More than ever, access to local telecommunications network infrastructure has become an important part of the way many of us live, work, play and learn — throughout our daily routines. Some of us take it for granted – we expect that the network will simply be there, when and where we need it.
Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Without fail, it’s assumed to be omnipresent in our lives. By and large, that objective is purposefully reached, around the world. Truly, that’s an amazing accomplishment.
When I was entering college, fax machines were kind of a big deal. Mobile phones were something you might glimpse in a movie about spies or some super wealthy person. It was the nascent years for the world’s 1G network. But for me and my friends, compact discs were the thing—a whole new way to enjoy music. And if you took our wheels away, we were lost. Contrast this with today’s young adults for whom the internet has become deeply fundamental. More than half surveyed in a new Cisco Connected World Technology Report say the internet is more integral to their lives than cars, dating, and partying. Wow!
The 2011 Cisco Connected World Technology Report looks at the relationships between human behavior, the Internet, and networking’s pervasiveness. The objective: to determine how the next generation of workers will influence everything from business communications and mobile lifestyles to hiring, corporate security, and companies’ abilities to compete.
Most people can remember where they were when a high-profile news event happened — such as the 9/11 attacks on the USA. I mention this because I was standing in a hotel room a couple of weeks ago listening to my wife tell me about the London Riots – from insights she received on her smartphone via Twitter. Reality happens in real-time, so does today’s news reporting.
This past week, I attended the grand opening celebration of Verizon Wireless’ Innovation Center in Waltham, MA. The center, which brings together companies and entrepreneurs alike, is designed to provide a collaborative, hands-on workspace to rapidly develop innovative products and services that leverage 4G LTE technology.
The grand opening was an exciting event and the center was filled with innovative demos and technology tours featuring all types of LTE connected innovations -- from the connected home, connected car, gaming, digital juke box, video and even future innovations such as a connected bike and an LTE-connected robot.
Cisco is a Premier Participant and we have been involved since day one. We are pleased to have provided many man-hours of expert resources to deploy Cisco Mobile Internet solutions to help Verizon Wireless establish this unique center of excellence for all things LTE.
At the center, we have many demonstrations and technologies on display including Cisco Mobile Videoscape, the Cisco Cius enterprise tablet supporting 3G and 4G LTE, Cisco TelePresense, LTE-Connected Enterprise Branch, LTE-enabled Digital Media Signage and Cisco RAN Backhaul and LTE Evolved Packet Core solutions. We’re pleased to also provide the Evolved Packet Core for the 4G LTE Innovation Center lab network - identical to the commercial network - for use by the ecosystem of technology developers accessing the center’s technical and business development resources.
The occasion was the launch of the Next Generation Hotspot trials. These trials will set the stage for the future of Wi-Fi, establishing it as a robust, secure technology that will augment and complement 3G and 4G networks for years to come.
Next Generation Hotspot is based on the concept that Wi-Fi networks should be as safe and easy to access as cellular networks. Some of the base specifications for network discovery (IEEE 802.11u), authentication (IEEE 802.1x), and security (IEEE 802.11i) were well underway. The cellular example of using SIM cards for user identification and using roaming hubs for inter-carrier negotiation and billing were then applied and the Wi-Fi Alliance (WFA) specification for Hotspot 2.0 was a result.
The trials also represent a historic cooperation between the WBA, WFA, and GSMA. The WFA will hold a series of test events that will allow vendors to test and certify against the specification, and the WBA will carry out the trials in operator networks. Twenty-seven operators, vendors and roaming hubs have signed up for the trials. The trial results will be provided to the GSMA for harmonization with 3GPP standards.
