UMA Today:
First off, can you give us an overview of
Orange Spain's unik service offer?
Raul carubelli: Currently, we are in a field trial which
started in December [2006]. Our plan is for a full-scale launch
in the first quarter 2007 timeframe.
Our service offer will be similar to the unik plans in other
Orange countries. Subscribers get unlimited mobile calling
to fixed-line numbers in Spain, as well as to other Orange
subscribers when calling from their home over their Orange
broadband connection.
Orange, of course, is a unique operator in Spain, offering
both mobile and broadband services.
Why did Orange choose UMA technology?
Orange chose UMA for three reasons. First and foremost,
it enables us to deliver the right service experience to our
subscribers. With UMA, subscribers get a seamless mobile
experience between Wi-Fi and GSM. When on Wi-Fi, they
receive all the same services as when they are outdoors on
our macro network.
Second, UMA is a fully defined 3GPP standard and has
support from all the major equipment and handset vendors.
And last, UMA enables us to use all of our network assets
in Spain; mobile, broadband and broadcast, along with our
LiveBox domestic gateway.
How does UMA fit into Orange's longer term network
strategy (for example, IMS)?
Unik is the first service to be launched as part of the NeXT
strategy announced at the Orange group level in 2005. In early
Uniquely
orange
Orange's launch of unik in 2006 was
widely publicized. UMA Today Magazine
spoke with Raul Carubelli, engineering
director of Orange Spain, about the
company's UMA service roll-out and
plans for the future.
INTERVIEW
10
UMA ToDAY
SPRING 2007