Huawei Joins GSMA PathFinder Partner Programme

LONDON, June 23, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The GSMA today announced that Huawei, a leading telecom solutions provider, has achieved certification for its wireless and fixed-line carrier solutions as part of the GSMA PathFinder Industry Partner Programme. PathFinder, operated by Neustar, Inc., is a GSMA-managed service providing an interoperable, industry-wide solution that enables the routing of global IP service interconnect traffic based on ENUM technology and lowers the barrier to entry for service providers as they deploy current and future IP services.

Huawei has demonstrated compatibility with the GSMA interoperable carrier ENUM standard which means that Huawei can query and understand results from other carrier ENUM implementations. With mobile networks moving to an 'all-IP' network implementation with the deployment of LTE and IMS, the ability to route calls and sessions based on telephone numbers in the IP domain is critical, and ENUM provides a standardised means to do this.  

"PathFinder provides an immediate and flexible solution that simplifies the rollout of innovative IP-based services, enabling operators to reach more devices on more next-generation networks more rapidly," said Adrian Dodd, Senior Director, PathFinder at the GSMA. "Working with companies such as Huawei, PathFinder is harnessing the power of IP-based applications across networks to enhance the array of services behind the universal telephone number."

"Huawei is proud to be a part of this initiative as we believe that simple, standardized and globally interoperable IP interconnection is a key precondition for the telecommunications community to evolve the service offering and develop end user service value," said Huang Jin, Vice President of Core Network Product Line at Huawei.

With 19 commercial LTE networks and 200 additional planned deployments, LTE is set to experience rapid growth over the next few years, rising from 4.2 million connections in 24 countries by the end of this year, to almost 300 million connections in 55 countries by 2015(1). As operators deploy new services, such as Voice over LTE, over LTE networks, the role of PathFinder will become even more critical in ensuring the reliable delivery of voice and multimedia traffic utilising phone numbers and IP-based addresses.

"IP is becoming the new voice of communications. As IP-based communications, such as LTE become more and more available, businesses need services like PathFinder to make IP a truly global ubiquitous communication language," said Steve Edwards, senior vice president, Carrier Services at Neustar.

Notes to Editors:

"Private" or "Carrier" ENUM is an enabler used by operators to associate the phone numbers of subscribers with the IP addressing information of the subscriber's IP-based services. This information is populated by the operator on behalf of the subscriber and is not made available to third parties except for the purposes of routing. The system enables IP-based calls and messages, addressed to a subscriber's phone number, to be delivered.

"Public" ENUM is a separate open Internet-based number translation directory where consumers can publish their addressing information.

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. Spanning 219 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world's mobile operators, as well as more than 200 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset makers, software companies, equipment providers, Internet companies, and media and entertainment organisations. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as the Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Congress.  

For more information, please visit Mobile World Live, the online portal for the mobile communications industry, at www.mobileworldlive.com or the GSMA corporate website at http://www.gsmworld.com.

(1) Wireless Intelligence

SOURCE GSMA