November’s CMA ‘Focus Day’ on Future Networks and Services continues our efforts to shine some light on Next Generation Network planning for major customers.   The joint CMA/Ofcom meeting in July was the first time that ‘the industry’ spoke openly to major customers about NGN planning.   At this follow-up we’ll hear more from those hoping to provide services to meet enterprise needs.

When we think about NGN’s we usually assume it’s about transformation of fixed networks.   ‘NGN’ conjures up thoughts on the wholesale replacement of the PSTN by all-IP networks, the implications for triple-play and the scope for massive service diversity.   But there is yet another Next Generation upheaval - the effort needed to bring mobile services into our all-IP packetised world.

NGN investment for ‘fixed’ Telco’s has largely been driven by a need for massive infrastructure cost reductions.   Attention is now beginning to shift towards service benefits for business customers.   Meanwhile, major enterprise customers are quite reasonably wondering what they will need (or can expect)  from future Telco’s.

The equivalent NGN investment by the mobile sector has rather different drivers.   They face a challenge to provide wireless services that might begin to meet the raised expectations of business customers.   Such is the commitment (and sunk investment) in 3G that, far from cost reduction, the race is on to find get-well plans through upgrades, add-ons and gateways to fix the performance shortfall.   Meanwhile UK enterprise customers are, quite reasonably, wondering when they’ll get the advanced mobile broadband services already commercially available in advanced places like Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Beirut and Azerbaijan – as well as more obviously go-head cities in Norway, Malaysia, Australia, and Japan.

NGN services, whether  fixed, mobile or ‘whatever’, are a sign that broadband is beginning to grow up  – though no-one yet seems to have a handle on when we’ll ‘take a chopper to copper’ and be fully fibred.   ‘Cherry picking’ service deployment is a very long distance from the notion of ubiquitous service availability – high on the wish-list for modern flexible businesses and the public sector.   

An Australian writer recently described patchy deployment of high-speed broadband as the onset of broadband adolescence – erupting all over the country like spots on a teenager.   

CMA members are hoping that their business networks will get through these teenage years without too many traumas.   In the absence of timely guidance from the older generation, they are more than likely to go their own way.