Brazil's Telemar Tests Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC)

Telemar, which operates the largest fixed network in South America, with around 15 million subscribers and a mobile network with about 8 million subscribers, will begin trials of Nokia’s Fixed Mobile Convergence solutions. The Nokia Fixed Mobile Convergence solutions can leverage Telemar’s current fixed network to create a converged packet based domain for fixed and mobile services.

The trial employs a comprehensive Nokia end-to-end solution for unified core and converged access networks, as well as Nokia terminals providing multimedia and VoIP services for both mobile and fixed customers. The Nokia unified core includes the Nokia IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), for voice calls and multimedia services, the Nokia VoIP Server, and the Nokia MSC Server System (MSS). The agreement also includes testing of the Nokia Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) solution for extending the potential of fixed broadband networks. http://www.nokia.com

• In August 2005, Nokia announced plans to incorporate Kineto Wireless’ UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) Network Controller into its network convergence solutions for wireline and wireless operators.

  UMA, a 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Program) standard, is an access technology that allows a seamless handoff of mobile voice and data from a wide area cellular network to a wireless local area network (WLAN). The UMA standard defines how mobile operators can turn home, office and public wireless LANs into seamless extensions of their cellular networks. With UMA, operators can deliver high-performance, low-cost mobile voice, data and IMS services to subscribers over the broadband Wi-Fi access networks, dramatically increasing mobile service usage while decreasing costs for operators.

How UMA Enables Broadband IMS by Steve Shaw

Originally developed by 15 leading companies in the mobile industry, Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) is now the 3GPP standard for enabling subscriber access to mobile services over Wi-Fi and broadband IP networks. The UMA standard effectively creates a parallel radio access network – the UMA Network (UMAN) that interfaces to the mobile core network using existing GSM-defined standard interfaces. This solution uses IP tunneling techniques to transparently extend mobile voice, data, and IMS services over IP access networks. Here is an overview of UMA.