 Introduction of NGN

NGN Seminar in Fusion Technology Center by NICT(Japan) researcher

According to ITU-T, the definition is:
A next-generation network (NGN) is a packet-based network which can provide services
including Telecommunication Services and is able to make use of multiple broadband, quality
of service-enabled transport technologies and in which service-related functions are
independent from underlying transport-related technologies. It offers unrestricted access by
users to different service providers. It supports generalized mobility which will allow
consistent and ubiquitous provision of services to users.[1]
From a practical perspective, NGN involves three main architectural changes that need to be
looked at separately:
 In the core network, NGN implies a consolidation of several (dedicated or overlay)
transport networks each historically built for a different service into one core transport
network (often based on IP and Ethernet). It implies amongst others the migration of
voice from a circuit-switched architecture (PSTN) to VoIP, and also migration of
legacy services such as X.25, Frame Relay (either commercial migration of the
customer to a new service like IP VPN, or technical emigration by emulation of the
"legacy service" on the NGN).
 In the wired access network, NGN implies the migration from the dual system of
legacy voice next to xDSL setup in local exchanges to a converged setup in which
the DSLAMs integrate voice ports or VoIP, making it possible to remove the voice
switching infrastructure from the exchange.[2]
 In the cable access network, NGN convergence implies migration of constant bit rate
voice to CableLabs PacketCable standards that provide VoIP and SIP services. Both
services ride over DOCSIS as the cable data layer standard.
In an NGN, there is a more defined separation between the transport (connectivity) portion of
the network and the services that run on top of that transport. This means that whenever a
provider wants to enable a new service, they can do so by defining it directly at the service
layer without considering the transport layer – i.e. services are independent of transport
details. Increasingly applications, including voice, tend to be independent of the access
network (de-layering of network and applications) and will reside more on end-user devices
(phone, PC, set-top box).

 Implementations
In the UK, another popular acronym was introduced by BT (British Telecom) as 21CN (21st
Century Networks, sometimes mistakenly quoted as C21N) – this is another loose term for
NGN and denotes BT's initiative to deploy and operate NGN switches and networks in the
period 2006–2008 (the aim being by 2008 BT to have only all-IP switches in their network).
The concept was abandoned, however, in favor of maintaining current-generation equipment.
The first company in the UK to roll out a NGN was THUS plc which started deployment
back in 1999. THUS' NGN contains 10,600 km of fibre optic cable with more than 190 points
of presence throughout the UK. The core optical network uses dense wavelength-division
multiplexing (DWDM) technology to provide scalability to many hundreds of gigabits per
second of bandwidth, in line with growth demand. On top of this, the THUS backbone
network uses MPLS technology to deliver the highest possible performance. IP/MPLS-based
services carry voice, video and data traffic across a converged infrastructure, potentially
allowing organisations to enjoy lower infrastructure costs, as well as added flexibility and
functionality. Traffic can be prioritised with Classes of Service, coupled with Service Level
Agreements (SLAs) that underpin quality of service performance guarantees. The THUS
NGN accommodates seven Classes of Service, four of which are currently offered on
MPLS IP VPN.
In the Netherlands, KPN is developing an NGN in a network transformation program called
all-IP. Next Generation Networks also extends into the messaging domain and in Ireland,
Openmind Networks has designed, built and deployed Traffic Control to handle the demands
and requirements of all IP networks.
In Bulgaria, BTC (Bulgarian Telecommunications Company) has implemented the NGN as
underlying network of its telco services on a large-scale project in 2004. The inherent
flexibility and scalability of the new core network approach resulted in an unprecedented rise
of classical services deployment as POTS/ISDN, Centrex, ADSL, VPN, as well as
implementation of higher bandwidths for the Metro and Long-distance Ethernet / VPN
services, cross-national transits and WebTV/IPTV application.
In February 2014, Deutsche Telekom revealed that its subsidiary Makedonski Telekom had
become the first European incumbent to convert its PSTN infrastructure to an all IP
network. It took just over two years for all 290,000 fixed lines to be migrated onto the new
platform. The capital investment worth 14 million euros makes Macedonia the first country in
the South-East Europe whose network will be fully based on Internet protocol

.
  Services supported in NGN :
 Data communication services.
 Multimedia Services.
 Public interest services.
 Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)/Integrated Services Digital Network
(ISDN) simulation services.
 Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)/ Integrated Services Digital Network
(ISDN) emulation services

Next Generation Network Layer :

 In Access Layer, different types of media gateways that support connection to and
from access network with the core network are included.
 Core network layer is network handling converged services based on Internet Protocol
(IP). Control layer works as call server. It provides call control functions also provides
control of a media gateway.
 Service layer is an IT platform that creates a service creation environment extending
its functionality in order to cover new network scenarios as an intelligent network.
The below figure illustrates Next Generation Network (NGN) Layers as follows.

This basic reference model separated Transport layer (Access and Core) from Service layer.
In short Access Layer elements handles different media gateways. Core Layer handles
networks based on IP. Control Layer handles call control functions and control of media
gateways. Service Layer is an IT platform that plays role of an Intelligent Network Service
Creation Environment.
  Definition of NGN
 As per ETSI, “NGN is a concept for defining and deploying networks, which due to their
formal separation into different layers and planes and use of open interfaces, offer service
providers and operators a platform, which can evolve in a step-by-step manner to create,
deploy and manage their innovative services.” B.
Features of NGN
 NGN works on Packet based transferring.
 There is an automatic separation of control functions among bearer capabilities, call/session
and application/service.
 Decoupling of service provision from network and provision of open interface is also
available under NGN.
 It supports a wide range of services, applications and mechanisms based on service building
blocks.
 The network has Broadband capabilities with endto-end QoS and transparency.
 This network also has a feature of interworking with legacy networks via open interfaces.
 It provides the advantage of general mobility.
 It provides unrestricted access by users to different service providers.
 It also provides variety of identification schemes which can be resolved to IP addresses for
the purpose of routing in IP network.
 It is composed of Unified service characteristics for the same services as perceived by the
user

 Cost reduction.
With NGN, the established network operators plan to develop a sustainable infrastructure that
will remain competitive in a convergent environment. The primary focus will be on the
potential for cost savings. These savings will be produced by focusing on a single technology
system and through the related reduction in technology sites and technical equipment areas. A
single infrastructure is easier to maintain. The simplification of the technology system will
therefore promote a reduction in the staffing costs. Moreover, spare parts will only be
necessary for a single form of network technology.
Furthermore, the modular structure of the NGN will provide the foundation for the simple
and cost-effective development of future services. It will no longer be necessary to carry out
the new development and installation of networks for specific services. The open platform
will also allow the rapid implementation of customer-specific solutions. For instance,
applications from the network operators and other specialists can be inserted more easily in
the standardized NGN architecture using Service Creation Environments. Predefined library
functions will be used via an Application Programming Interface (API) to activate a Gateway
and so ultimately to carry out actions in the network.
According to some predictions the migration to a homogeneous IP platform that supports all
services will permit annual cost savings of up to 30 percent. It is expected that it will take
some time before the cost-reduction potential becomes noticeable due to more efficient
network management. The procedure will take several years. Apart from anything else, the
technical equipment will have to be replaced at all the exchanges in the entire national
network. As well as that, the employees will have to be retrained to work on the new network
environment. A relatively long period of parallel operation with the already existing, mostly
PSTN-based networks will be necessary before they can gradually be replaced by IP. The
services provided via traditional networks will have to be provided for a certain period of
time through emulation or simulation. Users will be able to continue using their present end
devices. Even so, appropriate end devices will have to be developed to use all the
functionalities of the forthcoming new services.

 New Sources of Income.

Established network operators see the possibility of new income as another motivation for
promoting NGN. More and more innovations with new sales opportunities are expected in the
field of value-added services. The market development features a range of
telecommunications services that have been tried and tested or are still evolving. For
instance, these include television, information services, tele-learning and teaching, online
games, virtual reality, business-to-business services, business TV, videoconferencing, etc.
However, opinions vary on the level of this income. The emerging price models will have a
considerable influence on the generation of new sales. In an all-IP world, there is little
correlation between the volumes on offer and the price. This can be seen in the familiar flat-
rate tariffs in the broadband sector. In spite of the unlimited transmission volumes, the prices
remain relatively stable. There is an opinion that only introduction of innovative services will
allow established network operators to increase their profitability. Established network
operators will be able to double their average revenue per user (ARPU) and to reduce
customer migrations, among other things. As a result, the additional investments in this future
technology will pay for themselves in less than five years. In this context, however, we must
refer back to the flop with UMTS. Established network operators invested billions to acquire
the licenses alone, which are not remotely profitable even today.

 Benefits for the customers

The interaction of man and technology plays a crucial role in the introduction of previously
unknown technologies on the market. The essential prerequisite for the success of innovative
information and communications systems is their acceptance by the customers.
Characteristics such as the perceived system benefit and the user-friendliness of the
technology are extremely important.
One of the desired goals of NGN is the possibility of adapting the services better to the needs
of the customer. Due to the future restriction to a single end device – equipped with a wide
range of applications and services – the customer will in many ways enjoy improvements on
the current situation. At present, customers expect applications for telephony and
conferences. This sort of application should be independent of the network type. Customers
also want to have more control over their services. That includes the ability to easily change
or add services, regardless of location. Above all, though, the primary focus is on the wish to
reduce costs and so there is great interest in package prices.
In the past, network operators sold specific end devices and services for every type of
telecommunications network, e.g. text messaging (SMS) via mobile telephony or e-mail via
the Internet. Due to the integration of telephony, messaging, video communications and other
multimedia information services both in fixed and mobile networks, it will probably be
possible to offer the customer greater convenience in future. It should be expected that the
greater control of the customer over his own services, the omnipresence of the network and
flexible billing methods will prove to be extremely advantageous.
 • Control: Current processes require a personal communication with the customer for
the activation or deactivation of services. NGNs should give the customer more control
over his own service portfolio through online interfaces, such as webpages, for instance.
In this way, network operators and service providers will save processing costs and the
services will be provided for the customer in real time.
• Omnipresent: The term “presence” is frequently used in the mobile world and
describes the personalization of services. Personalization characterizes the individual
customizing of services to a specific user, in contrast to uniform standard services (e.g.
the analog telephone service). Moreover, the services should be provided regardless of the
location. The network must detect with which end device the user is currently connected
to the net and where he is currently located. His subscribed services are then provided to
him regardless of his location.
• Flexible billing methods: It will be possible for network operators to charge for scaled
services via the NGN. For instance, the customer could be provided with only “besteffort”
broadband services for surfing on the Web, but he could also use a much higher
bandwidth with QoS parameters on request, to guarantee the required quality. Additional
costs may be incurred when downloading a movie, which are automatically integrated in
the customer’s bill.
It is therefore to be expected that the perceived benefits – especially because of increasing
flexibility, mobility and convenience – will grow as convergent services become more
widespread. The increasing personalization of the services will also significantly influence
the perceived benefits. The information and services provided will be customized to suit each
customer’s personal context. However, it remains to be seen to what extent applications and
services can be used with a single end device without any particular technical knowledge.
Real growth spurts can be expected especially once a clear, tangible added value is
perceptible without any particular complexities and also the majority of the market segments
are being addressed. The user-friendliness is a decisive factor particularly for older people.
The variety of services must not be too heavily technical, complex or unclear. In the end, the
successful interaction between man and technology often proves to be much more difficult
than anticipated

 ITU NGN standards

The NGN standardization work started in 2003 within ITU-T, and is worldwide today in
various major telecom standardization bodies. The most active NGN relevant standardization
bodies are ITU, ETSI, ATIS, CJK and TMF. The Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN)
initiative is a major body for mobile-specific NGN activities, which are important
contributors to the 3GPP specification for NGMN.

For those who maybe don’t know the ITU (International Telecommunication Union) is an
international organization within the United Nations in which governments and the private
sector coordinate global telecom networks and services. ITU-T is the telecommunications
sector of ITU. Its mission is to produce high-quality recommendations covering all the fields
of telecommunications.
In 2003, under the name JRG-NGN (Joint Rapporteur Group on NGN), the NGN pioneer
work was initiated. The key study topics are:
• NGN requirements;
• the general reference model;
• functional requirements and architecture of the NGN;
• evolution to NGN.
Two fundamental recommendations on NGN are:
• Y.2001: ‘General overview of NGN’.
• Y.2011: ‘General principles and general reference model for next-generation
networks’.
These two documents comprise the basic concept and definition of NGN.
In May 2004, the FG-NGN (Focus Group on Next Generation Networks) was established in
order to continue and accelerate NGN activities initiated by the JRG-NGN. FG-NGN
addressed the urgent need for an initial suite of global standards for NGN. The NGN
standardization work was launched and mandated to FG-NGN.
On 18 November 2005, the ITU-T published its NGN specification Release 1, which is the
first global standard of NGN and marked a milestone in ITU’s work on NGN. The NGN
specification Release 1, with 30 documents, specified the NGN Framework, including the
key features, functional architecture, component view, network evolution, etc. Lacking
protocol specifications, the ITU NGN Release 1 is not at an implementable stage; evolution
of today’s telecom networks. With the release of NGN Release 1, the FG-NGN has fulfilled
its mission and closed.
Following FG-NGN, the ITU-T NGN standardization work continues under the name GSI-
NGN (NGN Global Standards Initiative) in order to maintain and develop the FG-NGN
momentum. In parallel with the FG-NGN, there are two other groups working on the NGN
relevant issues. They are the NGN-MFG (NGN Management Focus Group) and the OCAF-
FG (Open Communication Architecture Forum Focus Group), directly contributing to the
GSI-NGN.

 GSINGN Concept

The ITU has defined the NGN as:

“A packet-based network able to provide telecommunications services and able to make use
of multi broadband, QoS enabled transport technologies and in which service related
functions are independent from underlying transport-related technologies. It offers unfettered
access by users to different service providers. It supports generalized mobility which will
allow consistent and ubiquitous provision of services to users”.
The ITU’s NGN possesses the following key features:
• packet-based transfer;
• separation of control functions among bearer capabilities, call/sessions and
applications/services;
• decoupling of service provision from transport, and provision of open
interfaces;
• support for a wide range of services, applications and mechanisms based on
service building blocks (including real time/streaming/noon-real time services and
multimedia);
• broadband capabilities with end-to-end QoS;
• interworking with legacy networks via open interfaces;
• generalized mobility;
• unfettered access by users to different service providers;
• a variety of identification schemes;
• unified service characteristics for the same service as perceived by the user;
• converged services between fixed/mobile;
• independence of service-related functions from underlying transport

 Functional Architecture
 presents current functional architecture of ITU NGN, designed to support so-called Release 1
services and Release 1 requirements. This functional architecture is composed of functional
groups separated by well defined interfaces. Each functional group contains a set of
functional entities.
The main functional groups are:
• the transport stratum,
• the service stratum,
• the end-user functions,
• the third-party applications,
• the other networks.

 References
 [1] ITU-T Y.2011, ‘General principles and general reference model for next-generation
networks’.
[2] ITU-T M.3060, ‘Principles for the management of next generation networks’.

[3] ITU-T NGN – GSI Release 1 ‘NGN_FG-book_II’.

[4] ITU-T Y.2021: ‘IMS for next generation networks’.

[5] ITU-T Q.1236: ‘Intelligent network capability set 3 – management information model
requirements and methodology series Q: switching and signalling intelligent network’.
[6] JT Q.1200: ‘Guidance for JT-Q1200 series standards (intelligent network)’.

[7] 3GPP TS 22.228: ‘Service requirements for the Internet protocol (IP) multimedia core
network subsystem’.
[8] TIA-771: ‘Wireless intelligent network’.

[9] 3GPP TR 23.882: ‘3GPP system architecture evolution, report on technical options
and conclusions’.
[10] ITU-T Y2012: ‘Functional requirements and architecture of the NGN’.
[11] ITU-T G.992.1.
[12] ITU-T G.992.3.

 Conclusion
The next generation of telecom is set to revolutionize global connectivity, driven by
advancements in 5G, 6G, AI, and edge computing. These technologies will enable ultra-fast
speeds, low latency, and massive device connectivity, transforming industries like healthcare,
education, and smart cities. The rise of IoT and automation will create seamless
communication between billions of devices, enhancing efficiency and real-time decision-
making.

With AI-driven networks, telecom providers can optimize traffic, predict failures, and
enhance security. The integration of satellite communications and terrestrial networks will
ensure global coverage, even in remote areas. Innovations like quantum communication and
blockchain could redefine security and data integrity in telecom networks.

However, challenges such as cybersecurity risks, spectrum allocation, and infrastructure costs
must be addressed. Sustainable and energy-efficient solutions will be critical as the demand
for data grows exponentially. The next-generation telecom era will not only enhance
connectivity but also enable groundbreaking applications, shaping the future of
digital transformation.

INDEX
Sr.No Concept Page No

1 Introduction of NGN 1

2 Implementations 2

Services supported in NGN : 3

3

4 Definition of NGN 4

5 Cost reduction. 5

6 New Sources of Income 6

7 Benefits for the customers 6

8 ITU NGN standards 8

9 GSINGN Concept 9

10 Functional Architecture 10

11 References 11

12 Conclusion 12