Removing Type A restrictions [intelligent networks]

With the fist phase of IN now being deployed around the world, it is time to look toward the next phase. The first phase was developed with "Type A" services in mind to bound the scope of the work while retaining commercial viability. All other services were arbitrarily grouped as "Type B". The IN "Type A" services are defined by the ITU-T in Recommendation 4.1211 which includes a number of limitations selected to avoid implementation, operational and control complexity, while still enabling a commercially viable suite of capabilities. The ITU-T Study Group 11 has specified Capability Set 1 (CS-1) and CS-1R (CS-1 "Refined"). Capability Set 2 is being worked on, with solidification of the specifications, but the same restrictions remain in place. The "Type A" restrictions exclude the application of IN technology to the delivery of multimedia and multi-party services. These services must be addressed with the increasing relevance and importance of broadband and multi-party services. The implications of each of the "Type A" restrictions is examined in turn, showing options by which the restrictions can be removed, and the network evolved towards a full range of services network of the future. In removing the single medium constraint, it is necessary to address the relationship of "call" processing to "connection" processing. These concepts are defined and their relationship explored. The paper concludes with some suggestions on the priorities for evolving IN technology and its application to an increasing scope of successful services.