The Move to IP
In March 2009 Ofcom cleared the way for companies and organisations to invest in super-fast broadband services for UK homes and businesses. The move is the latest in what is being seen as the biggest shake up to our communications infrastructure for 100 years, with companies across the globe migrating their legacy analogue network infrastructures to IP based ‘Next Generation Networks’. BT's 21CN, is a multi-billion programme to migrate their 30 million phone lines over to IP by 2010. July last year saw BT announce a £1.5bn plan to bring fibre access to 10million homes while Virgin Media unveiled its 50Mbps service. By 2013 Informa predict that 21 million, or one in 10 connections in Western Europe will be over fibre.
Why IP?
 |
IP or Internet Protocol is simply a faster, more flexible and cost effective way of transporting data. IP allows data from several applications such as voice, data, and entertainment services, to share the same pipe. So one broadband pipe can now deliver all a customer’s communications needs, helped further by the advent of fibre with its much greater capacity to carry data. |
What is IP?
IP is simply a digital transport and delivery method. In a telephone call using PSTN the system establishes a fixed circuit between your telephone and the telephone that you are calling. The circuit approach means that any problem with any portion of the circuit brings the call to an abrupt end. Data on IP networks use a system called ‘packet switching’. In this system the data in a message or file is fragmented in to smaller packages each with a wrapper of information about the senders and receivers address. Each packet is then sent off to its destination via the best possible route as determined by the intelligence in the network. This means each individual packet may take the same or completely different route to any other packet in the message. Package switching brings huge advantages:
-
It allows traffic loads across the network to be balanced meaning more capacity
-
It can route traffic round a problem to ensure that the packet (or alarm) gets through.
These two advantages, combined with the fact that its end-to-end digital, are the reasons why IP networks are more flexible, more efficient and cost effective and represent the way forward for both networks and networking.
Moving Forward in the Security Industry
On the positive side, the move to IP networks will open up new service offerings and revenue opportunities for our industry. The trend towards converged services and the facility to share applications cost effectively has already led to a number of growth areas such as CCTV, and led to the emergence of ‘Intelligent buildings’ in which all aspects of building management can be controlled.
Realising these benefits will require that the Security alarm companies begin an orderly migration to IP alarm communication services in parallel with the migration that is currently underway in the telecommunications industry.
