Industry Consultant – Chris Evans (chris.evans@bt.com)
Scope:
To explore the platform implications of ‘MSAN interconnect’ so as to inform product working group discussions
Reach a shared understanding of: possible architectures, platform implications & indicative cost impact on products
Desired Outputs:
Agree a Statement of Principles to inform other discussions and overall design
Declared Position:
BT is actively engaged in discussions with industry on the functionality for and requirements of interconnection at multi-service access nodes (MSANs). BT will ensure that any Invitation To Tender decisions will retain the flexibility to offer MSAN interconnection. However, BT doubts that it would be commercially feasible for BT or other operators to interconnect at all of the approximately 5,500 MSANs.
Briefings
Call for Objection note (5th May 2005)
Working Group – Deferral Briefing (16th May 2005)
30 March 2005 Update on MSAN Experts Group
At the 10 January MSAN Interconnect Working Group, it was decided to form an "experts group" to review technical options in more detail and agree the basis for a set of industry requirements to be discussed at a future Working Group.
The experts group was self-selected and comprises of: Paul Rosbotham (C&W), Jonathan Welton (C&W), Paul Griffin (Energis), Clive Feather (Thus), John Geraghty (Telewest), Richard Sheard (GX), David Backhouse (NTL), Tim Wright (BT) and Alan Nunn (BT).
The group has identified 3 topics for discussion summarised below:
MSAN Voice Access
The group discussed methods by which an OCP could achieve full control of an individual baseband voice line and associated signalling at the MSAN, to which an OCP Wholesale Access customer is attached, from their call server. This functionalityis desired at all 5,500 MSANs, independent of the location of the point of connection for the media flow. Initial discussions, continuing from the working group discussions, focused on the feasibility of H.248 connections from multiple OCP's into the same MSAN. At the 2nd March meeting a new technical solution was discussed wherein BT provides an H.248 proxy server accessible by each OCP using SIP. This new solution requires more discussion
MSAN Voice Conveyance
The group discussed the OCP desire to bypass the first 21CN switching stage at the Metro node by conveying traffic directly between BT and the OCP at the MSAN. BT responded by explaining that BT's own intra-MSAN traffic was tromboned to the Metro nodes. This requires further discussion as there is not yet a common set of assumptions regarding what is feasible with the onus on BT to better explain the issues.
Converged Point of Connection
The group discussed the OCP desire for a converged (NGN) Point Of Connection at approximately 10% of MSAN locations. The primary benefit to OCPs would be the ability to leverage their LLU investment plans and reduce overall line costs by providing competitive alternate backhaul service. The set of services transported over this Point Of Connection could include MSAN Voice Access, MSAN Voice Conveyance, Broadband bitstream services, virtual circuits and ATM services. The least amount of progress has been made on this topic simply because Voice has been the dominant focus for discussion.
Chris Evans
Industry Consultant
Consult 21
Tel: 07843 275941
e-mail: chris.evans@bt.com
Meetings:
4 November 2005
10 June 2005
18 April 2005
MSAN Working Group 4th November 2005
Invite
MSAN Restructure Powerpoint
FAS Interconnect Powerpoint
FAS Interconnect Requirement
AGCF Standards
Product Design
Working Group Questions
Notes
MSAN Working Group 10th June 2005
Notes
Invite and Agenda
Requirements for MSAN Point of Handover
Requirements for MSAN Voice Access
MSAN Working Group 18th April 2005
Invitation
Agenda
Requirements for MSAN Voice Access
Requirements for MSAN Point of Handover
MSAN Update
MSAN working Group - notes from Buddy
Notes
MSAN Working Group 10th January 2005
Attendees
BT Overview slides
Energis Interconnect Access slides
Notes
MSAN Working Group 22nd October 2004
