As broadband penetration and computer ownership continue to rise, some experts believe the computer screen will become the dominant interface for content and communication. Ericsson and ICT firm Vennetics aim to help mobile operators take advantage of this new and potentially lucrative market.
 
VoIP is nothing new, but offering reliable and billable mobile VoIP services in a PC environment is an emerging new opportunity for mobile operators. Ericsson’s recently initiated cooperation with Ireland-based Vennetics will make it possible to deliver voice, messaging, and video services in a PC environment. 

Internet-based providers such as Google and Skype have already demonstrated they can be successful in this area but mobile operators face many additional challenges, such as bridging legacy and next-generation networks, before they too can compete in this market.
 
Solving these challenges was the starting point for the Ericsson-Vennetics cooperation. By bundling Ericsson’s Composition Engine and Vennetics’ J-Box Feature Server it will be possible to bridge legacy Intelligent Networks (IN) with newer infrastructure based on next-generation IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS). In doing so, mobile operators can offer a more reliable, higher quality of service than pure, internet-based service providers can.
 
This higher quality of service is especially valuable to SMEs which, according to a recent report from ABI Research, are some of the main drivers of VoIP adaptation.

Frans de Rooij, strategic product manager at Ericsson, says that the Composition Engine is a real game changer for the application industry. “It will help mobile operators embrace new commercial opportunities,” he says.

Ivan McShane, engineering director at Vennetics, says that it was a big advantage that the Composition Engine supports open technology making it possible to bundle the J-Box Feature Server together with the Ericsson Composition Server.

“Ericsson has resisted temptations to include proprietary hooks,” he says. “On our first day, we had the J-Box up and running as a Composition Engine application and could demonstrate a full set of features.”

David Francisco

Vennetics
ABI Research report
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