Nokia Siemens Networks has launched “Liquid Net”, a solution that will help deliver services and content fluently across a network anywhere at any time.
The launch, according to Nokia Siemens, will relieve the burden on local mobile broadband networks which continues to increase with an ever growing number of users expecting higher speeds and demand for capacity.
Nokia Siemens Networks’ Liquid Net offers a new way to deliver broadband that can easily adapt to meet changing and unpredictable demand, which – globally — is predicted to increase 1 000 fold by 2020, with the Zettabyte age of the Internet set to dawn by 2015. This makes more efficient networks essential in emerging telecommunications markets such as Kenya.
Speaking in Nairobi, Kenya during the launch Karri Kuoppamaki, Nokia Siemens Networks Head of Technology for Africa Region said the demand for network resources is constantly changing depending on place and time, adding that for instance in the morning there is normally a high demand for network capacity in major towns in Kenya especially in Nairobi, and late in the evening it shifts to the suburban or residential areas.
“Our Liquid Net solution enables the networks of operators to self-adapt and meet the capacity and coverage requirements by sharing resources based on demand,” said Kuoppamaki, Nokia Siemens Networks Head of Technology for Africa Region.
“If there is a soccer match at Nyayo Stadium (one of Kenya’s stadia) or graduation at the University of Nairobi, the network will experience a sudden increase in traffic around these particular areas. Having the ability to accommodate these fluctuations and provision capacity based on demand will help operators to improve customer loyalty and can open up new business opportunities for them,” Kuoppamaki said.
“Sudden increase in demand or changes in network traffic causes bottlenecks in different parts or elements in the network. This often means that huge chunks of capacity can be left idle, with as much as 50% of a conventional core network’s capacity dormant at any one time. Thus, Liquid Net unleashes frozen network capacity into a reservoir of resources that can flow to fulfill unpredictable demand, wherever and whenever people use broadband,” he added.
Kuoppamaki noted that the increasing number of mobile broadband users in Kenya and in Africa is bound to exert more pressure on the existing networks hence telecommunications service providers or operators need to build networks that are extremely flexible to be able to meet the ever-changing individual needs of people and the services they need.
According to the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK), the country’s total number of mobile subscribers increased to 25 million by June this year. This means that the current mobile penetration rate is currently at approximately 63%. The mobile penetration rate is expected to reach 75% by the end of 2015. Nearly five years ago, the mobile penetration rate in Kenya was only at only 21%.
Liquid Net is able to unleash frozen network capacity by using automated, self-adapting broadband optimisation that makes the network self-aware of its operational status and the services being consumed; it can deliver services and content in a manner that ensures the best customer experience at the lowest cost. This is achieved through the use of built-in intelligence and real-time monitoring capabilities that allow the network to recognise where demand is coming from and instantly re-adjust itself to deliver the necessary capacity to match that demand.
Brian Adero
