Bridgeport Networks, which markets servers to enable operators to handle seamless hand-off between cellular and WiFi networks, has said its IMS Convergence Server, which will support IMS handover of calls between a packet and a circuit switched network, will be available later this year.
Todd Carothers, VP strategic account development, Bridgeport, said that 25% of all IMS spend will be on application servers to provide call convergence.
Bridgeport’s NomadicOne ICS will deliver “True IMS handover, rather than a UMA style solution,” Todd Carothers, VP strategic account development, said.
He added that fixed mobile convergence will not be about having a single device, but about a single identity.
To that end Bridgeport has a number of fixed mobile convergence solutions in the market. One which is aimed squarely at operators is its SoftMobile Mobilestick solution, developed in partnership with Oberthur, which puts Flash RAM on a SIM card. Demonstrating the device, Carothers said the solution was attractive to operators looking to offer outbound roamers a VoIP based solution whilst retaining control of the customers.
The MobileStick is a USB stick with a SIM card embedded. A user plugs in into his laptop in a remote location, authenticates using the SIM, and places internet telephony calls whilst using his mobile telephone number. Essentially it allows outbound roamers to connect back to the home network over the internet.
Bridgeport has also recently announced it has extended a licensing agreement with Openwave for fixed mobile convergence. Openwave has also joined the Mobile Ignite alliance.
Carothers said Bridgeport’s movement to ensure interoperability between different elements of the IMS architecture, Mobile Ignite, was launched because the big infrastructure vendors “were not too keen on interoperability” for pre IMS and IMS SIP based solutions.