Fixed Mobile Convergence

Fixed Mobile Convergence

Fixed line services and capabilities delivered on the mobile phone provide users with a single mobile device which will switch between networks.

Convergence is dissolving network boundaries and enabling the development of new service concepts, such as the ability to create private mobile GSM networks.

Fixed Mobile Integration is the next logical step in the evolution of converged communications. With Fixed Mobile Convergence, users are able to access the same services and features whether on the corporate PBX fixed extension or on their mobile phone. Private Mobile Network (PMN) solutions for fixed mobile convergence are overcoming many of the original commercial objections to these deployments. The PMN solution enables services to be accessed seamlessly from both PBX extensions and the mobile phone. Use of applications on the mobile phone can be further simplified by the introduction of a menu-based interface to standard functionality such as conferencing, call recording and call transfer.

Convergence marries together the best aspects of fixed and mobile services and simultaneously alleviates the negative associations of disparate telephony services. Convergence means access to traditional fixed-line services on the mobile handset, making internal and external communications more efficient, and employees more productive and responsive to customers.

Key Benefits

  • Allow mobile phones to operate as PBX extensions while users are online
  • Support for feature-rich PBX applications on the mobile
  • Improves corporate phone management and control:
    - controlling call and messaging costs between mobiles in the office
    - controlling call and messaging costs from mobiles in the office
    - controlling call and messaging costs from landlines to mobiles in the office
  • Enables call cost savings; mobile services at no charge when in range of the private mobile network, and at landline rates when passed out through the local PBX.
  • Supports business continuity - the private mobile network continues to operate when the macro network (public mobile network) is unavailable
  • Compatible with standard 2G and 2.5G mobile phones
  • Instant coverage
  • Built on industry standards and utilises standard Intel architecture, protecting investment with ability to accommodate future developments on standard hardware
  • A simple application for automatic switching between micro and macro GSM networks
  • Intuitive menu driven interface
  • One device, one number PBX applications – convergence without compromise

Deploying Fixed Mobile Convergence

The solution can be implemented either by the replacement of the PBX with a private mobile network at a specific location or by integration of the provide mobile network with the existing PBX infrastructure.

PMN-based convergence shifts minutes usually accounted for on mobile networks and moves them into an enterprise owned ‘micro’ cellular network.  External calls using the micro cellular network connect to the company’s fixed line services and leave as fixed line minutes. This gives enterprises the ability to control, monitor and selectively decrease mobile spend.

PMN convergence forms one half of a two stage voice communications convergence strategy. The other half being provided through the provision of additional functionality to mobile handsets that can be used while out of the office, or even roaming.

Dependant on an organisation’s communication strategy, selective distribution of PMN-enabled mobile handsets can help to ensure cost control, while ubiquitous deployment can assist in overall communication efficiencies. Non-call related savings such as infrastructure, maintenance and productivity are an increasingly important component of the enterprise business case.

Organisations considering deploying convergence solutions must consider a trinity of benefits when determining an expected ROI:

  • Call cost savings are specific to, and dependent on, the type of employee using the solution, from their job role though to their calling profile.
  • Enterprises considering rolling out greenfield sites such as branch offices or new headquarters, or upgrading existing fixed infrastructure have the potential to make significant savings on the deployment of communication infrastructure.
  • Increased in-building coverage and mobile handsets operating as PBX extensions increase overall ability to contact employees, lessen time to respond to customer and colleague queries, and provide a platform for quicker decision making.
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