Keeping latency in check is critical for quality of service (QoS) of demanding Ethernet wireless backhaul, wholesale and business services. Given that Ethernet bandwidth is considered relatively ‘inexpensive’, some providers increase throughput to reduce latency and keep performance within strict SLA tolerances. However, the relationship between bandwidth and latency is anything but simple in packet-based networks, where increasing throughput can sometimes have no effect on delay, or even increase it under certain conditions. This paper explores the key sources of delay, and techniques to optimize latency without consuming excess bandwidth. These guidelines allow providers to use their network resources as efficiently as possible, while assuring the QoS of critical, real-time services. <a href=”http://knowledgeportalcfn.com/2007/08/optimizing-carrier-ethernet-latency-bandwidth-efficiency/”>Download Full White Paper Here</a>

4G SON or any generation SON system has grown into a hot discussion point in the telecommunication industry. Self-Optimization Network has become the key word for vendors to sell and discuss, as the next generation system that will allow operators to save cost in their network operations and deployment. Infrastructure vendors have become very active in illustrating their LTE SON capabilities in conferences and trade shows, showing the value, capabilities, and savings that LTE SON is able to bring into their network using simulations, case studies, and/or actual demonstrations in the field. When referring to any specific NGMN or 3GPP reference of SON, it has a set requirement. SON comes with three promises that provide the highlighted value that operator’s desire: Self-Configuration, Self-Healing, and Self-Optimization. Additionally, the implementation of SON comes with three flavors: Distributed, Central, or Hybrid. These three aspects of SON along with the implementation strategy have a specific use case within the lifecycle of wireless network deployment, operations, and management. The points that this paper desires to address is that irrelevant of any automation promises, a set of key requirements will be needed by the operator to commit, which are not immediately accounted for within the cost of a full SON implementation within vendor pricing or overall business model. Read More

RAN Optimization Solution
Radio access network (RAN) optimization can help mobile operators deliver greater capacity and support new, bandwidth-intensive mobile applications – all without increasing costs for RAN transport. The Cisco RAN Optimization solution, based on the Cisco Mobile Wireless Router (MWR), evolves RAN architectures to add rich IP capabilities in the RAN.

With Cisco RAN Optimization, you can dramatically improve the efficiency of transporting Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) and Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service (UMTS) traffic. It lets you transport second-generation (2G) traffic 50 percent more efficiently than conventional RAN solutions, and third-generation (3G) traffic up to 90 percent more efficiently   Download Now

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By now there’s no doubt about it: mobile operators need to get their backhaul networks in condition to meet the burgeoning market for anytime, anywhere data access. Backhaul, once considered the humdrum side of an operator’s network, has become the topic du jour now that the mobile phone customershave shifted to smartphones and are taking advantage of data-hungry services in a big way. Earlier this month, AT&T reported that its wireless data traffic has grown more than 5,000 percent over the past three years, largely due to smartphones, which are used by about 40 percent of its post-paid customer base. All operators have to contend with this growth, and quickly: smartphones should represent the vast majority (65%) of phones sold in the country by 2012, according to Creative Strategies, an analyst firm. Operators are taking steps to prepare their networks to meet the expected demand, and the process of identifying specific backhaul needs and configuring the best solutions will force companies to bring the backhaul problem to the forefront of their infrastructure and business planning. This is a closer look at the available options and considerations operators must keep in mind as they prepare to build out this part of their networks.