IMS Applications at 3GSM

by Chris Haddock
Ubiquity Software

When you think of Cannes you think of the beach, movie stars, yachts and an element of quiet relaxation whilst sipping a chilled Chablis on the terrace - yet last week you couldn't have found a quiet corner anywhere in Cannes as the Mobile industry arrived there in force...

What an event this years 3GSM in Cannes was! The last one to be held in Cannes, France (with the event moving to Barcelona for next year,) and it truly was an event that lived up to expectation of the start of a new era. From the opening day through to the closing day the event was heaving with attendees who were able to experience a wide ranging program of talks and vendor demonstrations covering all aspects of mobility from infrastructure through to applications and content.

And guess what was one of the key themes for the event – SIP of course! Though you may not have seen the term SIP displayed on many stands the IP Multi-media Subsystem (IMS) was given a very high profile by many companies and applications based on this (and of course SIP) were evident throughout the event.

For example IBM launched their IP Multimedia Subsystem initiative focused on the Service Delivery Platform of the IMS and displayed a presence enabled multi-party gaming application demonstration with players able to talk at the same time as play. In addition IBM had an integrated Lotus Notes enterprise solution using voice activation, as an IP Multimedia Subsystem demonstration.

Siemens launched their IMS Developer Program where developers can leverage tools on the handset and network side of the IMS in order to develop innovative applications. Siemens also had their Push and Talk solution (PaT) supporting push to talk, utilizing SIP as the signaling protocol.

HP Opencall focused on how service providers can create, deploy and manage innovative, multimedia, communication-centric services and solutions. With the theme "IMS your path to next-gen services"

Nortel launched their CMS solution and their partnership with IBM around IMS.
Motorola had "IMS in Action" as their release theme...

...This just to name a few of the many announcements and activities in this IMS space; take a look at these company announcements and activities and their focus around IMS it makes very interesting reading as to the momentum behind IMS and SIP in the mobile space.

From all of these announcements and from meetings and discussions at the event I can conclude that the IMS area has moved beyond a question of infrastructure and into the domain of application innovation.

The fact is that IMS systems can be deployed - the focus now is upon leveraging the development tools and platforms to deploy additional applications, as well as to enhance those already available in the IMS domain - making an increasingly stronger business case for deployment of IMS.

SIP based Multimedia Applications and Capabilities that were evident at the event included the following:

• Push to Talk
• Conferencing
• Gaming
• Content sharing
• Content push
• Ring back Tones
• Enterprise messaging, collaboration and PIM

Is 2005 the kick off year of SIP in the mobile and fixed/mobile convergence space? From my perspective having attended the show I can reach only one conclusion - YES.

There have already been announcements for deployments of IMS systems - for example KPN, TIM and O2 in Europe - indicating that things are beginning to happen for IMS and SIP.

So with a sad farewell to Cannes...

I love thine placid seas,
Thy rows of whispering trees,
Thy rolling hills;
Thy restaurants' mighty sweep,
Thy mystic bars so deep,
Thy roads so wild and steep,
All thy frills;

Thy many vendor stands,
Thy Siemens Boat that stands
Wide to the West;
Thy happy Irish bars,
Thy many many cars, 
O Cannes beyond compare,
Thee I love best! 

(Thanks to Henry van Dyke for the layout and structure of the poem :-) )

See you in Barcelona to celebrate more IMS deployments!

Ubiquity Software Corporation, founded in 1993, develops and markets SIP-based communications software to service providers, ISVs and OEM partners worldwide. Its award-winning SIP Application Server (SIP A/S) is both a carrier-class deployment platform and a programmable, standards-based application creation environment (ACE) that allows customers to develop and deploy next-generation converged communications services. Ubiquity assists customers to accelerate the creation of customized SIP applications through its expert Professional Services Group. The company has over 150 employees and corporate offices in the US, UK, Canada, Japan and China.  www.ubiquitysoftware.com