By Dean Bubley, Disruptive Analysis
Summary: Mobile broadband data traffic is growing extremely quickly, especially with the growth of smartphones, tablets and PC modems. While capacity is being added, operators need to deal with real-world constraints and manage network resources more effectively.
This will increasingly mean that policies, charging and traffic management will need to be “device-aware”. Different devices have different usage patterns and impacts on the network, in terms of outright volumes, signalling load and mobility. Even different versions of operating system or software application can be important. Creating and enforcing device-specific data plans and policies can protect the network – and potentially create better user loyalty and operator revenues. In the future, the network’s intervention with devices will extend further still, with client software (such as dashboards connection managers) forming part of the overall holistic traffic management and policy ecosystem.
Background
This white paper covers the potential for device-specific policy management, pricing and content transcoding in mobile data networks. It has been written by the independent industry analyst and consulting firm Disruptive Analysis, and sponsored by Continuous Computing, as part of an initiative to promote thought-leadership, differentiation and innovative networking concepts for the mobile broadband and network policy-management marketplace. The opinions expressed are Disruptive Analysis’ own, and are not specific endorsements of any vendor’s or operator’s products or strategy.
Introduction: Devices’ Impact on Networks
It is no secret that different mobile devices have vastly different impacts on operators’ networks – in terms of traffic volumes, signalling load, usage patterns – and also realistic revenues and business models.
Laptops with integral 3G modems or USB dongles / datacards tend to have infrequent, but long, high-volume sustained sessions. Smartphones are usually used more regularly, but for shorter periods – often generating signalling events but only consuming limited amounts of data. New generations of M2M (Machine to Machine) devices will have widely varying usage dynamics – smart meters and health-monitoring devices may have very low volumes of data traffic but need absolute priority and guarantees, for safety reasons. Tablet-style devices like the Apple iPad may start to be used for bulk content downloads or video streaming, mostly in indoor locations. Connected CCTV cameras and sensors will be very upload-centric.
Not all of these devices will be Internet-connected, either – even though they may attach to a 3G/4G radio or fixed broadband line. Not all data over carriers’ networks is to and from the Internet – and certain types will have very specific requirements. The recent Google / Verizon proposals on Net Neutrality point to the role of separate “managed services” running in parallel to “real Internet access” on a service provider’s network.
Managing this diversity of usage models is going to be a major challenge for mobile operators in the future – as well as their fixed-line peers. Disruptive Analysis believes that network policy-management and enforcement will increasingly become device-specific – not least because it is easier to implement (technically and perhaps legally) than application-based alternatives. Often, operators control the sales channels for devices, and are thus able to specify particular terms and conditions for their use.
