Next Generation Networks

Never has the term Internet messaging had such relevance to the messaging world as it does today. Technological advances have increased the utility of Internet and Intranet networks so substantially that legacy communication technologies are either being replaced or integrated with other technologies provided over packet networks.

Telecom managers and Service Providers now have tremendous flexibility with how they provide integrated voice and data services, as well as having opportunities to save money and increase quality. Carriers are finding the new technologies promising as they look for ways to leverage the innovations associated with the new capabilities to connect central offices using the Internet Protocol (IP).

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is one of these new and exciting technologies. VoIP does more than act merely as VoIP gateways employing new capabilities for mediating signaling, management and transport functions. It is paving the way for the next generation of services that are quickly evolving to span the packet networks. Unified messaging is one of those services that will have massive appeal operating on these new, evolving networks and technologies.

uOne and VoIP

The uOne product functions as an integral component within a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network (Figure 3). By adhering to VoIP standards (Table 2), uOne places unified message boxes and their contents seamlessly into the overall packet networking infrastructure allowing universal access using all of the devices popular today. All calls made using Internet phones, Circuit Switched Network phones, PCs, and cellular phones can access the same unified messaging services since they are supported from within the VoIP network.

Figure 3: VoIP Technology with uOne

Table 2: Voice over Internet Protocol Standards Supported

Standard Description

H.323

This standard is an umbrella recommendation from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and represents a cornerstone technology for the transmission of real-time audio, video, and data communications over packet-based networks that do not provide a guaranteed Quality of Service (QoS). These are the dominant networks linking today's corporate desktops and the Internet. H.323 specifies the components, protocols, and procedures for providing multimedia communications over packet-based networks, including IP-based networks.

H.323 contains H.225.0 and H.245.

H.225.0

This standard covers the Registration, Admission and Status (RAS) protocol and the call signaling (Q.931) protocol messages that traverse the call signaling channel. RAS is the protocol for endpoint use of gatekeeper services. Q.931 is the call signalling protocol for setup and termination of calls. H.225 also specifies use of RTP and RTCP.

H.245

H.245 control protocol is used to exchange end-to-end control messages governing the operation of the H.323 endpoint. These control messages carry information related to capabilities exchange, master-slave determination, and opening and closing of logical channels used to carry media streams.

RTP

Real-time Transport Protocol provides end-to-end delivery of real-time audio and video. RTP is typically used to transport data using the User Datagram Protocol (UDP).

RTCP

Real-time Transport Control Protocol is the counterpart to the RTP that provides its control services. It provides feedback on the quality of data distribution and has other functions related to synchronization of audio and video.

G.711

Since audio is the minimum level of service that is provided within the H.323 standard, all H.323 terminals must have support for at least one audio codec. The ITU-T G.711 recommendation for audio coding at 64 kbps is used.

Standard	Description
H.323	This standard is an umbrella recommendation from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and represents a cornerstone technology for the transmission of real-time audio, video, and data communications over packet-based networks that do not provide a guaranteed Quality of Service (QoS). These are the dominant networks linking today's corporate desktops and the Internet. H.323 specifies the components, protocols, and procedures for providing multimedia communications over packet-based networks, including IP-based networks. H.323 contains H.225.0 and H.245.
H.225.0	This standard covers the Registration, Admission and Status (RAS) protocol and the call signaling (Q.931) protocol messages that traverse the call signaling channel. RAS is the protocol for endpoint use of gatekeeper services. Q.931 is the call signalling protocol for setup and termination of calls. H.225 also specifies use of RTP and RTCP.
H.245	H.245 control protocol is used to exchange end-to-end control messages governing the operation of the H.323 endpoint. These control messages carry information related to capabilities exchange, master-slave determination, and opening and closing of logical channels used to carry media streams.
RTP	Real-time Transport Protocol provides end-to-end delivery of real-time audio and video. RTP is typically used to transport data using the User Datagram Protocol (UDP).
RTCP	Real-time Transport Control Protocol is the counterpart to the RTP that provides its control services. It provides feedback on the quality of data distribution and has other functions related to synchronization of audio and video.
G.711	Since audio is the minimum level of service that is provided within the H.323 standard, all H.323 terminals must have support for at least one audio codec. The ITU-T G.711 recommendation for audio coding at 64 kbps is used.

Table of Contents