Broadband Forum in the news
The last quarter has seen momentum around Broadband Forum grow even further, with a news release announcing 25 new members issued in June. This article highlighted how Broadband Forum’s focus on 5G and the Connected Home has been and continues to be the driving force behind a number of new companies getting involved with Broadband Forum’s standardization efforts.
Broadband Forum experts have also been called upon to provide industry commentary on a range of topics. John Blackford, of CommScope, and CEO Robin Mersh spoke about USP-Agent with Broadband World News, while CMO Geoff Burke gave insight into SDN for Digitalisation World.
IoT Agenda also hosted an article written by Blackford, discussing how USP can deliver on the promise of the Connected Home. Meanwhile, Broadband Forum’s work on Broadband QED was covered Fibre Systems, which hosted an article authored by Mersh.
A Word from our CEO
With the European Commission allocating €573 million to provide fast Internet access for more than 7,000 Italian municipalities and 12.5 million residents, broadband in Italy is developing at an unprecedented rate. This made Milan an ideal location for our Q3 meeting as we enter an exciting and progressive time within Broadband Forum.
Among the highlights in Milan was OutSys’ first-of-its-kind Practical Demonstration Implementation of our Broadband Quality Experience Delivered (Broadband QED) initiative. The demonstration is a significant milestone in Broadband QED, which is critical as end-users and regulators focus on more than just data rates.
Broadband QED is not the only project gaining momentum within the Forum. Following substantial developments in our Connected Home standard, User Services Platform (USP), and CloudCO, we will debut numerous demonstrations at Broadband World Forum (BBWF) 2019. Three will focus on the Connected Home, highlighting how service providers can seamlessly and securely manage connected devices as smart home technology grows increasingly popular. These demos will show a practical application of Broadband Forum initiatives, including one led by Vodafone, emphasizing the important role USP, machine learning and Broadband QED will play in operators’ future networks. Vodafone’s interest is echoed by the influx of new members we’ve seen over the last year wanting to get involved in USP and our Connected Home initiatives.
Delivering on the promise of the Connected Home depends on an efficient network that can transport data to and from millions of bandwidth-hungry devices. Our CloudCO initiative tackles this need, within this work area as well as through the latest developments of Open Broadband – Broadband Access Abstraction (OB-BAA) set to be showcased at BBWF. Again, due to work progressing so substantially, a host of new capabilities will be revealed.
5G also remains a key focus at Broadband Forum. At our Q3 meeting, a special session on 5G Verticals was held, providing new food for thought for all Work Areas on how their work will be impacted by developments in this promising wireless technology. This coincided with an important step for the Wireless-Wireline Convergence (WWC) Work Area, which has now started to reach consensus and document the decisions it was making at earlier meetings in regard to its work on Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC).
Underpinning all our work at Broadband Forum is the critical question of security. A constant consideration across all Work Areas, security has been thrust to the forefront of the broadband industry due to the continued growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) and smart devices. Our Birds of a Feather (BoF) session at the Q3 meeting discussed the importance of standards and legislation in this area, provoking much discussion. I am sure this will continue to be an area of renewed focus for the Forum as we move into the next phase of broadband deployment and a new era of connectivity.
A summary of the Q3 meeting and the multiple ways that Broadband Forum is actively shaping the future of broadband delivered by Broadband Forum Chairman Kevin Foster can be seen here.
Special BoF session sparks discussion on securing the future of broadband
Security continued to be a prevalent theme for Broadband Forum at the Q3 meeting, with industry experts highlighting the importance of having standards, legislation and robust security models in place to tackle the threats associated with the explosion of smart devices and the IoT.
During a special BoF session on security, Tom Gaffney, of F-Secure, Elmer Lastdrager, of SIDN Labs, and Sowrirajan Padmanabhan, of Nokia, discussed the level of threats and how the industry can combat them, with one member defining security as ‘the Achilles heel of IoT’.
Gaffney also highlighted the growth in the number and sophistication of the cybersecurity threats facing the industry and the need for action.
“There has historically been a lack of standards and although this is changing with increased discussions with governments and standards bodies, legislation will be years from now,” he said. “Security is often an afterthought for businesses, and they need to make sure they have robust security models in place, and if they are slow to replace out-of-date systems, someone will find and exploit this vulnerability in the future.”
The panel highlighted the vulnerability challenges which IoT has presented and how to solve them, with the education of users, introduction of better practices for manufacturers and the quarantine of bad actors at ISP level among a host of suggestions moving forward. Broadband Forum members discussed the costs associated with protecting against hacker attacks and the way to tackle this without burdening technicians, customers and increasing overheads but agreed that the cost of an incident would outweigh the cost of protection.
Gaffney added: “Security measures need to come from the industry and get pushed by the government to get them over the line. Vendors and service providers are in the driver’s seat and are culpable as they need to offer some level of security for their customers.”
Get your geek on! BASe returns for BBWF 2019 and Calix’s ConneXions
Following the astounding success of this summer’s Ultra-fast Broadband (UFFB BASe), Broadband Forum has organized further BASe events in October.
The first workshops – focusing on the Connected Home and 5G – will take place at BBWF 2019, at the RAI Amsterdam on Tuesday, October 15. These will be followed by the BASe North America Summit at Calix ConneXions in Las Vegas on Saturday, October 26, where speakers will cover a range of topics including 5G, the Connected Home and security.
Created by technology innovators for technology leaders, the BBWF BASe sessions and BASe North America Summit will see major operators, technology leaders and innovators come together and provide their expertise on topics from across the industry for all participants in attendance.
“BASe has continued to gain momentum in 2019, and we are honored to be hosting our two BASe events at BBWF and ConneXions as we aim to bridge the gap between the marketing hype and the technical and operational realities that are impacting opportunities for service providers,” said Bernd Hesse, BASe chair for Broadband Forum. “Our membership is composed of the world’s leading technologists who are seeking actionable insights, share perspectives, and network with their tech peers from around the world.”
Click here to find out more or register for the BASe event and/or the ConneXions conference.
Work Area Updates from Milan, Italy
For a full list of all Technical Reports published by Broadband Forum, click here. Please feel free to share this information with your colleagues, so they are engaged and aware of the developments of this work. For additional insight and to get involved, sign up for the members-only Broadband Forum tools and access your member-only account using your company email address.
Everything is cooking for ATA
- Target: The Access & Transport Architecture (ATA) Work Area maintains primary architectural work of Broadband Forum. This work reflects the control, management and data plane aspects of Broadband Forum’s defined architectures. These architectures are augmented to leverage new industry practices, while protecting the investment in broadband networks already deployed.
- Progress: The group has a record-breaking five white papers that are in the approval or publication process coming out of the meeting. These cover hybrid access motivation, EVPN, Disaggregated BNG, QED and ALT.
- Outcomes: The protocol PFCP was selected for Disaggregated BNG.
The ATA Work Area made progress across a vast range of projects at the Q3 meeting.
In the area of 5G Transport, the group is currently midway through defining the 5G architecture and requirements. The requirements introduce the use of new transport and routing technologies, for example, even segment routing and deterministic transport such as IETF DetNet and IEEE TSN.
With regard to transport network slicing management, the group is creating the linkage between 3GPP network slicing management and orchestration and existing transport and routing network management and orchestration. This includes the initiation of a new WT on Mobile Transport Network Slicing Management Interfaces (MTNSI) that will define architecture and requirements for this linkage. The work will be coordinated with 3GPP SA5 and other relevant Broadband Forum partner organizations.
A new white paper on use of EVPN for carrier Ethernet services was approved for publication. The paper describes the motivation and advantages for using EVPN to provide Ethernet services, including the ELINE, ETREE and ELAN service types defined by MEF.
In the Disaggregated BNG project, a major milestone was reached with the Work Area selecting PFCP as the protocol for Disaggregated BNG (WT-459). The group is also in the process of completing the work on the Disaggregated BNG architecture and requirements as well as providing guidance on message flows for the architecture.
Two new work items were proposed on Carrier Grade NAT (CGN); the first would look at its architecture and use with Disaggregated BNG and the second would provide deployment guidance on application compatibility. These proposals are currently under consideration and will be discussed again on 1 October.
The group has reorganized a number of its testing initiatives to create a new project stream – Performance, Experience and Application Testing (PEAT). Within this project stream, the group is progressing work on IP performance measurement at the CE-edge using STAMP, Application Layer Testing data modeling and quality of experience testing technical specification.
Last but not least, new work has been started on IP performance and capacity testing. This work examines and specifies new IP capacity testing methods for measuring high speed IP connectivity that overcome the limitations of existing IP service "speedtest" methods and tools. Based on output from a recent workshop at MIT, these new testing methods and metrics will be of interest to all IP service providers, especially those providing high speed broadband access. This work is being carried out in cooperation with IETF IPPM, ITU-T SG12, ETSI STQ.
For more information about the Access and Transport Architecture Work Area, please see:
A Word from our CEO
It is perhaps fitting, as we reach the halfway point in another exciting year for Broadband Forum, that I am writing these notes in Seoul, South Korea – home to the world’s highest average Internet speeds and the highest fiber optic broadband penetration. In fact, I wonder why this is our first appearance in this dynamic, technology-hungry country, where we have been made most welcome by our sponsors Korea Telecom (KT) and the GiGA Wire Alliance. Their enthusiastic demonstrations of GiGA Wire and G.hn, and the site visit to a live installation at a challenging shopping center Multi Dwelling Units (MDU) complex, were not only fascinating but reminded me of how in the telecoms industry we are all part of a family; driving broadband forward everywhere we go.
The keynote from KT Lab’s Vice President Jongpil Lee highlighted how that drive and commitment can deliver results through copper as well as fiber, even in tough and challenging environments and with financial constraints. Making it possible is often helped by that “family” feeling – being part of something like providing broadband which changes so many lives.
I got a similar feeling of being part of something special from our Strategy Meeting at the headquarters of Calix last month. It was an intensive three days covering all aspects of our work and asking ourselves important questions such as, “where we are going” and “what we could have done better”. One of the big takeaways was that teamwork in the Forum was highlighted as the top example of what went well and at such a critical phase of our work, good teamwork is vital.
Just behind teamwork in the success ratings were the BASe events and the big leap in PR and marketing activity. You are probably reading this while UFBB BASe at The Hague, in the Netherlands, is taking place. This is the latest event of this type, with two more planned by the end of the year, supported by the PR and marketing machine, which is raising the profile and awareness of our widening work portfolio.
This, in turn, is helping to generate a very healthy increase in membership and we welcomed several new members and first-time attendees in Korea. What is important here is not just the numbers but the new areas of expertise and thinking that they bring to the group, which will support the quality and importance of the work going forward.
They are all very welcome to our team – a hardworking, committed group which I am very proud to lead into the second half of 2019.
GiGA Wire technology breathes new life into bandwidth-hungry Korean MDUs previously held back by hard-to-replace copper infrastructure
Korea Telecom (KT), which leads the world in fiber optic broadband delivery, is meeting the clamor for high-speed broadband where only copper is economically viable and – by using GiGA Wire and G.hn technologies – is achieving spectacular success. That was the message given to the Broadband Forum quarterly meeting in Seoul by KT Lab’s Vice President Jongpil Lee.
Lee explained to the attendees that when faced with the normal telco dilemmas of flat revenues, increasing competition and the need to invest, KT started research which culminated in the development of its G.hn Access Multiplexer (GAM). Located in apartments and buildings where fiber delivery was not possible, the GAM – with a vector boost to cut crosstalk and G.hn at the customer end – was giving ten times faster speeds and a 50 per cent Capital Expenditure (CapEx) saving.
GiGA Wire can be used for Internet services with VDSL in the same cable bundle and KT has already replaced some 16 percent of its DSL installations with the technology.
“GiGA Wire and G.hn is proving that copper telephone lines are not dead – they still have an important role to play in meeting client demands for speed and performance,” said Lee. “From the telco perspective, GiGA Wire gives us a better financial and operational performance. It also helps us to solve digital divide issues, as well as preserve historical buildings where optical fiber installation would not be allowed and provides us with a technical differentiation which is really helping in our success.”
KT Lab, a member of the GiGA Wire Alliance, also gave a demonstration on site of the Q2 meeting to Broadband Forum members of the technology and demonstrated the higher speeds achievable.
Lee’s opening day keynote and demonstration was followed by a visit to a live KT GiGA Wire and G.hn equipped building, the Good Morning City shopping mall, which is focused on clothing but with much more besides, including eateries and an impressive Virtual Reality (VR) gaming center. It is home to a great number of small outlets, each of which has a growing need for faster, high-speed performance.
As part of a major refurbishment, the Good Morning City building now has truly world class broadband – all provided through G.hn and GiGA Wire technology sitting comfortably alongside VDSL equipment.
Contact Broadband Forum at info@broadband-forum.org.
Broadband Forum Meetings
Sponsorship opportunities are available for the Forum's remaining 2018 quarterly meetings. Sponsoring a meeting is a great way to highlight your company and exhibit your company's innovation in the broadband industry – including demonstrations or prototypes – while showing your support of the Broadband Forum. Opportunities vary and can be customized to accommodate a variety of budgets.
Please view the list of our standard sponsorship packages and benefits at:https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Sponsorship+Opportunities.
Contact Rhonda Heier at rheier@broadband-forum.org for more information.
Help showcase the silver lining of CloudCO at Broadband World Forum
The Software Defined Networks (SDN)/ Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) Work Area is looking for vendor and operator participation in developing and executing the Cloud Central Office (CloudCO) Demo which will be showcased at Broadband Forum’s Interop Pavilion at Broadband World Forum (BBWF) in Amsterdam, which takes place from Tuesday, October 15 until Thursday, October 17. Last year, the Open Broadband – Broadband Access Abstraction (OB-BAA) demo gained very high industry visibility and showed the promise of multi-vendor management in CloudCO. This year, Broadband Forum will take a major leap forward by leveraging Application Note 446 (APPN-446) which has been enhanced for multi-vendor capabilities that will be provided by the OB-BAA reference implementation.
Broadband Forum is seeking the following support from its membership:
Vendors:
- Access Network Equipment – Would include Optical Line Terminals (OLT), Digital Processing Unit (DPU)/ Residential Gateway (RG) and Optical Network Terminals (ONTs), OB-BAA with servers, GUI Web browser, PC connected to the ONT to show Internet connectivity
- An access SDN M&C that can work with OB-BAA and implement the Business Support Systems (BBS) scenarios for configuration
Operators:
- Sponsorship Opportunity – Tie brand to the future of access
Vendors/Operators:
- Assistance with modifications – the Open Network Automation Platform (ONAP) and/or extend portal
Major contributors will have the opportunity for brand recognition within the Interop Pavilion on the BBWF show floor, as well as opportunities to be highlighted during Broadband Forum workshops on Day 1.
Objectives of the demonstrations would be as follows:
- OB-BAA as an open source reference implementation of CloudCO’s BAA layer. This is demonstrated by using OB-BAA within the CloudCO’s Broadband Services (BBS) application note (APPN-446).
- OB-BAA within the CloudCO framework using the BBS application note
- Service provisioning via a single portal driving a multi-vendor access network using Access Networks (Ans) of the same type
- Stretch goal: multi-vendor capability via a vendor adapter
- Stretch goal: multi-technology capability using different types of ANs (DPU, OLT)
- Stretch goal: support of ANs without a NETCONF/YANG interface via a vendor adapter
- Stretch goal: technology upgrade (e.g. from GPON to XG-PON) via adapter update
If you would like to be involved in pulling together this highly visible project, confirmation is needed by July 1. For more information, see description on the Wiki here.
If you have any questions, please contact Tim Carey (timothy.carey@nokia.com) urgently.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Growing momentum behind Connected Home, 5G and broadband experience initiatives drives influx of new Broadband Forum members
Broadband Forum has revealed that the growing momentum around its Connected Home and broadband experience related projects has been the driver behind a spike in new members. This reaffirms the important role standards have to play as connected devices become more mainstream and consumers redefine what constitutes a superior broadband experience.
Since the beginning of the year, more than a dozen innovative companies have joined Broadband Forum, including Benu Networks, dot11 Labs, F-Secure, HUMAX Co Ltd, KAON Media, Metaswitch, Pico VR, Plume, Roqos Inc, SIDN, SUPPORT Robotics Limited, TQ Delta and Telecom Argentina. In addition, AEPONYX, BQ, Domos AS, Easy CWMP, Furukawa Latam, Hybrid Access Technologies, Integrated Silicon Solution Israel, Inteno (Genexis BV), Luster Teraband Photonics Co. Ltd, Predictable Network Solutions, TalkTalk Group PLC and Wistron NeWeb Corp have enrolled in the Forum in the last 12 months.
More than half of these companies have cited Broadband Forum’s growing body of work in the Connected Home area as the reason behind getting involved. Published in April 2018, User Services Platform (USP) – an evolution of the TR-069 standard – is Broadband Forum’s solution for service providers looking for a truly unified, common approach to securely deploy, manage and control network-aware consumer electronics, including home and enterprise Wi-Fi, the Internet of Things, and more.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Broadband Forum publishes open source USP Agent, accelerating interoperable Connected Home deployments
Faster time-to-market for interoperable, standards-based Connected Home solutions which help operators unlock additional income has been made possible, following the publishing of Broadband Forum’s Open Broadband – USP Agent (OB-USP-Agent) implementation.
Giving vendors a code base to either integrate into their devices or use as a reference implementation as they utilize USP, OB-USP-Agent facilitates USP deployment and enables faster time-to-market for USP-based innovation and solutions. The standards-based solution paves the way for large-scale operator deployments and lucrative new revenue streams while greatly limiting the risks associated with stunted ecosystems.
OB-USP Agent is the latest development to USP which evolves the TR-069 standard by using the same data models to build a network of controllers and agents to allow applications to manipulate service elements.
To find out more about the USP and its momentum in the market, watch this video interview with John Blackford. For more insight into how USP is transforming the Connected Home experience, watch this video interview with Broadband Forum’s USP Project Lead Barbara Stark, of AT&T.
Work Area Updates from Seoul, South Korea
For a full list of all Technical Reports published by Broadband Forum, click here. Please feel free to share this information with your colleagues, so they are engaged and aware of the developments of this work. For additional insight and to get involved, sign up for the members-only Broadband Forum tools and access your member-only account using your company email address.
Access and Transport Architecture Work Area zones in on quality, scalability and 5G
- Target: The Access and Transport Architecture Work Area maintains primary architectural work of Broadband Forum. This work reflects the control, management and data plane aspects of the Broadband Forum’s defined architectures. These architectures are augmented to leverage new industry practices, while protecting the investment in broadband networks already deployed.
- Progress: Significant technical work was made on the new Disaggregated Broadband Network Gateway (BNG) project, Hybrid Access and Broadband Quality Experience Delivered (Broadband QED) Testing. New work was started on Transport Network Slicing Management Interfaces.
- Outcomes: Hybrid Access White Paper was sent for last comment.
The Access and Transport Architecture Work Area focused on three main areas this meeting: testing for application of Quality of Experience (QoE), scalable service deployment and infrastructure for 5G networks.
Continuing from the Q1 2019 work in Warsaw, Poland, the Application Layer Testing (ALT), Broadband QED (SD-452) and Performance Measurement work using STAMP activities continue to make progress and reach milestones. WT-421 on ALT has passed final approval and will soon be published. Broadband QED is nearing completion which has the group looking at next steps for the work. The first revision of a work plan was agreed that includes several short documents to explain Broadband QED and its application, as well as technical specifications focused on Broadband QED implementation and deployment.
The Disaggregated BNG work (WT-459) started in Warsaw has seen tremendous progress since then and throughout the meeting this week in Seoul. Those working on the activities are working together to specify a common set of protocol and equipment requirements, despite a wide variety of use cases, deployment models and even differing philosophies that present challenges at every step. The work on Disaggregated BNG is critical to the future scalability and resiliency of broadband networks being deployed and the pursuit of the second billion broadband users.
Network slicing is a key feature of 5G networks, both fixed and mobile. The Work Area approved the start of a project to look at the orchestration and management interfaces needed to support 5G network slicing from the transport level networks. This is an incredibly complex and vast endeavor given the number of different types of transport networks and the variety of technologies they use. The work has just kicked off and will look at leveraging existing deployed transport networks and their management to facilitate 5G network slicing, while at the same time identifying gaps and issues that need to be addressed by Broadband Forum and the industry in general. The activities of the group will engage with partner Standards Development Organizations (SDOs) to ensure a holistic view of the problem and of the resulting solutions.
For more information about the Access and Transport Architecture Work Area, please see: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/ArchitectureAccess+and+Migration.
Broadband User Services Work Area paves the way for new USP agent certificationThe latest video with Work Area Director Dave Sinicrope can be viewed here.
BUS celebrates the completion of version 1.1 of TR-369
- Target: Help service providers control the Connected Home connected home business model.
- Progress: Finalized USP The group has completed version 1.1 , Device:2.13 (TR181) and paved the way for what will become USP agent certification.
- Outcomes: USP 1.1 and Device 2.13 to be published in Q3. Certification program will be created by the end of the year. The next USP Plugfest will be held the week of September 16, 2019.
- of User Services Platform (TR-369) and has released Device:2.13 (TR-181), the data model for USP and for CWMP/TR-069.
- Outcomes: The group plans to launch certification testing for USP in Q4 and is finalizing work with the WWC Work Area to add 5G interface modeling to TR-181.
The Broadband User Services (BUS) Work Area finalized its work on is celebrating the completion of version 1.1 of its revolutionary USP (TR-369). The new version includes updates learned from early Plugfests and implementations, plus the clean addition of MQTT as an additional transport mechanism. It continues with its Plugfest series the week of September 16th, 2019 and seeks to launch a certification program for USP Agents by the end of the year.The group also finalized work on version , which will be launched at https://usp.technology in the coming weeks. Along with this, the group has also released Device:2.13 of the (TR-181), the data model for USP and for CWMP/TR-069 and USP, adding service elements for . This version adds support for multi-AP Wi-Fi mesh networks that align with the Wi-Fi Alliance's Data Elements standard. It also added a flexible and standardized set of Internet of Things (IoT) control elements, unleashing the power of USP for all kinds of sensors, controls, and other "smart" elements, and allowing a very real, interoperable Connected Home that opens vast new opportunities for service providers, consumer electronics, and software vendors alike.
Lastly, the group is already moving forward with additions to its popular Wi-Fi performance tests defined in TR-398 with a new issue that will tackle the performance of Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) devices plus advanced features like dual mode operation and roaming.
deployments, including the availability of WFA Data Elements statistics and modeling of 802.11ax/WPA3 interfaces. It also adds the ability to perform remote packet capture diagnostics and standardized objects for IoT sensors and controls, launching USP's capability to manage and control every aspect of the connected home.
Moving forward, the group plans to launch certification testing for USP in Q4 and is finalizing work with the WWC Work Area to add 5G interface modeling to TR-181, as well as device requirements for 5G fixed gateways in TR-124. It is also continuing work on the next version of its popular Wi-Fi In-Premises Performance testing suite, which will incorporate tests for Wi-Fi 6 deploymentsA video summary of updates in BUS can be seen here.
For more information on BUS’ ongoing work, visit: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Broadband+User+Services+User+Services.
To watch the latest video interview with BUS Co-Director Jason Walls, click here.
Common YANG
starts new project on BNGssays Yes to copper bonding
- Target: Specify YANG modules that are applicable to multiple Work Areas, NETCONF/YANG test plans and certification for the defined YANG modules, and maintain YANG Best Current Practices, processes, procedures and tools.
- Progress: High interest in both the vendor and service provider community Major progress in defining YANG models for managing bonded DSL lines; continued work on managing the Access Node Control Protocol (ANCP) and alarm management, enabling additional functionality for network troubleshooting and data analysishardware management; first proposal to define YANG for managing Broadband Network Gateways (BNGs).
- Outcomes: Initiate Amendment 3 of Create corrigenda for the YANG Modules for Fiber-to-the-distribution-point (FTTdp) Management ; creation of new Working Text (WT-460) on YANG Modules for BNGs.and the Common YANG Modules, making existing YANG modules more robust.
This week, the Common YANG Work Area has seen the first inputs come in to define YANG Modules for BNGs (WT-460). This work will ultimately result in a set of YANG modules for key BNG functions, allowing service providers to smoothen interoperability for BNG deployments. Additionally, this work may very well be applicable within the scope of the Disaggregated BNG projectSince the last meeting, work continued on Amendment 3 of the Common YANG Modules for Access Nodes (WT-383a3), which will further enhance the suite of YANG Modules, focusing on aspects such as alarm management, managing the Access Node Control Protocol (ANCP), and hardware management. These developments will meet service provider requirements, enabling additional functionality for network troubleshooting and data analysis for ultrafast broadband over VDSL, FAST and Passive Optical Networks (PON).
Work on Amendment 3 of the YANG Modules for FTTdp Management (WT-355a3)
has commenced. This Amendment updates existing models with the objective to further enhance the model as well as extend its scope to bonding interfaces.is progressing very well – the group approved the first set of contributions that will enable the YANG management of bonded DSL lines. This significantly broadens the scope of applicability of YANG modules for managing copper-based ultrafast broadband.
Work continued on Amendment 3 of the Common YANG Modules for Access Nodes (WT-383a3), which will further enhance the suite of YANG Modules. The main focus this week was on hardware management as well as managing the Access Node Control Protocol (ANCP). These developments will meet service provider requirements, enabling additional functionality for network troubleshooting and data analysis for ultrafast broadband over VDSL, FAST and Passive Optical Networks (PON).
The group agreed to kick off a Working Text, YANG Modules for BNGs (WT-460), based on the scope as agreed and reviewed in the corresponding Study Document SD-460. A set of key BNG functions has been identified for which the corresponding YANG Modules will be specified. The aim of this work is to smoothen interop for BNG deployments.
For an overview of the Common YANG Work Area’s work, please visit:
https://wiki.broadband-forum.org
/display/BBF/Common+YANG+Work+Area/display/BBF/Common+YANG+Work+Area.
To hear the latest updates from Co-Director of Common YANG Sven Ooghe, click here.
FAN moves forward with several documents
, collaborates on next-gen networksTarget: Inter Inter-Channel Termination Protocol (WT-352) is awaiting additional contributions but will hopefully be concluded by Q32020 Q1.
- Progress: Work is nearing completion on the PON PMD Test Plan (WT-423), with Straw Ballot imminent. ID-247 Issue 4 has made good progress and FAN will be discussing straw ballot readiness. ID-247 is the ONU interoperability and certification test plan. WT-385 Issue 2 and WT-352 Issue 2 have also progressed. WT-385 Issue 2 ITU-T PON PMD and WT-431 Issue 1 EPON Yang has also progressed.
- Outcome: WT-423 Issue 2 PON PMD test plan has been sent for final ballot and an ID-247 straw ballot readiness meeting will be scheduled for the end of September.
Since the Q2 Since the Q1 2019 meeting, the Fiber Access Networks (FAN) Work Area has continued to update several key Study Documents that will bring a range of benefits to service providersmade progress in three of its key project streams.
The PON Management Project Stream is dedicated to the development of NETCONF management models for ITU-T and IEEE PON YANG models. It has progressed as noted above. Common PON models promote interoperability between NETCONF servers and third-party NETCONF clientsPON YANG models as described above.
Within the Interoperability and Test Project Stream, work continued on both the PON PMD TP test plan (WT-423) and ONU interoperability and certification test plan (ID-247) as described above. The interoperability project stream is responsible for creating test case documents for vendor certification and conformance. Both vendors and operators benefit from these documents as they describe agreed-upon interoperability use cases among diverse platforms. Being able to exchange information between devices and management applications is crucial for the modern economy of the telecoms industry.
In the Wavelength Management Project Stream work continued on the ICTP Protocol (WT-352) as described above. This project stream is dedicated to the development of NG-PON2 Inter-Channel Termination Protocol (ICTP) for interoperability among suppliers of the TWDM and PTP WDM NG-PON2 subsystem, as well as the suppliers of the TWDM CTs for business and residential applications.
ID-247 Issue 4 discussions have identified the potential for requirement improvements to TR-280 and a New Project Information Form (NPIF) is under review.
OB-MAP makes progress on APIs
The Open Broadband – Multi Access Point (OB-MAP) project has primarily been focused on working with prplMesh to define the Application Programming Interface (APIs) that will be provided by their implementation of the Wi-Fi Alliance MAP and Data Elements specifications.A prplMesh workshop was held the same week as the Q2 Broadband Forum meeting in Korea and provided a “deep dive” into their new open source implementation. OB-MAP will be assessing this implementation and determining whether it will contribute to it or will attempt to make improvements to the current Broadband Forum meshComms open source stack.
The OB-MAP Project Leads have also been asked to see if providers have special performance requirements for steering that may be incorporated into WT-398 Issue 2 (Wi-Fi performance testing).
, as described above. Issue ID-247 Issue 4 focused on 10G PON is going out to straw ballot and WT-423 Issue 2 is in final ballot. Recently FAN has approved WT-309 Issue 2 Amendment 1 PON TC Layer Test Plan NPIF.
The XGS-PON Plugfest was completed in July 2019 and a report was generated. The group is discussing having a follow up Plugfest in the 2020 Q2 timeframe. Additional details will be published in the future.
Within the Unassigned Project Stream, FAN has also progressed WT-280 Amendment 1 PON in the context of TR-178 requirements.
To hear the latest updates from FAN Director Marta Seda, click here.
Innovation Group turns its attention to 5G verticals and security
The Broadband Forum hosted two special events during its Q3 meeting in Milan, Italy. A session presented by speaker Raffaele De Peppe, 5G IA Board Member and Chair of the Vertical Engagement Task Force, provided an update on the work of the 5GPPP European Project, with a definite nod to the IoT and connected automobiles. The session sparked further discussions within the WWC, ATA, and BUS Work Areas, and Broadband Forum is sure this will inspire some of the future work and innovations expected in those groups.
An evening BoF session on Security also took place on Monday evening, with experts: Tom Gaffney, of F-Secure; Sowrirajan Padmanabhan, of Nokia; and Elmer Lastdrager, of SIDN Labs providing their views on security and its impacts to broadband networks and forthcoming 5G capabilities. The presentations were followed by a discussion with the meeting participants. This session encouraged all Broadband Forum Work Areas to add secure elements by design into the different Technical Reports they are producing, from IoT elements to security of network elements and the end-to-end network itself. This is likely to be just the first session in a series focused on security of broadband networks, systems, and connected devices.
OB-BAA releases enhancements for use in other open source projects and supporting Broadband Forum initiatives
Building on the functionalities in its second release, the Open Broadband – Broadband Access Abstraction (OB-BAA) project provided a minor release of the project in July of this year. This added more features and examples that are to be used by other open source projects – for example, ONF SEBA – and activities such as Broadband Forum’s demonstration of the CloudCO framework during this year’s BBWF conference.
As part of the BBWF demonstration, OB-BAA will showcase its multi-vendor, multi-protocol adaptation, zero-touch and automation capabilities of the CloudCO BAA layer, showing how the BAA layer is used to automate zero-touch service creation, activation and relocation. It will also show how the BAA layer accelerates migration to cloud-based access networks by expanding the breadth of vendors by leveraging its ability to facilitate co-existence, seamless migration and adaptation to an increasingly wide variety of software defined access technologies and implementations.
A video interview featuring perspectives from Mauro Tilloca of TIM, Broadband Forum Board member and a key service provider participant in CloudCO/OB-BAA demo, can be seen here.
A video summary of OB-BAA progress to date and plans for the future from BAA leader Tim Carey can be seen here.
OB-MAP defines high level architecture for topology database
The Open Broadband – Multi Access Point (OB-MAP) project together with prplMesh has defined a high level architecture that will allow OB-MAP to provide a complete topology database. Work on the details of the APIs and the database continue. The database will enable granular control and troubleshooting of the local network.
The project also continues to ensure that all physical layer technologies are supported in the context of the database and network topology.
While prplMesh decided to use a different source code than meshComms, it is still the intent of OB-MAP to further extend meshComms. meshComms does not yet fully support easyMesh capabilities and will have to include any new APIs needed to support this topology database. The new prplMesh is in C++ but it is considered important to have an open source implementation in C as well.
Physical Layer Transmission reaches major milestones, finalizing VDSL2 test suite and publishing Gfast related recommendations
- Target: To help service providers deploy equipment that will
USP-Agent launches Release 1
The USP-Agent group released its “Anhinga” Release (R1) on April 29 and published the “Anhinga” Release (R1) press release on May 20. This can be viewed at: https://www.broadband-forum.org/2019-05-20-broadband-forum-publishes -open-source-usp-agent
It has also scoped its “Blackbird” Release (R2) and is focused on completing the CoAP MTP work.
A video summary of OB-BAA release 2 and other Open Broadband initiatives can be seen here.
Physical Layer Transmission finalizes three documents in busy three-month period
- Target: To help service providers deploy equipment that will give a better quality of experience for their end-users.
- Progress: The Physical Layer Transmission group work continued on its Gfast Performance Testing document, Reverse Powering Feeding, long reach VDSL2, Fiber Extension, and many more projects.
Outcome: Three documents have passed final ballot, reaching full approval and are ready for publication. They are ATP-337 Issue 2 (G.fast certification), TR-285 Issue 2 (cable models) and TR-338 Issue 1, Amendment 1 (reverse power feed test plan). Three more are going to Straw Ballot – the technical review stage. These include WT-114 Issue 3, Amendment 3, WT-115 Issue 3, Amendment 2 and WT-249 Issue 2 which all relate to VDSL2-LR (Long Reach). Finally, WT-208, Issue 3 (powerline communication systems test plan) has been sent to Final Ballot.
Projects WT-419/SD-419 made significant progress with further details discussed and agreed on use cases and requirements for extending fiber access over existing local copper infrastructure. This work will help telecoms operators to offer fiber-like speeds on their existing copper infrastructure where the installation of fiber is not yet economical. Work continued on WT-301 Issue 3, which includes architectures and requirements for FASTBACK - copper backhaul from a Distribution Point Unit (DPU) using bonded Gfast.
ID-337 Issue 2, Amendment 1 is taking shape. This covers the addition of certification of the 106b Gfast profile. This document is on fast track for technical review in the third quarter.
Together with BUS, work progressed on performance testing of in-premises video support over Wi-Fi (WT-434). This will help service providers deploy equipment to- give a better quality of experience for their end-users.
To gain further insight into what the Physical Layer Transmission Work Area is doing, visit: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Physical+Layer+Transmission.
A video summary of the latest work in PHYtx can be seen here.
SDN/NFV Work Area restructures key document to improve time to publish
- Target: To drive the migration of SDN and NFV into broadband networks to facilitate the agile deployment of new customized distributed broadband services and applications.
- Progress: vOMCI (WT-451) showed good progress on the enthusiasm generated by the interim meeting. The CloudCO Migration topic (WT-408) refocused its efforts to speed delivery of the TR and committed to deliver an accompanying white paper to explain its importance to the industry.
- Outcome: A new work topic proposal was discussed within the Metro Computing space. It was agreed to progress this to a formal request to identify the scope and key deliverables.
The SDN/NFV Work Area currently has nine separate projects in flight. Following discussion in the meeting it has been possible to agree some target dates for publication of the major projects.
WT-408 – CloudCO migration is a major topic of importance to the industry and the Broadband Forum is one of the few, if not the only place where migration is being addressed. It was felt that the Work Area needed to accelerate the publication of this work and following a discussion at this meeting, the group agreed a way forward to achieve this and generate a white paper that will help explain the key messages.
WT-451 – The group was also able to agree a schedule for the publication of the vOMCI project, which is linked to OB-BAA and Issue 2 of TR-385 from the FAN group.
The vOMCI project has also agreed that there will be a reference implementation in conjunction with the OB-BAA project and this will be tested by the Open Broadband Labs.
Additionally, the group discussed a proposed value proposition for the Open Broadband Labs and suggested some key additions. This will be used to generate marketing material to promote the labs to the rest of industry. An update from the European Open Broadband Lab on its status was also provided.
The work on the new Issue 2 of the Fixed Access Network Sharing (TR-370) report that was agreed at the last meeting has progressed and now has an agreed target to publish before the end of the year. This aligns that document with others in the CloudCO project.
Four of the Work Area’s Application notes (APPN-441- “Converged Core as a Service”, APPN-442 – “Value Added Services (VAS) based on NERG”, APPN-445 – “Monitoring, Diagnostics and Optimization in a Residential Broadband System” and APPN-447 – “NERG Overlay LSL with vG_MUX PNF”) were approved for external publication. The other five projects have continued with steady progress.
The Work Area has also requested industry volunteers to participate in the CloudCO demo that will take place at the Broadband Forum Interop Pavilion at the 2019 Broadband World Forum which will be held in Amsterdam, 15-17 October. If this is of interest, please see above for further details.
More information about the SDN/NFV Work Area can be found at: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/SDN+and+NFV.
A video summary of the latest updates in the SDN/NFV work area can be seen here.
WWC now “deeply engaged” with 3GPP for FMC
- Target: Address the needs of converged operators, which have both wireline and mobile networks deployed and are in a position to leverage all their assets with combined subscriber offerings.
- Progress: The Wireline-Wireless Convergence Work Area (WWC) has started populating the documents that will provide the normative specifications for the equipment that will connect wireline to the 5G core and the Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) it will serve.
- Outcome: Complete solutions to FMC will be delivered in the release 16 timeframe as originally planned.
Work in the WWC Work Area is now increasingly focused on the technical details that require specification, addressing the needs of converged operators with both wireline and mobile networks deployed who are in a position to leverage all their assets with combined subscriber offerings. This work will allow converged operators to provide a uniform experience to their customers irrespective of the access or appliance they are using. This will be supported by a common and streamlined back office and control plane.
On the journey to making this happen, the study work on 5G fixed access concluded at the Q4 meeting. Broadband Forum and 3GPP are now deeply engaged in ensuring the myriad of technical details required to generate detailed specifications are addressed.
Broadband Forum is taking an important role in developing 5G, making recommendations for the connection points between the fixed and 5G mobile core networks in order to drive core convergence.
Joint sessions were held across the Technical Committee examining other aspects of 5G where Broadband Forum’s expertise could be applied. In particular, with BUS, which saw the go forward plan to execute CPE changes for FMC firmed up. This will enable USP, and its predecessor, TR-069, to also contribute to the value proposition of FMC and 5G. SDN for 5G (known as CUPS or control user plane separation) is another important topic under intense exploration. This will greatly enhance the deployment options available to carriers that embrace 5G and the overall transition to NFV.
No aspect of convergence has been left unexamined, including ensuring the security of the converged network is adequate for all foreseen challenges that lie ahead. In parallel, the group is ramping up technical education efforts with a first Marketing Document (MD) on migration, planned for completion by Q3 and with further MDs envisaged.
WWC is now settling into the normative phase of this work with the specifications set to be finalized by the end of 2019.
For more on the WWC Work Area, please see: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Wireline-Wireless+Convergence.
A video summary of the latest updates in the WWC Work Area can be seen here.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Join broadband pioneers at Broadband World Forum!- Progress: The Physical Layer Transmission group continued work on its Gfast performance testing and certification, as well as fiber access extension over existing copper infrastructure.
- Outcome: Four documents have passed technical review and are ready to go for final approval. They are WT-114 Issue 3 Amendment 3, WT-115 Issue 3 Amendment 2 and WT-249 Issue 2 which all relate to VDSL2-LR (Long Reach) and ID-337 Issue 2 Amendment 1, covering the addition of certification of the 106b Gfast profile. VDSL Long Reach greatly increases the reach of VDSL, allowing the operator to have more deployment scenarios and to replace the legacy ADSL.
TR-285 Issue 2 (cable models), TR-338 Issue 1 Amendment 1 (reverse power feed test plan) have been published.
The test framework of WT-380 (Gfast performance test plan) which focuses on single line tests is going to the technical review stage. This test framework enables the Work Area to start the measurements setting the Gfast performance requirements, which it is aiming to finalize during Q4. The next step is to define the test framework for multi-line performance measurements.
Work on the next revision of the Gfast certification test plan has started. This revision aims to include certification of software download, operation with Dynamic Time Assignment (DTA) improvement of the response times of the Gfast connection and verification of accuracy of test parameters.
Projects WT-419/SD-419 further detail use cases and requirements for extending fiber access over existing local copper infrastructure. This work will help telecom operators to offer fiber-like speeds on their existing copper infrastructure where the installation of fiber is not yet economical.
To gain further insight into what the Physical Layer Transmission Work Area is doing, visit: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Physical+Layer+Transmission.
A video summary of the latest work in PHYtx can be seen here.
Industry support continues to grow for vOMCI, with first Plugfest on the horizon
- Target: To drive the migration of SDN and NFV into broadband networks to facilitate the agile deployment of new customized distributed broadband services and applications.
- Progress: Industry support continues to be strong for vOMCI (WT-451) with significant contributions pushing the development of the document forward.
- Outcomes: The CloudCO Migration topic (WT-408) has now been significantly restructured and the gaps highlighted will be filled before the next meeting with the expectation of publishing the paper in the first half of 2020.
The SDN/NFV Work Area now has ten separate projects in flight following the approval of the latest Metro Compute Network Study Document (SD-466).
On WT-408, the identified gaps within the CloudCO migration Working Text will be communicated to the Work Area in order to stimulate contributions to close those gaps. This will allow those topics of the highest priority to be addressed within the paper before going to publication.
On WT-451, the group is working towards a Plugfest to validate and test the completeness of the requirements within the Working Text before final approval. One of the Open Broadband Labs (OBLs) will conduct the Plugfest.
Work on the new Issue 2 of the Fixed Access Network Sharing (FANS) (TR-370) has progressed and the document will move to straw ballot once the relevant points in the meeting have been concluded. This updated document adds cloudification into the FANS process and aligns the document with the CloudCO framework, as defined by the SDN/NFV Work Area.
More information about the SDN/NFV Work Area can be found at: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/SDN+and+NFV.
A video summary of the latest updates in the SDN/NFV work area can be seen here.
OB-USP-Agent accelerates work on Release 2
The OB-USP-Agent group is continuing to work on Release 2 – also known as the “Blackbird” release – with a view to publishing this during October in time for Broadband World Forum. Blackbird will bring support for the CoAP Message Transfer Protocol (MTP), as well as some minor improvements which will make it easier to integrate the software into devices.
Work on 5G FMC progresses with work on Release 16 expected by year-end
- Target: Address the needs of converged operators, which have both wireline and mobile networks deployed and are in a position to leverage all their assets with combined subscriber offerings.
- Progress: The Wireline-Wireless Convergence Work Area (WWC) is aggressively looking to complete populating the documents that will provide the normative specifications for the equipment that will connect wireline to the 5G core and the CPE it will serve. The area’s target is to substantially have the work for Release 16 complete by year end.
- Outcomes: Complete solutions to FMC will be delivered in the release 16 timeframe as originally planned.
Work in the WWC Work Area is now increasingly focused on the technical details that require specification, addressing the needs of converged operators with both wireline and mobile networks deployed who are in a position to leverage all their assets with combined subscriber offerings. This work will allow converged operators to provide a uniform experience to their customers irrespective of the access or appliance they are using. This will be supported by a common and streamlined back office and control plane.
Broadband Forum and 3GPP are now deeply engaged in ensuring the myriad of technical details required to generate detailed specifications are addressed. This is in respect to CPE network equipment and changes to the 5G core.
Broadband Forum is taking an important role in developing 5G, making recommendations for the connection points between the fixed and 5G mobile core networks in order to drive core convergence. At this point in the FMC work, the group has shifted from making decisions to documenting the decisions.
Joint sessions were held across the Technical Committee examining other aspects of 5G where Broadband Forum’s expertise could be applied. In particular, with BUS, which saw the go forward plan to execute CPE changes for FMC firmed up. This will enable USP, and its predecessor, TR-069, to contribute to the value proposition of FMC and 5G. The specification of SDN for 5G FMC (known as CUPS or Control User Plane Separation) is now progressing. This will greatly enhance the deployment options available to carriers that embrace 5G and the overall transition to NFV.
A second marketing document on migration of fixed access to 5G was approved and will be published and made publicly available shortly. The group is considering further steps to develop industry awareness and understanding of the technology and value of fixed mobile convergence.
WWC is deeply engrossed in the normative phase of this work, with the specifications set to be finalized by the end of 2019.
For more on the WWC Work Area, please see: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Wireline-Wireless+Convergence.
A video summary of the latest updates in the WWC Work Area can be seen here.
Thank you to our meeting sponsor!
Members attending the Q3 meeting were given the chance to participate in a BoF meeting on security. Our meeting sponsor F-Secure played a key role in organizing this session which was well-attended and provoked much discussion across a number of areas within the hot topic of security.
Events Calendar
2019 Broadband Forum Meetings
- 2019 Q4 Meeting: December 2-5 – Panama City, Panama
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Events Calendar
2019 Broadband Forum MeetingsDon’t forget to save the dates for this next year’s meetings:
- 2019 Q3 MeetingQ1: September March 2- 5 – Milan, Italy2019 Q4 , 2020
- Q2: June 15 – 19, 2020
- Q3: August 31 – September 3, 2020
- Q4: December 7 – 10, 2020 Meeting: December 2-5 – Panama City, Panama
Sponsorship opportunities are available for Broadband Forum’s 2019/2020 quarterly meetings.
Sponsoring a meeting is a great way to highlight your company and exhibit your company’s innovation in the broadband industry – including demonstrations or prototypes – while showing your support of Broadband Forum. Opportunities vary and can be customized to accommodate a variety of budgets.
Please view the list of our standard sponsorship packages and benefits at: https://wiki.broadband-forum.org/display/BBF/Sponsorship+Opportunities.
If you are interested in sponsoring a meeting, please contact Rhonda Heier at at rheier@broadband-forum.org.
Other dates for your diary:
- Broadband Forum USP Plugfest: Sept 16-20, Durham, USA
- SDN NFV World Congress: October 14-17, The Hague, The Netherlands
- Broadband World Forum: October 15-17, Amsterdam, The NetherlandsBroadband Forum BASe Workshops
- Total Telecom Congress: October 1529-30, AmsterdamLondon, The Netherlands
BASe North America: October 26, Las Vegas, NV, USA
Total Telecom Congress: October 29-30, London, UK
- UK
- Gfast Chipset & System Integrator Interoperability Plugfest: November 18-22, Durham, USA
- Convergence India: February 19-21, 2020, New Delhi, India
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Contact information
Questions or ideas? Contact the the Broadband Forum on on +1 510.492.4020 or email email info@broadband-forum.org.
