ARRIS announced a joint development, licensing and supply agreement with UTStarcom to enable the fourth leg of the quadruple play for cable Multiple System Operators (MSOs) worldwide.
The joint solution will allow end customers with a Wi-Fi-enabled dual-mode handset to seamlessly roam between their cellular and Wi-Fi connections.
ARRIS’ fixed mobile convergence (FMC) solution enables MSOs to add mobility features to their service portfolio. The company said it will support IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) and PacketCable 2.0 specifications as they are finalized.
Specifically, ARRIS will license FMC software from UTStarcom. The licensing agreement has an initial term of three years, after which ARRIS will have the right to exercise an option to retain rights in the software. Under the conditions of the development agreement, both parties will jointly create improvements and new and enhanced features for emerging FMC solutions according to the set milestones. The supply agreement calls for UTStarcom to provide ARRIS with the hardware and software for sale to the global cable MSO community. ARRIS will have exclusive marketing rights to the global MSO community per the terms of the supply agreement and UTStarcom will retain exclusive marketing rights to the telco community.
The ARRIS FMC solution is planned for shipping in the second half of 2006 with early customer testing already underway. UTStarcom’s Continuity FMC solution is available today and is currently in telecom carrier trials.
The ARRIS FMC solution consists of an ARRIS Mobility Application Server (MAS) located in a cable headend that controls the communication between a cable operator’s telephony operations and the cellular operator’s network. The communication between networks allows for seamless mobility between cellular and IP access networks via standardized cellular signaling mechanisms. In the home, the customer’s dual-mode handset voice traffic and signaling is carried via their WiFi connection (such as the ARRIS Touchstone TM552 wireless telephony modem (E-MTA)) through the High Speed Internet access provided by the MSO’s CMTS (such as the ARRIS Cadant C4 CMTS).
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