Kineto Wireless has released the first voice client based on the VoLGA Forum's release 1.0 specifications, and says that the client will be able to provide IMS voice as well as compatibility with the newly announced One Voice IMS specifications.
Earlier this month several operators combined to outline the way in which they see IMS voice services working within LTE calling the approach One Voice.
This potentially blind-sided work done within the VoLGA Forum to develop a method of handling IMS and non-IMS voice. But Steve Sham, of Kineto Wireless, said that despite One Voice, operators will adopt IMS at different speeds, meaning they will need an interim solution to support IMS and non-IMS voice, and to be able to interoperate with other operators that do support IMS.
Despite One Voice and VoLGA being portrayed as competitive solution, Kineto says that its IMS client is planned to support the recently announced "One Voice" IMS telephony profile. As the client will be upgradeable over the air, operators would be able to upgrade handsets 'in the field.'
Shaw also said that the One Voice announcement, which made much of its stipulation of specific recommendations from a host of options with the IMS standards, had given operators an insight into how complex the journey to LTE voice would be.
"A lot of operators saw that, looked over and said 'oh'," Shaw said. "It crystallised for them what sort of effort the industry is starting to talk about."
So when does Shaw think Kineto will start to see some interest from vendors in including a voice over LTE client, whether IMS or other?
"Qualcomm has just started sampling its multi-mode LTE chip this moment," he said, "So it¹s early days but we have feelers out there to start the ball rolling," he said.
