


11/60MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39 4

Demonstrates innovative WiMAX solutions at WiMAX

MEGNA Forum

Dubai, UAE, 13 March 2008 Huawei

announced during the WiMAX

MEGNA Forum that it is rolling out its

new generation WiMAX solution. Thenew technology is an ALL IP solution

that can deploy WiMAX with GSM,

CDMA, UMTS, HSPA, IMS, NGN and

DSL integrated networks, and enables

operators to provide its subscribers

with advanced high-speed mobile

broadband services.

The new WiMAX station applies

the innovative technologies of highly-

efficient power amplifiers, multi-

carrier, distributed architecture and

intelligent temperature controls. Byadopting this solution, operators are

able to save energy, materials, land,

and labor, reduce carbon dioxide

emissions by over 60%, and reduce

at least 30% of the general operation

expenditure. Thus, environmental

protection and economic prots can

be achieved simultaneously.

Becomes global 4th largest patent applican

Shenzhen, China, 21 February2008 According to the World

Intellectual Property Organization

(WIPO), Huawei moved up 9 places

to become the 4th largest patent

applicant under the WIPO Patent

Cooperation Treaty (PCT), with

1,365 applications published in

2007, following Matsushita, Philips

Electronics N.V. and Siemens.

The year of 2007 saw a record

number of filings under the WIPOPCT. In total, a record 156,100

applications were filed in the

year, representing a 4.7% rate of

growth over the previous year.

Inventors from the Republic of

Korea (4th place) and China (7th)

consolidated their top ten position

in 2007, along with the US, Japan,

Germany, France, UK, Netherlands,

Switzerland and Sweden.

Launches worlds first 3.5G datacard with mobile TV

functionality

Hannover, 4 March 2008 Huawei

launched the world's rst mobile TV

capable 3.5G datacard, called the

E510, at CEBIT, the world's largestcommunications showcase event

for consumer electronics, held in

Hannover, Germany.

The E510 is a small and slim

2M HSUPA stick equipped with

mobile TV functionality that can

turn a computer into a television

with direct access to a TV signal.

The device integrates mobile TV

and mobile broadband, can be

used for PCs and laptops and is

suitable for both professional andentertainment purposes.

Huawei is widely recognized

for integrating industry-leading

technologies with fashionable,

high-quality industrial design. At

CEBIT, Huawei will showcase its

award-winning products from iF (

International Forum Design ), the

recognized Oscar in the industrial

design community, including the

V720 which features a mirror

design, the E960, an HSDPA

wireless gateway, and the compact

and fashionable E272. In thesecond half of 2007 when "slimmer

and smaller" emerged as a new

trend for terminals, Huawei set the

pace by launching the the E170,

the world's rst HSUPA USB Stick.

Huawei's terminal sales, which

include handsets, datacards, xed

wireless terminals and gateways,

totaled 40 million units in 2007,

and USD2.5 billion in contact sales.

To date, Huawei has captured

signicant market share in mobilebroadband devices, selling a total

of 8 million devices predominantly

to Europe, US and Japan.

Successfully deploys ALL IP CDMA network for Tata Indicom

Shenzhen, China, 20 Feb 2008

Huawei announced that its ALL IP

CDMA solution had been successfully

deployed in the commercial network

of Tata Indicom (TATA) in India. India

is an important strategic market in

the global telecom industry. As India's

leading CDMA operator, TATA is

building a robust, pan-India telecom

network to provide high-quality

and reliable services, and realize its

corporate vision of achieving 100

million subscribers by 2011 in India.TATA selected Huawei's ALL IP-

based CDMA core network solution

and radio access equipment to

was tested during the 2008 New

Year festival when the call traffic

was about 2.5 times the normal in

Delhi. Huawei's robust IP mobile

soft switch, renowned for its high-

capacity reliability, ensured that

TATA met the peak traffic challenge

successfully. The high throughput of

the ALL IP PARC platform allowed the

network to cope easily with heavy

load and delivered a high quality

performance.

replace its existing network in Delhi,

Kolkata and other main cities, thus

enabling its transformation towards

3G technology. Leveraging on its rich

international experience in project

deployment, Huawei successfully

completed this project in six months.

Results from independent third party

audit reveal that the network is one

of the best available. The new end-

to-end ALL IP network architecture

allows TATA to simplify network

operations, improve resourceutilization, and significantly reduce

operating expenditure.

The quality of the network


12/60

EXPERTS FORUM


Mobile backhaullandscape

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39

Mobile operators are banking on broadband services for continued revenue growth. Mobile

broadband services in turn generate substantially more trafc than voice service and SMS. Since

mobile backhaul is a major component of mobile OPEX, controlling its cost is the key to turning

mobile broadband revenue into prot. Operators and wholesale backhaul providers are employing

several network strategies for doing this, using an array of copper, fiber, and microwave

technologies.

EXPERTS FORUM

By John Lively

Mobile backhaul landscape


13/60

Huawei Technologies

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39 6

John Lively, Vice President, Forecasting and Analysis, Ovum-RHK. He leads Ovums coverage and analysis of

mobile backhaul, global CAPEX and vendor intelligence. John is also responsible for overseeing the production of

Ovum-RHKs market forecasts, market share analysis, and market update reports for all xed, mobile, nancial,

and services subscription research.

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39

Huawei Technologies

Introduction

obile backhaul is a termvery much in the oreronto the telecom equipmentarena in 2007. Many articles

have been written and presentations givenon it, even whole conerences have beendedicated to it. Surely, it must rank amongthe top ten buzz phrases in telecomequipment today. Despite all the publicity,however, what it means and what itrepresents in terms o opportunity are arrom clear.

he term backhaul is perhaps a bit

misleading, to the extent that it impliesa one-way transport o trac, rom a celltower back to the switching oice. Inreality, o course, voice and data trac istwo-way and more or less symmetrical,wh il e ne we r mob il e mu si c an d vi de oservices are more like the wireline Internet,with much higher trac downstream (tothe subscribers handset) than in the otherdirection.

So, exactly what is meant by the termmobile backhaul? Simply put, mobilebackhaul is the transport and aggregation

o mobile trac between various cell sitesand a mobile switching oce.

The mobile operatorsbackhaul challenge

Mobile operators in many parts o theworld are acing the maturation o mobilevoice services. In North America, Europe,the Middle Eastern region, and the

developed countries o Asia and CALA,mobile voice penetration is well in excesso 50 percent, and consequently, subscriber

growth is s lowing and approachingstagnation. At the same time, competitionor subscribers has intensiied, resultingin downward pressure on prices, leadingto a slow decline in voice ARPU in manycountries over the past ew years. hecombination o ewer subscriber additionsand downward price pressure has resultedin the stagnation o mobile voice revenues.

Mobile operators have respondedto voice maturation by launching newservices , with the i r s t being shortmessaging service (SMS), also called text

messaging. With the advent o higher-capacity third-generation (3G) radioaccess technology, operators have launchedadditional services such as music andvideo downloads, streaming news, andsports inormation services. he GSMAssociat ion reports ove r 196 HSDPA-based mobile networks in operationaround the globe, while the CDMADevelopment Group reports that 226operators have deployed or are deployingCDMA2000 1X networks in 97 countries.

Verizons recent results illustrate theimportance o these new services tomobile operators. For the 12-monthperiod ending March 31, 2007, Verizonssubscriber growth was 14 percent, voiceservice revenues grew only 10 percentdue to declining ARPU, and data servicerevenue grew by a whopping 78 percent,resulting in overall services revenue growtho 18 percent. Fig. 1 shows the growingimportance o data revenues to Verizon.Over the past two years, data services have

grown rom 6 percent o sales in 1Q05 to18 percent in 1Q07.

Verizons situation is perhaps better

than that o some other operators sinceit is experiencing continued growth insubscribers. Even so, Fig. 1 clearly showsthe important role that new services playin boosting revenue growth. Fig. 2 shedsmore light on the reason that data servicesare important, using results rom KDDIau, KDDIs mobile communicationsbranch: the ARPU or voice services iseroding while ARPU or data is not.

Te increased revenue rom data servicesdoes not come without added cost, however.he new services create additional traic,

which adds to operational costs . In act,since the new services are broadband, theyhave the potential to generate substantiallymore trac, as shown in Fig. 3.

Qualitatively, the impact o these newmobile broadband standards on mobilebackhaul is clear: backhaul traic willincrease signiicantly. he exact impactdepends on the modulation and encodingused to carry 3G traic over 1/E1 links(QPSK or 16QAM, or example), butestimates o 3G backhaul traic demand

range rom (4 - 8) 1 (or E1) equivalentsper cell site, compared to the 1 or 2 that arerequired to handle voice and SMS trac.

In addition, the trac related to mobilebroadband services will tend to be morebursty than conventional voice and SMStrac, requiring higher levels o peak-to-average provisioning, urther escalatingcapacity requirements. Operators arealready eeling the 3G trac bite in somecases; -Mobiles traic increased by aactor o three in just one month ater it

M


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EXPERTS FORUM


Fig.2 ARPU trends for voice and data ( KDDI au service )

( Source: KDDI annual reports )

Fig.1 Verizons mobile revenue growth

( Source: Verizon Communications )

Data

Voice

1Q05 2Q05 3Q05 4Q05 1Q06 2Q06 3Q06 4Q06 1Q07

Data 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6

Voice 6.2 6.4 6.7 6.6 6.7 7.0 7.3 7.3 7.4

10

8

6

4

2

0

USD billion

Fig.3 3G and 4G standards data rates compared to 2G

( Source: Ovum-RHK )

Mobile backhaul landscape

launched a at-rate HSDPA service.

Major backhaul solutions

Mobile operators today are using similar network strategies

to avoid alling into a broadband services protability trap.

Overlay solution

One o the simplest means o accommodating 3G trac ina mobile backhaul network is via an overlay network. In thisarchitecture, the existing inrastructure or transporting andaggregating voice and 2.5G data is let in place, and a separatenetwork is installed to carry the 3G trac.

he overlay strategy has the advantage o requiring nochange to the existing 2G inrastructure, and hence carries alow risk o network disruption and service outage due to theupgrade. It also allows more relaxed network perormance or

multimedia services, while maintaining higher QoS on low-trac, high-value voice services. Te downside o this approachis its cost and complexity. here are more network elementsand protocols to maintain, and possibly more vendors tomanage, which negates some o the cost savings associated withmoving the 3G trac o the existing DM inrastructure.

Hybrid-channel bonding

In this solution, multiple existing 1/E1 channels are usedtogether to create a higher-capacity transport pipe. It has theadvantage o using standard transport services, while requiringonly small changes in the 2G inrastructure. At the same time,

it allows or lower standards or the 3G trac. Disadvantagesare added complexity (multiple vendors, network elements, andprotocols) and somewhat higher cost.

Hybrid-pseudowire

Pseudowire is, in a sense, the opposite o channel bonding.While in the latter, 3G trac is carried via legacy transport services,pseudowire allows the transport o 2G trac over Ethernet services.In a pseudowire solution, a dedicated box (or board within a largertransport or aggregation element) encapsulates DM and AMtrac within Ethernet. At the other end o the link, the DM andAM trac is split out and reconstituted in native orm, and ed

into existing legacy switching equipment.Pseudowires purported advantages are that it eliminates theneed or DM cross-connects and AM switches in the MSO,and also enables the use o a variety o Ethernet services orbackhaul, including Ethernet over microwave, Ethernet overcopper, Ethernet over ber, Ethernet over DSL, Passive OpticalNetwork (PON), etc. It also provides 1/E1 and Ethernetinteraces to all generations o equipment.

he primary disadvantage is that latency is increasedby about 5 milliseconds, which can aect latency-sensitiveapplications such as game playing and streaming video ormusic.

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

0

CNY per month

Voice ARPU

Data ARPU

1Q05 2Q05 3Q05 4Q05 1Q06 2Q06 3Q06 4Q06 1Q07

Voice SMS 3G 4G

Kbps

4G=70 Mbps

3G=2.5 Mbps

Note: Figure shows theoretical maximum data rates.

Actual user rates will be less than ideal.


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Huawei Technologies

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39 8

Integrated Ethernet

Te integrated Ethernet solution is justthat - the integration o 2G and 3G tracon a single Ethernet service. he BSconnects to the BCS via IP transport only,

and there are no 1/E1s in the backhaulnetwork.

One disadvantage o pure Ethernetbackhaul networks is that GSM andUMS have clocks that need to beupdated via the network. I DM iseliminated, an alternative clocking sourcehas to be provided. CDMA networkstypically embed a GPS receiver in the basestation to enable clock synchronization.

Another drawback o this solution isthat best-eort QoS Ethernet is not good

enough or voice service, and a moreexpensive Carrier Ethernet or equivalentservice would have to be used. Jitter andlatency matter a lot or voice services.

Te conversion o an existing networkto ALL IP backhaul would involvea lot o changes at one time, riskingservice disruptions, requiring trainingin new technologies and methods,and necessitating the evaluation andqualiication o new equipment andpossibly new vendors. For this reason, ALLIP backhaul is likely to appear rst in new

networks being built rom scratch (e.g., indeveloping countries). Among operatorswith existing networks, gradual migrationto ALL IP via some intermediate solutionsuch as hybrid or overlay is most likely.

All o these network strategies supportbusiness goals that are shared by nearly allmobile operators:

Protec t r evenues by min imiz ing downtime (high reliability = morebillable minutes)Maximize subscriber growth via rapid

installation and provisioning o servicesReduce opera t iona l expenses by optimizing the utilization o existingtransport and migrating to convergedALL IP networks over time.

Backhaul equipmentopportunity

Given that the traic carried in themobile backhaul network can include both

Table 1 Pros and cons of various backhaul facilities (Source: Ovum-RHK)

Service Advantages Disadvantages

Ethernet over ber High speed and scalableBTS support, SLA negotiation,limited availability of ber to cellsites, lengthy provisioning time

Ethernet over copperHigh speed and scalable; leveragesexisting copper facilities

Existing copper is controlled mainlyby incumbent operators.

Ethernet over microwave Fast, low-cost installationLine of sight required betweenantennas

DSLFor integrated operators, providessome xed/mobile synergies

Bandwidth-distance trade-off; avail-ability

PONFor integrated operators, providessome xed/mobile synergies

Not widely deployed

Fixed WiMAX(IEEE standard802.16-2004)

Potentially lower operating and rstcost

Immature and not eld proven;spectrum an issue in many places;QoS concerns

VSAT Can be located far from the MSO Higher cost; QoS concerns

standard DM and Ethernet transportand aggregation, the term mobile backhaulequipment covers a very broad range oproducts.

For purposes o describing the mobilebackhaul equipment opportunity orvendors, it is useul to break this marketinto several categories. Some possiblesegmentation schemes are: Networksolutions, Physical media, and Backhaulacilities. Each segmentation scheme bearssome commentary.

Network solutions

Network solutions basically involveDM, Ethernet, channel bonding, andpseudowire. Any given operator willnaturally avour one or the other solutiondepending on the state o its servicesdeployment, its network status, and theavailability o backhaul services rom third-party providers.

Physical media

Physical media are copper, iber,microwave, satellite, and others.

Mobile backhaul transport can takeplace over copper wire, optical ber, or air,and there are numerous considerations oroperators to determine which one to use,including maximum capacity, maximumdistance, rst cost and operational cost, easeo deployment, and competitive actors.

As it turns out, di erent regions othe world typically use dierent types o

backhaul:In North America the majority is copperor ber, because there was little spectrumor mobile backhaul at the time themobile networks were being built.In Europe, the majority o backhaulis microwave, because wireline (E1)services were provided by monopolyPost elegraph and elephone operators(Ps) at high cost in many countries,and wireless spectrum was available.Asia is much the same as Eu rope,

with microwave dominating. Many othe largest Asia mobile operators areintegrated with wireline telcos, e.g.,DoCoMo, K Freetel, KDDI, ChinaMobile (to some extent), and elkomIndonesia/elkomsel.A ri ca ha s a hi gh us e o Very Smal lAperture erminal (VSA), particularlyin more remote areas where individualcell towers are geographically isolated.Estimates are that approximately 60

percent o the worlds base stations are

backhauled with mobile transport o somesort.

Backhaul acilities

As detailed in able 1, there are variousbackhaul acilities including Ethernet overiber, Ethernet over copper, DSL, PON,WiMAX, and each has its advantages anddisadvantages that lead operators to chooseone versus another.

Editor: Zhou Huajiao [email protected]


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COVERSTORY

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39

SEIZE TODAY

During the past ew years, Vodaone has

been actively transorming its mobile

networks to ALL IP and taking the lead

in the global mobile industry. In the scal

year o 2007, Vodaones revenue was 31.1

billion British pounds, an increase o 6%compared to 2006. As mobile broadband

networking gains popularity, traditional

DM-based transport networks are no

longer keeping pace with Vodaones rapid

development, and ALL IP transormation

o transport networks ranks high on its

agenda. By Zhou Yuchun

COVER STORY




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Huawei Technologies

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39

Vodafones splendid transformon transport networks

FOR TOMORROW

Huawei Technologies

MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39 1


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COVERSTORY

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Initiating new strategy

odaone is one o the largest mobileoperators in the world. It conductsbusiness in more than 25 countries andregions on six continents, including

its approximately 3.3% share o China Mobile.Vodaone has 114 million subscribers in Europe and127 million subscribers in Eastern Europe, MiddleEast, Arica, Asia-Pacic region and aliated areas(EMAPA). 3G services are developing quickly andthere are now more than 20 million subscribers,making Vodaone No.1 in major telecom marketsworldwide.

In recent years, the mobile communication

industry environment has dramatically changedas a result o keener competition and strictersupervision. raditional operators are seeking awider business scope, and new Internet operators arelooking or opportunities to squeeze into the mobile

communication sector. Vodaone aces st icompetition rom -Mobile, Orange and othermobile operators, and rom xed network operators,mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs),Internet service providers, and even terminalproviders such as Apple.

o stay abreast o the pack and to become atotal communications provider, Vodaone isimplementing ALL IP and xed-mobile convergence(FMC) in its networks. he core is a MobilePlus strategy to satisy customer requirements ordiversied broadband services other than basic voiceservices.

Vodaone ormulated a new development plan,and began internal restructuring to achieve its goals.

Five core strategic objectives

On May 20, 2006, Vodaone released its planoutlining ve strategic objectives:

Reduce costs and stimulate revenues in Europe.Deliver strong growth in emerging markets.

Innovate and deliver on customers totalcommunications needs. Actively

manage the portolio to maximizereturns. Align capital structure

and shareholder returnspolicy to strategy.

Revenue stimulationand cost reduction in

V

11



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To stay abreast of the pack and to become a total

communications provider, Vodafone is implementing ALL IPand FMC in its networks. The core is a Mobile Plus strategy

to satisfy customer requirements for diversied broadband

services other than basic voice services.

Europe was necessary or development in maturemarkets. Te measures taken by Vodaone included:subcontracting services, reducing management costs(downsizing etc.), constructing a network supportmanagement center, integrating regional datacenters, and controlling the use o voice and dataservices.

Vodaone expected to see strong growth inemerging markets, and added a department solelydedicated to market expansion in new regions.

he convergence o mobile, broadband andInternet services had been helping Vodaoneinnovatively deliver on its promise o satisying thetotal communications needs and ever changingrequirements or subscribers. Speciic measuresimplemented were: the establishment o a newdepartment dedicated to developing services orVodaone Home and Vodaone Oice (DSL),

plus developing applications integrating mobile,broadband and Internet services.Active portol io management was to maximize

returns by the disposal o assets that did not bringhigh returns, and investment in services withpotentially high earnings. Speciic measures hadincluded the careul consideration o capital returnbeore acquisitions, and a reduction in the numbero mergers and acquisitions.

Properly aligning capital structure and shareholderreturns depended on dierent developmental stages.In order to ensure nancial balance or mature andgrowing services, 60% prots rom each share was

distributed as dividend in FY 2006, and concertedeorts had been made to regain an A2/Prime-1credit rating.

Internal restructuring

Vodaones uture vision is to build OneV o d a o n e a n d a u t u r e - o r i e n t e d t o t a lcommunications network, but its OPCOs arescattered all over the globe. Vodaone has 18 whollyowned subsidiaries and scores o aliated companies,wi th di er ing st ag es o ne twork deve lo pm en t,and previously each one o them selected its ownsuppliers. As a result, procurement and managementcosts were very high.

Vodaone has restructured the company withthe One Vodaone strategy. It strengthened theprocurement and technology selection managementto reduce costs. An established global supply chainorganization is now responsible or guiding networkdevelopment, selecting short listed technologies,regulating development o network technologies,controlling the number o suppliers through globalbidding and reducing the cost o technologyselection. Te global supply chain organization alsoregulates Opco management and procurement,reducing global network suppliers to a op 30, threeas main partners.

For worldwide service development support,Vodaone utilized the Global Price Book to reduceequipment prices and select strategic suppliers thatcould orm a uniorm value chain or networksolutions, uture development strategy, high qualityservices and even terminals.

In 2003, Vodaone started to seriously considerHuawei, scrutinizing inancial aspects, strategies,

technologies, company management, processmanagement and R&D, nally selecting Huawei asa supplier in 2005 and beginning a close cooperationwith 2G/3G network deployment and terminals inSpain, Iceland, Greece, Hungary and Romania.

1


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COVERSTORY

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Gaining an edge

Promoting mobile broadbandservices

Vodaone was driven by the new strategy andurgently needed a key prot growth point. However,it was diicult to expand the subscriber base indeveloped regions like Europe as mobile penetrationwas high and the market was nearly saturated. hekey to success was to develop high-speed, diversiedand dierentiated mobile broadband services or theexisting subscribers.

Beginning in 2005, Vodaones mobile broadband

services have consistently shown vigorous growth,as seen in able 1. In 2006, Vodaones revenuerom non-voice services jumped to 17% o theservice revenue. In the non-voice services, messageservices were still the main source o revenue, butmobile broadband services developed at a higherrate. In FY2006, revenue rom non-message mobilebroadband services reached 832 million Britishpounds, an increase o 61% rom the previousyear. By March 31, 2006, the subscribers to mobilebroadband services like Vodaone Live!, 3G-basedbroadband services and mobile data card services were27.1 million, 7.7 million and 0.7 million respectively.

Te number o subscribers to mobile broadbandservices will predictably continue to rise in thenear uture, making mobile broadband services animportant strategic sector or Vodaone. Launchingservices such as Blackberry and Push Email has also

Item FY 2006 FY 2005 Growth Rate (%)

Revenue from mobile services 28.137 25.74 9.3

Revenue from voice services 21.493 19.888 8.1

Revenue from non-voice services

Message service

Data service

3.556

0.832

3.143

0.516

13.1

61.2

Ratio of revenue from non-voice serv ices to total serv ice revenue 17.0% 15.5%

Total number of subscribers (million) 176 140 21.8

Vodafone live! devices (million) 27.10 17.40 55.7

3G registered devices (million) 7.70 1.40 450

Mobile data cards registered (million) 0.70 0.20 250

Table 1 Main nancial and operation indexes of Vodafone in FY 2006 ( Unit: billion pounds sterling ) ( Source: Vodafone )

helped to expand original markets.

Deploying HSDPA networks

Vodaone implemented a Mobile Plus strategy

or network transormation to keep pace with theast growth o mobile broadband services, satisy enduser requirements, and improve the access quality oservices.

First, ixed-mobile substitution (FMS) wasimplemented, second, FMS+DSL, and third, theotal Communications Solution. Vodaones HSDPAnetworks have been rapidly deployed. Since the irstHSDPA network was put into commercial use inUK in 2006, Vodaone has deployed 15 commercialHSDPA networks globally, and currently is theindustry leader.

Vodaone Spain is one o the most importantOPCOs o the Vodaone Group. It has 3 million3G subscribers. o provide innovative data services,Vodaone Spain started constructing a HSDPAnetwork in 2006.

Vodaone Spain cooperated with Huawei and usedan innovative new generation green mobile networksolution. he solution eatured eicient poweramplication, multi-carrier, distributed architecture,intelligent temperature control, and a lexible sitescenario model. Considerable amounts o energy,materials, land and manpower were saved, whilereducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than

60%. Te solution helped Vodaone Spain to cut thegeneral operational expenditure (OPEX) by morethan 30%, garner greater proits, and help protectthe environment. According to a Vodaone executive,the solution will have an enormous inluence on



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Huawei Technologies

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the economy and the environment aterit is applied to tens o thousands o basestations.

Te completion o the Vodaone SpainHSDPA network quickly improved thequality o Vodaone Live! and otherservices . In Barcelona, ashionable

youngsters with a Vodaone data card orInternet access and an HSDPA mobilephone in hand, are oten seen enjoyingmobile broadband experiences. In Madrid,Bernabeu ootball ans wont miss a single

play, thanks to Vodaone Live!.Ja ime Bu stil lo, CO o Vod aone

Spain remained a bit concerned despiteo all the good news and remarked,Since the HSDPA network has beendeployed, subscribers to 3G data serviceshave astonishingly increased. Proit is

promising, but we are worried about howto get higher transport bandwidth tosupport the services. Te growth speed otransport bandwidth required by HSDPAbase stations will double in Spain in the

Fig. 1 Considerations for technical development of Vodafones networks in the future ( Source: Vodafone )

Where are we?

Today: Single-Service Vertical Networks

GPRSFixed

NetworkGSM UMTS

Services

Transport, Switching & Access Networks

Tomorrow: Multi-Service Integrated Network

Media Gateway

IP Backbone Network

Conmunication Control

Content Content

Access

Access

uture. With the current price o a leasedline, the growth speed o OPEX will alsodouble, but our growth speed o proitsrom data bandwidth is only one time.Continued development is surely a losingproposition without optimizing ourtransport networks.

he bandwidth expansion causedby HSDPA, especially the maturity andcommercial use o technologies such asHSPA+ and LE, has brought great challengesto Vodaones transport networks.

Jaime Bustillo, CTO of Vodafone Spain remained a bit concerned

despite of all the good news and remarked, the bandwidthexpansion caused by HSDPA, especially the maturity and

commercial use of technologies such as HSPA+ and LTE, has

brought great challenges to Vodafones transport networks.

Where do we want to go?


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Urgent demands forALL IP transport network

Vodaone clearly sees that the rapiddevelopment o mobile broadband servicescorresponds with an explosive increase otransport bandwidth requirements.

he traditional DM-based SDHtransport network is suitable or DMservices. Utilization o the traditionaltransport network bandwidth is nothigh, and the transport eiciency is low

with a growing ratio o data services inthe network. IP transormation o thetransport network is urgently needed toacilitate the rapid development o mobilebroadband services.

Choosing the righttechnology

Vodaone is quite active in varioustechnical orums and standardizationorganizations in the industry. It has also

been engaged or years in the evolutionand veriication o packet transporttechnology through dedicated researchinstitutions. here are three actors thatprompt the decision to construct its

transport network.

TDM transmission is not suitableor IP services

he lightening ast developmento HSDPA has made the bandwidtho base stations increase rom 2MB to8MB/16MB, and the percentage o data

services is ar greater than that o voiceservices, with burst bandwidth eatureso low payload (traic activation rateequaling 15 - 30%). I transport is stillmade through E1s that are suitable orvoice services, eciency is very low, whileadding new ber resources will double thecost o leased lines.

A packet-based transport technology isneeded to enable traditional DM, AMand Ethernet services to access the packettransport media. he technology shouldalso be capable o statistical multiplexing

to improve the transport eciency.

Reducing data service transportcost and ensuring transportquality

here can be multiple methods ordealing with the expansion o bandwidthusage. In a mobile backhaul network, the2G network bandwidth can be reducedthrough Abis optimization. Optimizingidle slots, idle channels and mute ramescan reduce roughly 60% o bandwidthrequirements. However, 2G bandwidthoriginally occupies one E1 only, sooptimization has little eect compared tothe expanded HSPA bandwidth o 4 - 16E1s.

he oload mode can also be usedto distribute base stations services suchas transporting voice services throughmicrowave links while data servicesthrough DSL or low-cost Ethernet leasedlines. his is a good temporary solution,

but DSL and cheap leased lines are notreadily available, oload management iscomplex, and higher quality transportwill be required or multi-play services inthe uture. Tese actors limit applicationpopularization.

Services can be encapsulated intopackets by means o packet transportne t wor k ( P N) and p s eud o - w i r ee m u l a t i o n e d g e - t o - e d g e ( P W E 3 )technology. ransport eiciency can bemuch higher and transport cost muchlower, thanks to the inherent statistical

multiplexing eatures o packets.In a mobile backhaul network, i

iber resources are available in basestations, PN equipment can be used. Iiber resources are not available in base

Vodafone is quite active in various technical forums and

in the industry. It has also been engaged for years in the evolutiontransport technology through dedicated research institutions.

based design of packet transport technologies allows end-to-end

transport networks, satises subscriber requirements for multiple



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Huawei Technologies

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stations, services can be transported through packetmicrowave and air interaces. Adaptive modulationtechnology can then be used or dynamic adjustmento the bandwidth depending on the quality o thetransport environment, providing real-time transporto high priority services.

PN has carrier-class reliability and manageabilityand can ensure that jitter and delay during packettransport meet the requirements o real-timeservices. It also provides hierarchical operations,administration and maintenance (OAM) inormationto make sure that transport bandwidth is manageableand operable.

Protecting investment on existingnetwork

Application o new technologies is a necessity to

reduce long-term investment. Network upgrades,such as making traditional microwave equipmentto provide Ethernet interaces, and enabling NGSDH equipment to provide Ethernet and AMconvergence, are means o protecting investment.Network upgrades a lso cater to bandwidthdistribution with DM/AM granules as themainstay and Ethernet services as a supplement.

Tere is a great deal o microwave and PDH/SDHequipment in the existing networks o Vodaone.When a new generation packet transport networkis deployed, adaptation with the existing networksmust be considered. I no ber network is available,

an ML-PPP-based E1 can be used, or a chSM-1can be adapted into the PDH/SDH microwavelinks, and the new network can interconnect andinterwork with the existing transport network. Auniversal switch can be installed to reuse the already

available SDH interace boards, or SM-N interacescan be used or SDH network compatibility.

he ALL IP-based design o packet transporttechnologies allows end-to-end carrier-classperormance or Vodaones transport networks,satisies subscriber requirements or multiplebroadband services, and helps Vodaone actualizestrategic transormation rom an operator to a totalcommunications provider.

standardization organizations

and verification of packetThey believe that the ALL IP-

carrier-class performance for

broadband services.


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COVERSTORY

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Choosing the rightconstruction pattern

W h e n c o n r o n t e d w i t h t h e d a u n t i n gtransormation o transport networks, Vodaone

was most concerned with the diculty o managingmultiple Operation Companies (OPCOs), thecomplex network environment, the gray areas otechnical development, and more. Methods ortransormation and implementation would be a greatchallenge. Ater careul consideration, Vodaonedecided to start rom the transport network layers.

Vodaone was hard pressed by the shortage oiber and copper cable resources. It would not bepractical to have ibers quickly extended to basestations within a ew years. Te actual situations odierent OPCOs were also diering, and dierent

steps had to be taken in network transormation. Akey role was to be played by the global supply chainorganization.

Mainstream suppliers such as Huawei werecontacted or almost two years through a dedicatedresearch department. As a result, a plan wasormulated or the development o uture transportnetworks and Vodaone released a ransportEvolution Strategy (ES). he ES made boldintroductions o new transport technologies touniy service bearing, to lower network construction

and maintenance costs, and to enhance transporteciency. Specic measures included:

Backbone

Vodaone planned and constructed its own

large IP/MPLS backbone bearer networks, andtransormed the MPLS backbone bearer networkso the European OPCOs into independent andintegrated MPLS bearer networks. Currently,IP backbone bearer networks have already beenconstructed or the main OPCOs in Europe.

Vodaone also constructed large WDM/ON/ASON transport networks, using IP over WDM/ON, or IP over SDH technologies to realize highbandwidth and give reliable protection to backbonebearer networks.

Huaweis ASON (SDH-based) and WDMequipment was used in the construction o mobilebackbone networks in France, Netherlands,Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Spain,Portugal, urkey, India, Kenya and anzania.

Backhaul

Vodaone has constructed new mobile backhaulnetworks which could satisy requirements or radioaccess network (RAN) services or the upcoming veyears. he existing DM-based backhaul networkis evolving to ALL IP. Developing toward FMC,a uniorm backhaul network was constructed totransport mobile and broadband services over the

same bearer network. Ater consulting with Huawei,Vodaone nally decided that the mobile backhaulnetwork should be constructed with packet transporttechnology.

Huawei launched a new generation PN solutionbased on extensive transport network research,which can ensure the quality o transport networksand oer good lexibility and ine scalability o IPnetworks. he packet-based solution is compatiblewith service networks and has enhanced transporteatures. It integrates microwave networks, providesend-to-end packet transport, integrates the PN

into the existing networks, and gradually replacesand evolves the traditional DM/AM transportnetworks into ALL IP packet networks.

For base stations lacking optical iber resources,Vodaone reduced transport OPEX by constructingmicrowave networks to satisy requirements or highbandwidth in the IP RAN. Vodaone also introducedDSL networks, developed broadband services ona large scale, and provided base station accesses.During the network construction, a great numbero new generation green base stations rom Huaweiwere used by multiple OPCOs.

17



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Huawei Technologies

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Link

Vodaone awarded the OutstandingPerormance Award to Huawei duringits second Global Supplier Conerenceheld on May 16, 2007. Te award showsVodaones high regard or products andservices rom Huawei. Adhering to itscustomer-driven philosophy, Huaweihas delivered prompt and consistent

quality while assuring the excellentnetwork perormance in line withVodaones long-term strategy.

A key a ctor in Voda ones supp lychain strategy is through suppliermanagement, and periodic assessmentis given to all suppliers to continuouslyenhance their delivery capabilities.

As a s t rategic partner , we aredelighted to have been awarded the

Vodaones mobile transport backbonenetwork in Romania is an example withits 3G services currently available in 23big cities. Te DWDM+ASON transportsolution provided by Huawei or both2G and 3G networks transports highbandwidth services and guarantees highreliability on a large mobile network.

he network uses ASON technology todeal with multi-point ailure, completelysolves the problem o requent ber breaks,ensures high reliability o services and

provides a unction o service level agreement(SLA). As a result, Vodaones maintenanceteams have been reduced rom one team per100 km o transport distance to one teamper 300 km, cutting maintenance time rom24 hours per day, 7 days a week to only 8hours per day, 7 days a week.

he network a lso uses Huawei spatented SuperWDM technology that


1

Editor: Xue [email protected]

enables the transportation o 5000kmultra-long distance without regenerators.he project provides large-capacity andultra-long-distance transport while cuttingout 9 optical amplication units to urtherreduce DWDM network construction andmaintenance costs.

I n m o b i l e b a c k h a u l n e t w o r k s ,Vodaones OPCOs in Spain and Italy arestarting to use PN technology.

PN technology inherits the exibilityo IP technology, and encapsulates multiple

DM, FR, AM and Ethernet servicesthrough PWE3 technology, ensuringsupport or traditional mobile-serviceinteraces during transormation to ALLIP. Based on centralized packet switchingtechnology, it is capable o convergingservices, greatly enhancing transporteiciency while saving money. PN is acarrier-class IP transport solution, allowing

eicient and reliable service transportwhile overcoming the weaknesses o IPtechnology in reliability, manageabilityand network synchronization.

A n d y J o n e s , o r m e r h e a d o ransmis s ion & Inter connec t iv i t y in Vodaone and a key person in thetransormation o transport networkssaid, Ater two years o research andverication, Vodaone is now clear aboutits uture transport network development.It is expected that the transormation canbe implemented in the middle o 2008.With good compatibility and scalability,the new network will eectively supportthe HSDPA services that Vodaone willlaunch on a large scale, and will evolveto LE in the coming years, to achieve

Vodaones objective o being a totalcommunications provider.

Vodaone has seize d the his tor icopportunity brought about by mobilebroadband and the ALL IP transormationo transport networks, giving themthe competitive edge over the sharpcompetition.

Huaweis Outstanding Performance Award

Outs tand ing Per ormance Awardby Vodaone. he award recognizesHuaweis commitment to providingindustry-leading products, solutions andrapid response as well as outstandingdelivery, said Mr. William Xu, Presidento Huawei Europe. Huawei is ocusedon customer-oriented innovation to

create solutions, products and servicesthat provide long-term value or ourcustomers to help them realize theirpotential.

H u a w e i r e c e i v e d t h i s a w a r do r c on s i s t en t l y show ing a d eepunderstanding o our business needs,said Detle Schultz, Vodaones GlobalSupply Chain Management Director.he award also recognizes Huaweis

determination to help Vodaone achieveits strategic objectives.

Huawei has a global rame agreementwith Vodaone, delivering high qualityproducts and services to Vodaoneincluding network equipment andhandsets.


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Its

MAIN TOPIC

19 MAR 2008 . ISSUE 39

Booming mobile broadband services and

rapidly evolving mobile network technologies

have pushed mobile networks into an ALL IP

era. Traditional transport networks that TDM

services are struggling to keep pace with the

new trend of moving to ALL IP.

By Li Hongsong


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ALL IP trend for mobiletransport

P-based mobile transport networks irstappeared in backbone bearer networks. IP/

MPLS (multi-protocol label switching) routersover the wave division multiplexing (WDM)system eiciently bear mobile sotswitch services.China Mobile, B, Vodaone, and Etisalat, have allseen greater prots and consumer satisaction aterbuilding IP backbone bearer networks.

Mobile base stations are gradually adopting ALLIP technology and the air interace rate has beenincreasing rapidly, or example, rom 144Kbps inGPRS to 14.4Mbps in HSPA, and to 100Mbps inLong-erm Evolution (LE). As a result, transportbandwidth required by mobile backhaul networkshas been booming. Te orecast or 2010 is that the

growth o data services will quadruple the demandson mobile backhaul bandwidth. In this scenario, anIP-based mobile backhaul is inevitable or uturemobile transport networks.

Desired features

o improve transport eiciency and reducetransport costs, an IP mobile transport network hasto satisy the ollowing requirements.

ALL IP architecture: Packet requirements otransport networks can be mostly attributed to the

rapid growth o data services that have uncertain andunexpected traic. he transport network shouldbe designed and deployed on the basis o a pureIP-based kernel to guarantee the highest level oeciency.

Multi-service transport capability: Recentdevelopments have shown that a uniied transportnetwork must adapt to various mobile networkt e c hno log i e s , i n c lud ing GSM , WCD M A,CDMA2000, WiMAX, HSPA+ and LE. hetransport network should be able to transportservices o multi-mode radio access networks (RANs)in a unied way.

raditional 2G networks are based on timedivision multiplexing (DM); 3G R99/R4 networkadopts the asynchronous transer mode (AM)protocol; 3G/WiMAX/LE networks evolve intoALL IP. During the evolution o mobile networks,services based on DM, AM and packet will co-exist in the same network or a long time.

Te transport network should be able to supportuniied transport o multiple services, includingDM, AM and Ethernet services. his can berealized with the pseudo-wire emulation edge-to-

edge (PWE3) technology.Multi-scenarioaccessandnetworkingcapability:

As dierent access resources are allocated to dierentbase stations, no single access technology can caterto all requirements. Base stations in Asia-Paciiclike China have relatively rich optical iber access

resources. In Europe, the microwave access mode ismostly adopted, plus there are some leased lines andsmall quantity o twisted pair cables.

When a mobile network is extended rom widecoverage to indoor microcells and hotspot accesspoints (APs), the transport network must providecustomized multi-scenario access and networkingcapabilities. he network has to support multiplecombined access technologies involving opticalbers, microwave and copper cables.

Precise IP clock transer capability: Clocksynchronization is a key demand or mobile networks.raditional transport networks transer clocksthrough SDH and the global positioning system(GPS). ALL IP transport networks need precise clocksynchronization capabilities to handle mobile serviceroaming and handover.

High reliability: 3G services include data andvoice services, which place dierent requirements onnetwork reliability. ransport networks must oercarrier-class protection on services. By using the QoSstrategy and the network protection mechanism,transport networks can oer dierentiated services toreliably handle voice, video and data services.

Excellent scalability: As data services develop

quickly, mobile data services and mobile traicwill boom. ransport networks should have inelexibility and scalability regarding interace types,transport bandwidth, and network scale.

End-to-end management capability: heprovision o mobile 3G services and wide networkcoverage will drive transport network evolutioninto multi-service bearer networks. End-to-endmanagement capability can eiciently decreasenetwork operations and maintenance costs.

Huawei sets IPTime

At the Mobile World Congress (3GSM) Barcelona2008, Huawei ormally released the IP ransportInrastructure or Mobile Evolution (IPime), anALL IP-based car rie r-c lass IP transport networksolution.

A media report commented that Huaweis newsolution embodied the development o transportnetworks into the ALL IP era, as mobile networkshave been evolving to ALL IP. Te IPime solutionhas the ollowing eatures:

Multi-service transport and multi-scenario

I

2


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Its IPTime!

21

access. he IPime solution is based on the ALLIP architecture and helps operators in constructingALL IP networks, which are uture-oriented strategicinvestments.

Based on the PWE3 technology, IPime is ableto transport various types o services and provide

interace diversity such as DM, Ethernet, xDSL(digital subscriber line), xPON (passive opticalnetwork) and microwave. IPime helps operators tosmoothly evolve rom 2G networks to 3G networks,then to 4G networks. It supports access-layertransmission media like optical iber, microwaveand copper cable, as well as access requirementsin various complicated scenarios. It also supportsexible transport in case o deep coverage by mobilenetworks.

Unique IP clock transport with GPS-likeprecision. IPime oers IP clock transport schemesor ALL IP mobile networks. It adopts packet overSDH (POS) interace timing, synchronous Ethernetand IEEE 1588v2 to meet the synchronizationrequirements o GSM, WCDMA, WiMAX, CDMA,and uture 4G networks.

High reliability and strong manageability.IPime enables transport networks to oer end-to-end, dierentiated QoS, operations, administrationand maintenance (OAM) capabilities to meet dierentneeds rom base station access to the core convergencepoint. It supports complicated networking like star,link, ring and mesh, and enables carrier-class protectionswitching in the whole network within 50ms. It also

supports uniied network management to simpliynetwork operation and maintenance or a signicantimprovement in the operators core competitiveness.

Smooth evolution o existing transportnetworks. IPime adopts SDH-like management

and maintenance mechanism, oers ports that arecompatible with existing transport network, andsupports smooth evolution o existing networks toALL IP transport networks.

Adding real benefitsHuaweis IPime ALL IP transport network solution

embraces the idea o proper management now willguarantee a bright uture, which enables operators winbig in the transormation towards ALL IP.

Simplied architecture

In a backbone bearer network, IPime adopts theIP over ON/WDM scheme, and decreases networkcosts by 30 percent. It introduces the recongurableoptical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) technologyto the traditional WDM system and changes thepoint-to-point WDM system into a network that canenable cross-connect dispatching o wavelength. Inaddition, the IPime enables intelligent dispatchingo various service granules by introducing ON. Tebackbone bearer network can provide complete OAMunctions and ault location. Routers and the ON/WDM layer adopt uni ied general mult i-protocollabel switching (GMPLS) control plane to enableinteractions between the IP layer and the optical layer.

In mobile backhaul, the IPime solutionmakes use o the PWE3 technology to allow IPtransport o DM, AM and Ethernet trac. Te

unied transport network leads to simpler networkarchitecture, more convenient maintenance, andlower costs.

he IPime solution implements end-to-enduniied network management rom the mobile


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backhaul to the backbone bearer network.he ALL IP transport network canoer higher transport eiciency, moreconvenient operations and maintenance,and aster deployment o new services.

Enhanced reliability

Te backbone bearer network providesend-to-end protection on the IP layerthrough various protection technologies,including MPLS trac engineering (MPLSE), MPLS OAM, virtual private networkast reroute (VPN FRR), and virtualrouter redundancy protocol (VRRP).In the optical layer, the ON/ROADMtechnology enables protection on WDMsubnets and cross-connect dispatching oservices throughout the entire network.he advanced technologies guaranteecarrier-class protection switching within50ms in all network layers and meet therequirements o mobile IP networks. Tey

also improve the reliability o the IP-basedtransport network to 99.999%.

China Mobiles carrier-class backbonebearer network was built by Huawei andis one o the largest mobile backbonebearer networks in the world. Te networkhas successully handled hundreds oexponential rises in trac volume over thepast three years. Other mobile backbonebearer networks constructed by Huaweisuch as Vodaone and Etisalat, have alsobeen running smoothly or over two years,proving that the IPime transport networksolution can ully meet the requirementso mobile backbone bearer networks.

In mobile backhaul, Huawei providesa complete series o carrier-class packettransport network (PN) platorms basedon ALL IP kernels. Oering carrier-classtransport perormance and diversiiedinteraces, these platorms support uniedtransport o traditional 2G services, 3Gservices, and uture 4G mobile broadbandservices. hey also support provider

backbone transport (PB), transportMPLS (MPLS), and layer-2 (L2) MPLStechnologies. he platorms support theclock synchronization in various modes omobile networks by using high-precisionpacket clock transport technologiesl ike adapt ive c lock recovery, c locksynchronization over Ethernet, and clockover IP based on IEEE 1588v2. Te two-layer, multi-mode carrier-class transportplatorm can transport comprehensiveservices in a highly eicient and reliableway and support mobile networks in ALLIP evolution.

Smooth network evolution

Access resources can be obtained bydierent types o base stations in mobilebackhaul. Huaweis IPime solution oersvarious access modes. Te solution adoptsSDH-like management and maintenanceas well as NG-SDH-compatible ports.

Tese measures ensure minimal impact onthe existing transport network during thenetworks evolution to PN. Te existingmanagement and maintenance mode canbe inherited, and existing service interaceboards can be reused.

Optical ber-based mobile backhaul:he IPime solution provides variousoptical ber access modes, including MANEthernet and PON. he MAN Ethernetbased on optical ibers is a multi-modePN transport platorm with an IP kerneland provides the transport network withne OAM and protection unctions.

Te transport network can signicantlylower network evolution costs by inheritingthe OAM eatures o a traditional SDHsystem and by reusing the interace boardso traditional SDH networks. he PONeectively improves the utilization o opticaliber resources. he WDM-PON, whichintegrates WDM and PON technologies,can provide bigger transport capacity andbetter networking capabilities.

Microwave-based mobile backhaul:IPime provides pure packet microwaveand integrates with the PN or smoothmobile network evolution.

Microwave transport is also movingtoward ALL IP as base stations developtowards ALL IP, due to the increase obandwidth demands. here are threescenarios:

First, i base stations are partially IP-based, microwave equipment supportingboth IP access and E1 access should beadopted or combined transport.

Second, i interaces o base stations aremainly inverse multiplexing over AM(IMA) E1, the microwave equipmentsupporting large-capacity E1 interaces canbe adopted. PN equipment can be usedat convergence points to enable serviceconvergence and packet transport.

hird, i base stations are ALL IP-based, the packet microwave equipment

supporting sel-adaptive modulation andcoding o air interaces can be adoptedor packet transport. Packet microwaveequipment can be integrated with the PNto decrease operation and maintenancecosts o the transport network, andHuawei is ully able to realize microwavetransport networking.

Copper cable-based mobile backhaul:Huaweis IPime solution provides richxDSL access modes. At present, basestations mainly adopt the single-pair high-speed DSL (SHDSL) leased lines or

service access. As the demands or mobilebandwidth increase, the ofoad mode canbe used to separate voice and data servicesin base stations. Voice and signalingservices requiring high QoS can betransported through high-quality E1 lines,and Abis/lub compression technology canbe used to save leased lines. Data servicescan then be transported through leasedxDSLs.

Huaweis IPTime ALL IP transport network solution embraces the idea of

proper management now will guarantee a bright future, which enables

operators win big in the transformation towards ALL IP.

Editor: Liu Zhonglin [email protected]


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Mobile broadbandtriggers transportnetwork transformation

obile V, mobile video ads,

mobile search In the pastdecades, the potentialityo these unctions never

occurred even to the grandees who couldaord a cell phone. hey would

neither have imaginedthat a cellphone

could be so light and smart, nor couldthey picture themselves enjoying a rangeo amazing unctions other than makingphone calls on the move. oday, not onlyare mobile phones commonplace, butusers are increasingly amiliar with web

surng, cyber payments and online gamingthrough cell phones. On a global scale,mobile operators are striving to popularizemobile broadband services, the ARPUcontributions rom which are steadilyrising. In Europe, or instance, the incomederived rom broadband mobile servicesorms over 20% o total revenue, while itexceeds 30% in Japan and Korea.

Te uture mobile communicationsmarket wi l l p ro v id e

t r a d i t i o n a lvoice

services as a basic communication toolsubsumed within the expectation thatintegrated, convergent, and broadbandserv ices wi l l emerge a s dominant .Moreover, one o the evolutionary goalsor mobile networks is convergence

with the Internet . No doubt, the rap iddevelopment o mobile broadband serviceswill impose new demands on base stationsair interace and backhaul technologies,which will then trigger transport networktransormation.

IP and compatibility arethe key factors

h e d e v e l o p m e n t o m o b i l ec o m m u n i c a t i o n s t e c h n o l o g i e s i s

represented by high-speed packet access(HSPA), WiMAX, and Long-erm

Evolution (LE) systems.In HSPA mobile

s y s t e m ,

By Li Hongsong & Chen Zhidan

M

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or example, a WCDMA network canevolve into HSDPA, HSxPA, eHSPA, orLE, and the air interace bandwidth willbe expanded rom 384Kb/s respectively to14.4Mb/s downlink + 5.76Mb/s uplink,25Mb/s downlink + 12.5Mb/s uplink, or

100Mb/s downlink + 50Mb/s uplink.he major requirement or mobile

backhaul is supporting cost eective,high-bandwidth transport via dierentt anspor t modes . High bandwidthnecessitates that mobile backhaul evolvestowards broadband transport to meetexplosively increasing bandwidth needsstimulated by the rapid emergence andgrowth o mobile broadband services.IP technology orms the best methodo achieving an eective and low costsystem. When applied to IP technology,statistical multiplexing and bandwidthcompres s ion y i e ld h igh t r anspor teiciency at a low cost. Additionalcarrier-class eatures are also required byIP-based mobile backhaul including highreliability, eective manageability andprecise clock transer mechanisms.

It is well-known that a backhaulne t wor k may c on s i s t o

multiple transportmodes such

as

evolution and thus minimize the impacton current services and investment.

Smooth evolution ofvarious transport modes

he evolution o mobile backhaulinvolves three stages in line with mobilebroadband development: start-up, growth,and maturity. In the start-up stage veryew broadband base stations are deployedand ew FE interaces emerge in mobilenetworks. hereore, the bandwidthpressure placed on mobile backhaul isrelatively low. he growth stage sees anincrease in the number o broadband basestation

It’s IPTime

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