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Smart networksfor smart devices

interoperability matters

Today there are eight times as many smartdevices as mobile broadband-enabledlaptops active on the worlds networks 1),and this proportion will continue to increase.

By year 2015 over 85%of traffic in the mobilenetworks will begenerated by mobile data,49% of which will be viahandheld devices. 2)

Dongle-enabled laptops were the firstbig mobile broadband success, and for the last few years our industry hasbeen focused on meeting the needs of laptop users which has oftenbecome the pursuit for higher bandwidth. Bandwidth and latencycontinue to be important, but mostrecently in the device end the smartdevices have become the must-havedevice of choice.

In the future the market will experiencesubstantial growth of smart devicesand applications. According to

Informas latest report on FutureMobile Handsets (11th edition, 2009),the sales of feature-rich phones,including smart devices, will grow fromalmost 323 million in 2009 to just over 873 million in 2014. This strong growthwill be largely driven by sales of newsmart devices, which will grow toaccount for almost 40% of the newhandsets sold in 2014, says the report.

As a consequence, smart deviceshave joined laptop computers

equipped with USB HSPA data cardsas a major driver of mobile broadbandtraffic.

Use of smart devices generates twotypes of network traffic. One is thedata traffic that carries informationbenefiting the user, an example wouldbe an email message. The other oneis the signaling traffic. This is the resultof networks, applications and devicesdiscussing with each other and withoutthis discussion the network would notfunction. Often it is exactly thissignaling traffic that todays networksare not built to handle.

Even today, when smart device trafficis only a small fraction of the total

amount of data flowing in thenetworks, the effect is very visibleacross the world. On one hand there isthe consumer excitement over newapplications and the pace at whichthese applications are developed andimplemented is breathtaking. Usersenjoy data applications such as email,web browsing, video and music, andsocial networking. On the other handthe same consumers are unhappywith the battery-life of their phone:it doesnt last long enough and the

network connection does not stay on.Also the way applications are used isirregular and a new application launch

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can sometimes crash the networkovernight. Signaling overload impactsall the users who are accessing thesystem, not just those who aregenerating the increased signaling.Some network elements that have notbeen designed smartly will evenexperience a reduced throughputbecause of the increased signalingrequirements. So called hot spotscreate a particular challenge. This iswhere the usage is concentrated ona smaller area for some occasion,such as a football match, OlympicGames etc.

How to find the balance between thebattery lifetime and network load for enhanced end-user experience?

Smart devices need to be supportedend-to-end by smart networks, servicecontrol and applications delivery.The target is to maximize the end-user mobile broadband experience andensure efficient, congestion-freenetwork performance. Web pageoptimization for faster downloads,device management for correcthandset settings at all times and identitymanagement for seamless log-inprocess are examples of win-win

solutions that ease the networkcongestion and make a difference tothe consumer experience.

In order to deliver excellent consumer experience, networks can becontinuously and proactively optimizedto meet changing consumer and trafficload requirements. Traffic flow analysisand subscriber and Quality of Servicedifferentiation help to prepare for service launches and busy hours.

The network Cell-PCH state that isdefined in the 3GPP standard helpsin decreasing the total amount of signaling data that goes into thenetworks and at the same timeincreases the stand-by battery lifetimefor the consumer. In Cell-PCH state,the radio network controller (RNC) andpacket core will keep the packetbearer active. Signaling in the networkis cut down because the RNC tracksdevice mobility during the Cell-PCHstate. The RNC is ready to send datato the device via the correct cellwithout any signaling between the

RNC and packet core, and withoutwide area paging. Because of lesssignaling with Cell-PCH, responsetimes are improved for the packetapplications. Also, with Cell-PCH thedevice stand-by power consumptioncan be significantly reduced.

To ensure full use of existing RNCcapacity, the usage should be fullyoptimized before adding new elements.Advanced pooling features at the RNC

level, not only on the sub-RNC level,provide independent scalability of theRNC for signaling and payload toflexibly meet the needs of busy hoursand hotspots. The varying trafficpatterns are also demanding on thecore and transmission parts of thenetworks, and it should be ensuredthat also here the latest technology isused to maximize the total efficiencygains, end-to-end.

All efforts should be made to improvethe interoperability of applications,networks and devices. Applicationscan be designed and supportedoptimally to limit the amount of required network resources. Proactivedevice and application performanceanalysis as well as end-user serviceand network capacity optimisationassure excellent service experience.Also standardization work in 3GPPReleases 7 and 8 is promising toenhance the end-user experience of smart devices even further.Continuous packet connectivity (CPC)as an example will further increase

the battery life when the consumer ismaking calls or actively usingapplications. The selective use of thenew features, combined with thesupporting devices just around thecorner, will also offer a significantcontribution to the relief of signalingload. In the future, network solutionsneed to work in multivendor networkenvironments with a wide variety of smart devices and a wide varietyof smart device applications.

Advanced pooling features atthe RNC level provideindependent scalability of theRNC for signaling and payload

to flexibly meet the needs of busy hours and hotspots.

How to find the balancebetween the battery

lifetime and networkload for enhancedend-user experience?

1) Morgan Stanley 20092) Nokia Siemens Networks 2009