Modern GSM transmission and transport networks enable the cost-effective expansion of mobile voice and data services to the last billions of users, as well as providing a natural stepping stone for extending the reach of mobile broadband.
GSM is the world’s most successful mobile system and now connects almost four billion people. As subscriber numbers continue to grow, the challenge for operators is to win the final coverage race, which means serving regions completely different from the environment for which GSM was originally created. As GSM networks expand into areas with low per capita income, the margins per added subscriber are squeezed, and highly efficient solutions are needed.
Meeting the challenge of reducing costs while rolling out new mobile coverage and capacity requires an even greater focus on solutions that provide lower total cost of ownership (TCO). This means creating solutions that make efficient use of energy, building space, radio spectrum and transmission resources. Maximizing transmission efficiency is especially important as transmission can account for up to 50 percent of the mobile network TCO. Centered around the new GSM Packet Abis interface for packet-switched connectivity, a range of features has been developed for the GSM radio access network (RAN), backhaul network and core network in order to help operators optimize their transmission networks and reduce their cost per transported bit.
By upgrading the GSM RAN from its original circuit-switched design to an IP-based packet-switched RAN, including the ability to connect calls already at the base transceiver station (BTS), savings in the region of 70 percent can be achieved.
Reducing both the cost per transported bit and the transmission capacity required per service will lower the entry hurdles to mobile service provision in high-growth markets. This will be especially valuable as people in these markets look to mobile networks to deliver the broadband internet access they desire, which is simply not cost-effectively available any other way.
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