Building Profitable Bearer Networks

As networks converge and mobile Internet, Internet of Things, and Cloud Computing become prominent, bearer networks will need to be capable of high bandwidth, QoS, expansibility, and reliability. In the face of growing competition, network operators must reduce bit cost, realize efficient and reliable transfer of packet services, improve user satisfaction with broadband services, create new services and rapidly deploy them, and construct low-cost TCO bearer networks to recover costs. These are the considerations when constructing a bearer network.

Low TCO, high benefits, and sustainable development are particularly important in network construction. With this in mind, ZTE foresees seven development trends for bearer networks. The company senses the pulse of full service operation, and is dedicated to providing end-to-end network solutions.

Development Trends of Bearer Networks

Development trends in bearer networks include flat structure, convergence, broadband, packet transport, optimized operation and management, evolution towards IPv6, and energy efficiency.

Flat structure

Flat network structure implies a simplified network hierarchy, converged control layer, and unified OAM. Construction costs—including costs for transfer interfaces between equipment layers, and investment in machine rooms, transport, and power supplies—are lowered, as are maintenance costs. A flat network structure also reduces the risk of network failure so that user satisfaction is guaranteed.

Convergence

A converged network comprises unified backbone network technology and converged service gateway. In the backbone forwarding layer, converged IP and optical transport layer technology is the development direction; in the backbone control layer, Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) technology with converged data and optical transmission is the development direction (because network resource use and distribution is optimized). Service gateway convergence implies the convergence of Service Router and Broadband Remote Access Router (SR+BRAS) in a fixed-line environment, and convergence of SR, BRAS and xGW (SR+BRAS+xGW) in a full-service environment. This effectively cuts down network TCO.

Broadband

Market competition, service expansion, and technological advancement drive the development of broadband bearer networks. Operators agree that bearer networks must have high bandwidth. Service expansion has mostly been driven by wireless Internet services and fixed video services; and as a result, bandwidth demands for fixed and wireless networks have grown rapidly. Bearer networks with higher bandwidth therefore need to be constructed for operators to become much more competitive. Technological advancement depends on the progress of microelectronic technology, the improved capacity of optical transmission equipment, and the rapid development of broadband access technology.

Packet transport

A broad technical consensus has been reached that telecom services should be IP based. Traditional fixed telephony is evolving to VoIP, and mobile networks are also evolving to all-IP. With the trend toward packet services, packet transport networks with packet interfaces and packet cores are inevitable. The packet interfaces must support not only traditional E1/STM-N interfaces but also FE/GE/10GE/40GE/100G interfaces, and the network core must adopt a packet design to utilize bandwidth efficiently and to better support various packet characteristics.  

Optimized operation and management

Optimized operation and intelligent management improves network profitability, and helps in situations where profits are falling or growth in the user base has slowed. Intelligent management involves using a unified network management system for rapid service deployment, centralized performance monitoring, and accurate fault locating. Optimized operation aims at offering differentiated services through service segmentation and real-time network resource control so that quality value-added services can be provided.

Evolution towards IPv6

As the Internet expands and demand for IP addresses by new services such as the Internet of Things grows, the number of available IPv4 addresses is rapidly decreasing. An address bottleneck will therefore ensue, and the need to introduce IPv6 is pressing. The IPv6 industrial chain is nearing perfection after several years’ development, and IPv6 network equipment is now coming into commercial use. The era of widespread commercial use of IPv6 is fast approaching.

Energy efficiency

Energy conservation, emissions reduction, and environmental protection have become strategic goals of most countries around the world. With such high energy consumption, the communications industry recognizes that environmental awareness must be a core value. Domestic and international operators have set targets for energy saving and emissions reduction. This protects the environment, cuts costs for the operator, and strengthens commercial competitiveness.    

A Profitable End-to-End Network Solution

ZTE adopts the latest technical standards to accommodate the seven development trends of bearer networks, and to coincide with the focal points of operators constructing networks. ZTE’s end-to-end bearer network is the solution to building a profitable network. As shown in Figure 1, CTN9000/6000 is deployed in the access and aggregation layers of telecom plane—which adopts 1588v2/G.8261 high-precision clock synchronization and MPLS-TP technologies to create a packet transport network. ZXR10 8900 carrier-class series switches are employed in the aggregation layer of public plane to realize convergence. ZXMP M720 (OTN equipment) should also be deployed in the MAN layer to save fiber resources. In the service control layer, an advanced converged gateway M6000/T1200 improves reliability of the network by introducing highly reliable backup technology. In the MAN backbone layer, a flat broadband network is constructed using ZXWM M920 (40G/100G high-capacity OTN equipment) and ZXR10 T8000 (high-end cluster router support 16+64 chassis cascade). In terms of network operation and management, the NetNumen platform is used for quick end-to-end service deployment, and GMPLS technology is used for convergence of support networks in the control plane of the bearer network. IPv6 is also used for smooth evolution to NGN.

ZTE seeks to work with operators to build profitable and evolvable bearer networks through sound solutions, quality equipment, and first-class service.