Sonus finds a jewel in Opal Telecom

Taking advantage of local loop unbundling in the U.K., Carphone Warehouse’s subsidiary, Opal Telecom, will support the formal launch of its parent’s IP-based voice service. And taking advantage of that market opportunity is Sonus Networks, which announced today it would supply the multimillion-dollar switching and routing infrastructure.

Opal Telecom has deployed Sonus solutions as the foundation for Carphone Warehouse’s next-generation network and voice service. Those solutions include Sonus’ ASX Access Server, GSX9000 gateway, PSX Call Routing Server, SGX Signaling Gateway, and the Sonus Insight element management system.

“We view this as very important because it is probably the most aggressive Class 5 offering in the U.K. and more aggressive than anything we see in the U.S. that is tied into a core network,” said Bert Notini, president and chief operating officer at Sonus. “Opal is a leading company, as we look across the world, in stepping up to provide primary-line replacement services.”

The network is intended to reach nearly 70% of the population in the U.K., where Carphone Wireless had already signed up approximately 340,000 new subscribers by June by offering free broadband service for voice service subscribers. The Opal network currently carries more than 1.5 billion minutes of voice traffic per month. The company expects that to double by the end of this year.

A recent regulatory ruling by the U.K.’s Office of Communications (OFCOM) requires the unbundling of last mile infrastructure to the home (known as Local Loop Unbundling). Forecasts predict between 2 million and 3 million lines will be unbundled by the end of 2006.

Carphone Warehouse acquired Opal in late 2002. Opal, which was founded in 1995, had been serving primarily the enterprise market and switching about 200 million calls per month. It currently manages more than 150,000 business customers. With the new unbundling rules, Opal can locate its network gear in the central offices and provide direct last mile access.

The Sonus’ IP multimedia subsystem (IMS)-ready architecture supports the full set of U.K. primary line residential call features. Notini said that because of the creative model of providing free broadband with a voice service, IMS compliance and support was an important consideration for Opal.

“It’s all about services. There is no charge for transport,” Notini said. “This is taking the step that everyone knows is coming, which is that the value is all in the services, so having an IMS infrastructure in which services can be rapidly configured and deployed becomes critical.”

He also said that although advanced applications were not part of the initial rollout, “It is a bold step on the infrastructure and access front.”