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UICC in LTE
Mobile Product Marketing Date: 05.07.2011 05.07.2011 Oberthur Technologies 7171-73, rue des Hautes Ptures 92726 Nanterre, France
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS...................................................................................2 TABLE OF FIGURE .........................................................................................2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................3 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................4 WHY LTE NOW? .............................................................................................5 Mobile Data Usage is Exploding...................................................................5 Operators dilemma.......................................................................................7 LTE is the way to go.....................................................................................7 UICC ROLE IN LTE .......................................................................................10 A continuity with legacy technologies .........................................................10 Security/ Identity/Authentication in an all IP network ..................................11 Ubiquitous end user experience while connecting to most efficient network ...................................................................................................................12 Monitoring the network ...............................................................................13 Localisation tool..........................................................................................13 Monitoring and customising the devices.....................................................14 An application platform...............................................................................15 An HTTPs connected object.......................................................................16 WHAT IS NEXT? ...........................................................................................17 LTE-Advanced............................................................................................17 eUICC ........................................................................................................17 CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................18 ACRONYMS ..................................................................................................19 ABOUT OBERTHUR TECHNOLOGIES ........................................................20 DISCLAIMER .................................................................................................20 AUTHOR........................................................................................................20
TABLE OF FIGURE
Figure 1 Top actors are moving to wireless space ................................................ 5 Figure 2 Mobile data is exploding, devices are proliferating ............................... 6 Figure 3 Solving the economic dilemma ................................................................... 7 Figure 4 All paths leads to LTE .................................................................................... 8 Figure 5 UICC is evolving in the continuity............................................................. 10 Figure 6 Ubiquitous end user experience while moving to WiFi ...................... 12 Figure 7 Monitoring end user Quality of Experience ........................................... 13 Figure 8 Monitoring devices ........................................................................................ 15 Figure 9 UICC Terminal communication throughput ....................................... 16
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The exploding mobile data usage and the flattening of ARPU (Average Revenue per User) make mobile network operators profitability in danger. To lower the cost per byte, to enable new applications and to access a global ecosystem, operators are migrating their networks to LTE (Long Term Evolution). LTE introduces a new air of interface, offers IP end-to-end network and has better reactivity and more throughput per subscriber. Voice is now carried over IMS (IMS Subscriber Identity Module). The UICC (Universal Integrated Circuit Card) is evolving as well to meet mobile network operators need and to smoothen end user experience. In most cases, LTE will not be deployed in a Greenfield but in parallel of legacy mobile networks and WiFi (Wireless Fidelity). Therefore, accessing the most efficient network (from a cost stand point or form a QoS (Quality of Service) stand point) is necessary. Mobile network operators need to offer a ubiquitous end user experience while attaching to those different network layers. This can be achieved with the use of UICC by integrating the following elements: 3GPP Network Access Applications to connect to GSM, UMTS and Femto layer CSIM (CDMA Subscriber Identity Module) to connect to CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) networks ISIM to leverage IMS capabilities in LTE, voice in particular EAP (Extensible Authentication Protocol) to have a smooth end user experience while leveraging the most efficient network (WiFi will be used to off-load mobile traffic) NFC application will be integrated eventually While introducing this new technology, it is critical for mobile network operators to monitor and enhance end users QoE (Quality of Experience) in order to not endanger their reputation. The UICC is a tool that evolves to monitor the network, install and configure applications to ease the usage of new applications while optimising operators investments. LTE is an enabler of new applications that can eventually be installed onto the UICC to be a device and operating system agnostic. They can leverage some new parameters such as the geolocalisation. Those applications can eventually be loaded remotely onto the UICC. Later on, the UICC can be updated from a remote server with HTTPs through the presence of Amendment B. The UICC could also be full IP, leveraging the end-to-end IP capabilities of LTE. Basically, networks are converging and the UICC is evolving to maximise end user experience and optimising investments.
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INTRODUCTION
Since the first launch of 3G network in 2000, the industry had been wishing that mobile data traffic would take off. Now it is becoming a reality and mobile network operators are experiencing, somewhat painfully, this increased flow of data coming from a wide range of devices and applications. 3G networks need to evolve and the mobile industry had been preparing for a next generation network that can cope with this phenomenon. The 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) standardisation body has defined this evolution of wireless network as LTE (Long Term Evolution). However, the name of this technology probably needs to be reviewed as LTE is not long term anymore; it is live now and very soon will be everywhere. The first commercial LTE networks were launched towards the end of 2009 in northern Europe. In 2010 North America, Japan, Eastern and Western Europe followed suit. 2011 is seeing some major developments with mobile network operators coming from different wireless technologies like CDMA, GSM, UMTS, TD-SCDMA etc. moving to LTE. With advent of LTE networks, the traditional SIM card is no longer good enough to support this new technology. Operators and technology companies have addressed this particular need for new services by introducing evolutions onto the UICC. So what is the UICCs role evolving in LTE? What additional value can the UICC bring in LTE networks? This paper will answer these underlying questions.
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What we have seen on mobile networks is that more and more applications, devices, higher screen sise and resolution are leading to an explosion in terms of data traffic. Not only the data flows are exploding but more and more devices are also connected to the network. For instance, ABI research forecasts more than 110M M2M (Machine to Machine) units are connected to the mobile networks around the world. Some M2M devices will generate almost no traffic but will always stay connected. For example, devices counting the number of cars going through a street in real-time will always stay connected to the network even if the traffic is minimal (neither video nor sound, just glitches). Furthermore, we can imagine cameras, vending machines, surveillance devices and even traffic lights being connected at all times. That is thousands and thousands of devices per square kilometers being always connected, stressing dramatically the wireless networks, resulting in an overall cost increase. And this trend may even be accelerated with the cloud concept getting traction on the telecom industry: most data, applications and even operating systems will no more be into the devices but in the cloud, meaning on internet servers. This will require big pipes to carry those data exchanges from the devices to the cloud. Wireless operators are currently experiencing this stress/cost on their network and need to be prepared for more.
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Operators dilemma
Wireless operators are seeing their ARPU flattening and their costs increasing because of this stress on their networks. This results in an economic dead end which the wireless operators need to resolve. The solution is for the operators to find new sources of revenues and to reduce their costs.
Revenue
Cost
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LTE is a more efficient air interface with MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output) and OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) modulation, where several antennas are connected to the mobile and the base stations are able to send several data streams in parallel instead of one data stream. LTE is a more cost-efficient transport scheme; it is all through IP. Instead of having one circuit switch and a packet switch domain, there is only a packet switch on IP. It means cheaper transmission from the base station to the core network to carry the massive amount of data back to the internet that comes from the devices. LTE has as much simpler network architecture with only one node in the radio access network (the eNode B) and a peer-to-peer architecture instead of two nodes with a hierarchical architecture (the Base Station and the Base Station Controller in GSM). The less complexity appears in the system, the less cost for the mobile network operator. For some mobile network operators LTE is a way to reach the global ecosystem which consists of devices, applications, network elements etc. In the present days, some CDMA operators do not have access to some terminal types such as the iPhone. When their subscribers have to go abroad, they need to borrow a terminal to support the networks abroad. Some others are on a technology that did not take off massively like WiMAX and TDSCDMA, so they need to go back to the main stream to save costs and to have access to the global ecosystem. LTE counters that difficulties, which makes not only applications such as M2M or TV are moving to LTE but all wireless technologies are also moving there.
CDMA/EvDO/Rev- B
2Peer Peer
TV with eMBMS
services
Thus, LTE is really the way to go. It is taking off and has already running in some countries. It is the evolution of all technologies worldwide. It is the first time that the telecom world is converging. After the G for Global in GSM and
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the U for Universal in UMTS, LTE brings the Globalisation and the Universality of wireless to reality, even though some frequency-related challenges are still ahead due to disparities across regions. This has an impact on the terminal that can support a limited number of frequencies. Terminals could still be limited to some regions. However, LTE is not a magical answer and legacy technologies will coexist for some time with LTE. The challenge for the mobile network operators is to orchestrate those technologies and connect the end user to the most efficient one. For example, to leverage the WiFi hot spots they have to carry non-delay sensitive data, keeping the delay sensitive data onto LTE and using GSM or W-CDMA for voice. Another way is using the Femto cell layer to offer good indoor coverage and new services within the office or the home.
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With the UICC, the mobile network operator can offer its ubiquitous services to the end user through the most efficient network. For example, most costeffective services are using WiFi (EAP smooth authentication), GSM/CDMA/UMTS/LTE (Network Access Applications in the UICC) are for voice, LTE is for high throughput and delay/jitter-sensitive applications (HD video), Femto layer (Network Access Applications in the UICC) is used at home or at the office.
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Localisation tool
Combining the power of internet everywhere with the possibility of localization anytime is a great asset that is already leveraged by some applications and devices. This will probably be further developed in the future and the UICC can help the mobile network operator to develop from applications or give information to other applications.
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For example, in the security domain or health care we can imagine the possibility to track a physically challenged person in danger. A person with Alzheimer's disease could be localised while lost. It is currently possible with some devices specially designed for that or with an application constantly running on the devices. This localization information such as GPS localisation can now be retrieved through the network with the UICC without a special application running on a device. The UICC can get this information from the terminal by using a standardised command in 3GPP R8. No customisation required according to the OS of the device and no need for an application constantly running on the device and consuming battery power. This feature could also be relevant in the M2M world to monitor the roaming of their devices.
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The installation and interconnections with the LTE networks can be eased with the existence of UICCs storage capacity that can eventually be used to store the mobile network operators communication manager software suite.
An application platform
The UICC is of an application platform where some new applications can be developed. Those applications can be loaded with the HTTPs protocol, a typical internet protocol as found in Amendment B. The platform to develop those applets is the SCWS. With SCWS and its associated browser, the end user can surf from its devices to the UICC applications. Those applications are device and OS independent, enabling mobile network operators to launch applications independently from device manufacturer. How is the SCWS evolving with LTE and 3GPP R8? New functionalities are brought to the SCWS, such as the ability for the UICC to act as HTTP server for a client application (e.g. web browser) in the terminal. LTE enables a better throughput and reactivity of the network aside from the USB-IC interface between the terminal and the UICC. The UICC can now take advantage of the important capability of the air interface.
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The applications developed on the UICC can leverage on the high throughput and eventually led to high capacity storage of the UICC where programs and databases can be stored and easily accessed. The UICC can also be an IP UICC, now directly connected to the network with IP end-to-end.
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WHAT IS NEXT?
We saw that the evolution of wireless networks leads to LTE. However, this is not the ultimate evolution.
LTE-Advanced
Mobile network operators, standardisation bodies, vendors and the entire ecosystem is preparing for more. LTE-Advanced is the next step. This means evolutions on the air interface with more spectrum, more efficiency to reach the Gbps (gigabyte per second), basically reaching the full 4G capability. Of course, this does not mean that the whole network will have to be replaced: the evolution will be a step-by-step evolution, starting on 3GPP release 9 and 10. The same pillars will be used for this evolution: all IP, flat architecture, MIMO and OFDM. So, initially LTE networks will be launched by mobile network operators then they will smoothly evolve with additional LTE advanced features. The UICC will evolve as well with the network to offer more to the end user and to mobile network operators.
eUICC
One possible evolution of the UICC is the eUICC (embedded UICC). This is an evolution that currently being standardised to ease the deployment of M2M, but that could also be relevant beyond the M2M model. The miniaturisation of the UICC and the integration of this entity into devices is a clear trend that will shape the evolution of the UICC. Those two evolutions are currently being standardised and will be elaborated in a separate white paper.
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CONCLUSION
LTE is the way to embrace new developments and the UICC is evolving to make the best usage of those new capabilities. The UICC is evolving to an HTTP connected object where some secure elements can be stored, such as the CSIM, ISIM or NFC secure elements. It is evolving to an application platform with SCWS and new interfaces that can retrieve some localisation information from the device, for example. The device and the network can be monitored from the UICC, a crucial matter when introducing a new technology such as LTE to maximise end user experience while optimising operators network investments. It is critical to offer the end user a ubiquitous experience while maximising the usage of different networks like 2G, 3G, LTE or WiFi. Oberthur Technologies is ready to support all those evolution for mobile network operators to better serve their end users.
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ACRONYMS
3GPP API ARPU CDMA CSIM EAP eMBMS eNode B eUICC GSM IMS IP ISIM LTE M2M MIMO NFC Node B OFDM OS OTT QoE SCWS SIM TCP TD-SCDMA UMTS UICC USIM WiFi WiMAX 3rd Generation Partnership Project Application Program Interface Average Revenue per User Code Division Multiple Access CDMA Subscriber Identity Module Extensible Authentication Protocol evolved Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service evolved Node B embedded UICC Global System for Mobile Communications IP Multimedia Subsystem Internet Protocol IMS Subscriber Identity Module Long Term Evolution Machine to Machine Multiple Input, Multiple Output Near Field Communication Term used in UMTS to denote the base transceiver station Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing Operating System Over The Top Quality of Experience Smart Card Web Server Subscriber Identity Module TC Protocol Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Universal Integrated Circuit Card Universal Subscriber Identity Module Wireless Fidelity Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access
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DISCLAIMER
All trademarks and service marks referred to herein, whether registered or not in specic countries, are the property of their respective owners. Oberthur Technologies LTE White Paper is an independent publication and has not been authorised, sponsored, or otherwise approved by the owners of any trademarks or service marks referred to herein.
AUTHOR
Document written by Mobile Product Marketing, including Stphane Jacquelin.
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