Broadband today: your options

3G mobile broadband is now available from all of the major operators in Australia. The major differences between the available services are coverage, performance and price. Since launching its NextG network, Telstra has led the race in terms of coverage and performance but Optus is rapidly closing the gap. VHA, the organisation resulting from the merger of Vodafone and Three, offers more aggressive pricing but is behind when it comes to coverage.

3G broadband is now more competitively priced than even entry level DSL. Coverage by the major network operators also rivals DSL:

• Telstra offers 99 percent coverage with its Next G network

• Optus offers 96 percent with its Yes G network. Aims to hit 98 percent by end the end of 2009

• Vodafone and Three to merge Australian operations to achieve 95 percent coverage

VPN services meet your business needs

VPN (Virtual Private Network) access is becoming the most significant driver for 3G broadband uptake when it comes to SMEs. It is being used for a mix of mobile, roaming and fixed requirements and as a substitution for DSL services, in circumstances where it arguably offers advantages. The availability of network-based 3G broadband VPN services will serve to increase the attractiveness of 3G broadband to business customers due to the high speed, broad coverage and relatively low cost that it now offers.

VPN is ideal for SME businesses. The ability to build corporate networks on a common IP core has transformed the way such businesses operate. The ability to connect 3G broadband services into such networks will drive further transformation. IP VPN technology is now very mature, having evolved in parallel with DSL. The speed and cost of 3G services is evolving more rapidly than was the case for DSL. 3G broadband is able to be used as a mobile, nomadic and fixed service, making it extremely versatile.

3G mobile broadband and your business

Being inherently ‘mobile,’ 3G broadband services are ideal for use by mobile field resources such as consultants and service technicians. Similarly, it is well suited to regular travelers or ‘road warriors’ that need access from their hotel, while at a client site or simply between meetings whilst sitting in a coffee shop. Sales staff will also benefit from the mobile nature of 3G broadband. They might look up and/or update details whilst with a client or perhaps avoid unnecessarily trips back to the office between meetings, saving precious selling time. For example, taking car hire Morocco with broadband service will give your mobile gadget access to the Internet.

I met with a client recently who has consultants that typically work on location at major banks and financial institutions. They have often found it hard to make arrangements for appropriate connectivity for their staff, which may require allowing for VPN access through a firewall. VPN access via a 3G broadband connection is an ideal solution in this instance; however it would be wise to have an external antenna, particularly if working in multi-story buildings.

In sites with a single computer and/or where an appropriate router and/or firewall is used, 3G broadband services may also be used to cater for ‘nomadic’ or ‘fixed’ requirements.

Given that there is no need to ‘install’ or ‘uninstall’ a 3G broadband service, they offer significant benefits for nomadic requirements. An example might be a stand at a trade show, where it has typically been costly and painful to set up appropriate network connectivity. Other examples might be a short-term retail shop, a temporary office while a business goes through a period of change or perhaps a disaster recovery site. In each case, 3G broadband offers cost savings and much less fuss.

Think of a staff member who frequently works from home and occasionally works on client sites. A 3G broadband service provides access in both cases and might also feature in your disaster recovery plan as it enables them to work from wherever it is deemed appropriate. And if they leave the business, you can reallocate their 3G device to another member of staff without having to pay any setup or termination fees. In short, 3G broadband is very adaptable and offers significant flexibility.

Telstra and Optus have begun to offer 3G VPN services that are network-based by terminating a 3G broadband service onto an MPLS (Multi-Protocol Label Switching) VPN. Optus has recently begun to offer a wholesale service that also enables other carriers and service providers to interconnect in order to offer such services via the Optus Yes G network. Telarus is one of these operators and will launch its 3G VPN service shortly.

A network-based 3G VPN service may avoid the necessity for VPN tunneling and encryption technologies. This results in faster access and more efficient use of bandwidth (saving money), due to reduced protocol overhead. It also makes access to the corporate network with a 3G broadband service much easier and more stable. Regular users of 3G broadband for VPN access will no doubt appreciate the ability to simply ‘plug and play’ with a network-based VPN service.

There are many security features that can be enabled if your carrier or service provider offers a comprehensive managed firewall service and you have a discrete network-based VPN for your 3G broadband services. Any required internet access can be authenticated and is centrally protected by the firewall. There is also the ability to apply policy control when a device on a 3G broadband service tries to connect to the corporate network (for e.g. you might only allow access to a Windows Terminal Server).

Network-based 3G VPN services will provide tools that will further accelerate the growth of 3G broadband for business by enabling easier and/or more secure access to corporate networks.

In conclusion

Widespread 3G uptake is driving increased speeds, enhanced coverage and lower prices that will in turn lead to further growth. The global proliferation of HSPA as a technology will support this trend, enabling the ability to ‘roam,’ delivering ongoing enhancements and assisting to make high quality devices available at the best possible price.

For SMEs, VPN access will be the primary driver for 3G broadband uptake. It will enable 3G broadband to be used not only for mobile workers but also as an alternative or to complement fixed broadband as a ‘nomadic’ or ‘fixed’ access service. Benefits will include increased flexibility and efficiency, reduced costs and greater fault tolerance.

Given the high speed and many benefits offered by 3G broadband, we are already starting to see substitution of 3G broadband services for DSL and other fixed line technologies and analysts agree that this is only going to continue, 3G broadband is the way of the future for the SME market.

This tutorial describes the evolution and technologies involved in broadband media services delivery. A brief history tracing the evolution of broadband media services will be presented, along with descriptions of multimedia standards, potential services, and the roles of the various entities involved in creating broadband media services–network providers, content providers, services providers, and businesses and consumers. After working through the tutorial, participants will have a general understanding of the scope, technology, and benefits of broadband media services.Broadband and bandwidth
“Broadband” refers to a type of network connection that supports a very high bit rate, as opposed to “narrowband,” which supports a lower bit rate. The higher the bit rate, which is a measure of speed of transmission of bits per second (bps), the faster the transmission will occur in a given period of time. “Bandwidth” is a measure of capacity. Greater bandwidth allows more information to be communicated in a given period of time. Broadband media services delivery requires transmitting large amounts of information quickly, so the combination of fast broadband transmissions and large amounts of bandwidth required to deliver information are the foundation of broadband media services delivery. But this is just the beginning of the broadband media services story, because the true value of broadband media services lies in the actual services that can be delivered across these high-speed, high-bandwidth networks, the entirely new “on demand” way customers will access them and the customized and personalized ways that individuals will interact with these services. With that in mind, we can formulate a definition of broadband media services:

Broadband media services is the seamless, customized, “on demand” creation and delivery of multimedia services to homes, businesses, and mobile users, including entertainment services (movies, interactive games, broadcast TV), infotainment (e-learning, online training) through high-speed Internet protocol (IP) networks.

Beyond fast Internet access
“Broadband media” is sometimes called “streaming media” because the services, or “content,” that is delivered via broadband networks is digitized, and received by users of the content in continuous real-time “streams.” Broadband content is digitized and accessed utilizing IP, the standard protocol used for Internet access today. In fact, high-speed IP access through digital subscriber lines (DSL) that utilize existing voice lines for high-speed transmissions, is the foundation of the broadband media services network, and DSL is available in many parts of the world today. DSL is a group of increasingly high-speed technologies that enables fast Internet access in homes and businesses. DSL “always on” connections will also form the basis of the sophisticated broadband media services networks of tomorrow.

Fast Internet access barely scratches the surface of the powers of broadband, DSL, and IP technology, which, combined in broadband media services, will connect people and businesses around the world like never before. Broadband media services will put the consumer in total control by enabling personal, custom, on-demand viewing of entertainment, e-learning, video games, and other types of content. Individuals will choose what they want to hear, see, or be entertained by on their own, and people will no longer have to plan around preconceived broadcast schedules for home entertainment. Eventually, we will decide our own schedules for much of our entertainment. Furthermore, broadband media services will allow individuals to easily create their own content, personalize it, and distribute it for viewing on TVs, PCs, remote laptops, and mobile phones and other wireless devices around the world, instantly.

Broadband media services provides endless possibilities for consumers to choose and personalize their entertainment and infotainment. Broadband media services will also create new revenue streams for operators, media companies, and service providers through enhanced usage of existing networks, branded media portals, interactive “one-to-one” advertising and endless e-commerce possibilities. The proliferation of high-speed broadband IP access and broadband media services will require content creators to distribute large amounts of rich media to a global audience of high-speed users with increasingly greater demand for access to specific services. The challenges for broadband media development include understanding true consumer wants and needs for services and perfecting the technology standards behind the high data rates and significant bandwidth required for seamless delivery of high-quality multimedia services.