The UCI Forum has just announced the acceptance of a documentation, software and services package from the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) to implement its SIP Over IPv6 Networks (SIPv6) Test Program. This is a milestone for UCI Forum since it is the first test program to be completed.
Members of both UCI Forum and International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium, which will merge in 2014 and operate under the IMTC banner, will all benefit from the test program for SIP Over IPv6 Networks.
The UCI Forum was founded to further the cause of interoperability among unified communications implementations. However, merely to print out the existing specifications created by the various standards bodies would denude a small forest. The founders decided that adding to this list of specifications was insufficient; the mission of the UCI Forum had to include the creation of interoperability tools and programs to enable vendor members to verify compliance with standards.
As has been described in an earlier blog entry, the Test and Certification Working Group (CWG) was chartered in 2012 to implement the recommendations of the Voice Study Group. Specifically, the charter mandated that CWG create a test tool and verification program to close a significant gap in the readiness of SIP networks and technologies to interoperate over IPv6.
In order to be credible, the selected base interoperability profile had to have certain important qualities:
- It had to represent a complete and coherent set of requirements to ensure inter-vendor interoperability.
- Compliance with the profile needed to be a meaningful goal that UCI Forum vendor members would already be aspiring to achieve as part of their product plans.
The closest match for these qualities was the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Unified Capabilities Requirements 2008 Change 3 (which was referenced by the later UCR 2013). This document defines the requirements for SIP technologies to be certified to operate on a DoD IPv6 network. All major vendors aspire to comply with this standard in order to be approved as a supplier for U.S. DoD contracts. Given the multi-national nature of many 21st century military operations, even non-U.S. DoD communications networks owned by coalition partners aspire to achieve this certification. However, preparing for a certification session at the Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) is a time-consuming, resource-intensive and onerous task for UC vendors.
The overall goal of the SIPv6 program was to implement a pre-certification program that would enable vendors to establish their readiness for the JITC certification process. The program required the definition of likely test cases and scenarios and a method of exercising those in an automated and consistent manner. The benefits would be that vendors could reduce their cost of preparing for certification and improve their likelihood of gaining certification.
After an extensive RFP process, UNH- IOL was short-listed by UCI Forum in early 2012 as an approved vendor of test programs and tools. Later that year, CWG awarded the contract for the SIPv6 program to UNH IOL. The contract required UNH-IOL to deliver:
- A comprehensive test plan that would establish compliance with the UCR 2008 Change 3 requirements.
- An automated test tool that would implement the test plan.
- A secure IPv6 test network to conduct the testing
- A test environment that would contain various components (e.g. IPv6 compliant routers) to simulate a comprehensive SIPv6 network.
The test plan was delivered and approved in 2013. This very detailed document is 400 pages long, containing all of the test cases required for compliance with the UCR 2008 Change 3 document, including:
- IPv6 Core Operations
- Neighbor Discovery
- SLAAC
- Path MTU
- ICMPv6
- Addressing Architecture
- DHCPv6
- Comprehensive SIPv6 session scenarios
The test tool and test network deliverables were made to UCI Forum in late March this year. Since then, UCI Forum vendor members, led by Sonus Networks, have been working through the acceptance testing of the deliverables. The test tool is based on the UNH-IOL INTACT™ test scripting platform. The test network allows UCI Forum members to conduct interoperability testing with other members as well as to interoperate with equipment that is hosted at UNH IOL.
The test plan and test tool are available for download free of charge by the UCI Forum/IMTC members. The test network can be used to conduct bi-lateral interoperability testing between consortium members; it can also be used to conduct interoperability plug-fests and similar events. Furthermore, the UNH-IOL offers a service to act as an independent third-party test lab to implement the test suite against a vendor’s SIPv6 implementation.
With the completion of the SIPv6 test program implementation, UCI Forum and IMTC members now have free access to an invaluable tool that saves time and resources, and provides a credible metric of SIP over IPv6 interoperability. Special thanks go to Tim Carlin of the UNH IOL, as well as Brad Chalker of Sonus Networks and Sam Bedekar of Microsoft, for their contributions to this project.
For more information about IMTC, please visit www.imtc.org
UCI Forum Signs Development Agreement with HCL Americas
Establishes H.265 HEVC Test Suite for both UCI Forum and IMTC members
SAN RAMON, Calif., June 30, 2014 – The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) today announced that it has signed an agreement with HCL Americas (HCL) to develop an H.265 test suite for its members to verify compliance with the upcoming UCI Forum interoperability profile for H.265 HEVC and SHVC. Under the terms of the agreement, HCL will develop the test plan, verification software tool and supporting documentation.
Members of both UCI Forum and International Multimedia Telecommunication Consortium, which will merge and operate under the IMTC banner, will all benefit from the test suite for H.265 HEVC and SHVC interoperability.
As part of the agreement, HCL engineers will participate in the UCI Forum Video Task Group work on the H.265 interoperability profile. The group will address bitstream-level codec configuration and certification, as well as transport-level (media only) configuration and certification. Early participation by the HCL development team will allow them to gain familiarity with the requirements of the test plan and test tool and thereby shorten the development cycle of the project deliverables. The contracted development work will be formally initiated when the Video Task Group freezes the H.265 specification.
The H.265 Test Suite will enable UCI Forum members to use the test plan and tool to aid in development and testing of H.265 codec implementations. The test tool will be installed and operated within members’ own test environments within their laboratory network to verify compliance with the UCI Forum H.265 profile and will speed time to market and reduce development costs.
“We are delighted to team with HCL to deliver this valuable interoperability testing service to our members. We selected HCL after an extensive search for labs because of their strong reputation for independent, vendor-neutral testing and years of experience,” said Matt Collier, president of UCI Forum. “The participation of the HCL development team in the creation of the interoperability profile before the development work is scheduled to start is a testament to the partnership that has been forged between UCI Forum and HCL Americas.”
“We at HCL see the UCIF partnership as a strategic step towards extending our commitment to ensure interoperability of products in Unified Communications and feel proud to be part of UCI Forum Video Task Group to contribute in H.265 Test Tool Development,” said Rajeev Agrawal, Vice President for Global Strategic Business Segment at HCL. “We look forward to mutually growing this partnership with active participation in defining specifications and providing engineering services to UCIF member partners.”
About HCL Americas
HCL Technologies is a leading global IT services company working with clients in the areas that impact and redefine the core of their businesses. Since its emergence on global landscape after its IPO in 1999, HCL has focused on ‘transformational outsourcing’, underlined by innovation and value creation, offering an integrated portfolio of services including software-led IT solutions, remote infrastructure management, engineering and R&D services and Business services. HCL leverages its extensive global offshore infrastructure and network of offices in 31 countries to provide holistic, multi-service delivery in key industry verticals including Engineering and R&D Services, Manufacturing, Consumer Services, Public Services and Healthcare & Life sciences. HCL takes pride in its philosophy of Relationship Beyond the Contract (RBtC) which empowers its employees to exceed expectations and deliver value for the customers. HCL Technologies, along with its subsidiaries, had consolidated revenues of US$ 5.2 billion, as on 31st March 2014 (on LTM basis). For more information, please visit http://www.hcltech.com.
About the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) is a non-profit alliance of worldwide communications technology leaders working together to realize the potential of unified communications (UC) by increasing efficiency, decreasing implementation costs and improving the interoperability experience for UC customers. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook or visit http://www.uciforum.org and the UCI Forum blog to learn more.
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) and the International Multimedia Telecommunication Consortium (IMTC) will merge into a single consortium in 2014. The new organization will operate under the IMTC banner and brings together the industry’s two leading technology consortia focused on promoting and facilitating the use of interoperable video collaboration and unified communications solutions worldwide, based on open international standards.
About the International Multimedia Telecommunications Consortium (IMTC)
The IMTC is an industry-leading, non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and facilitate the development and use of interoperable, real-time, multimedia telecommunication products and services based on open international standards. The IMTC hosts interoperability testing events and demonstrations throughout the world. IMTC membership is open to any interested party, including vendors of audio, document, and video conferencing hardware and software; academic institutions; government agencies; and non-profit organizations. Further information can be found at http://www.imtc.org.
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© 2014 Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum). All rights reserved. The UCI Forum logo and UCI Forum are trademarks and/or service marks of the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
Contact:
Linda Braun
UCIF Member Communications
+ 1 603 424 4914
lbraun@inventures.com
SAN RAMON, Calif., May 15, 2014 – The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) today announced that it has released its first Unified Communication Software Defined Network (UC SDN) Use Case specification for automating Quality of Service (QoS). Developed by its newly formed UC SDN Task Group (TG), the specification describes in detail how a UC system can automate the programming of the network for proper treatment of voice, video and web conferencing.
This innovative approach removes the expensive and error prone manual administration of deploying QoS, thereby eliminating misconfiguration, configuration drift and increased cost of operations. All an operator has to do is specify a set of policies for voice, video and web conferencing and the UC systems will automatically program the network via a UC SDN North Bound Interface (NBI) to the desired QoS treatment. The specification details how to dynamically manage QoS, which involves four different use cases:
1. Dynamic Marking QoS: dynamically mark authorized voice and video traffic with the appropriate QoS markings.
2. Call Admission Control: prevent voice and video traffic from exceeding the available bandwidth capacity, and notify applications of changes in available bandwidth so they can adjust selected codecs (e.g. based on policies).
3. Dynamic Traffic Engineering of Bandwidth Capacity for each Class of Service: dynamically adjust the amount of bandwidth associated with various Classes of Service (CoS) to match bandwidth requirements of the corresponding applications.
4. Dynamic Traffic Engineering of Media Paths: route media along a path that is best able to meet performance requirements, rather than along the “default” least-cost path.
Version 1.0 of the specification focuses on dynamically marking QoS and can be downloaded here: http://ucif.org/Portals/0/documents/2014_02_27_Use_Case.pdf. Version 2.0, set for release later this year, will extend the specification to cover dynamic Traffic Engineering (TE) and Call Admission Control.
Given that more and more customers demand UC to work correctly over Wi-Fi, the specification covers both wired and wireless networks, thereby improving the end user experience.
“By working with the industry in an open, standards-based approach, Microsoft believes Software Defined Networking offers the promise to bring great quality Lync and Skype experiences to users across all different network types,” said Giovanni Mezgec, General Manager of Product Marketing for Skype and Lync. “Through the combination of the Lync SDN API and the strong work of our partners, we’ve been able to deliver solutions for our customers they can take advantage of today and lay the foundation in the industry for broad adoption of UC SDN as a core use case for enterprise network architects.”
“Developing multi-vendor open Northbound APIs is critical to drive broad adoption and accelerate the innovation of SDN solutions, such as HP Network Optimizer SDN Application for Microsoft Lync,” says Manfred Arndt, Chief Technologist for UC, HP Networking. “HP delivers a superior UC user experience, through automation and simplification, seamlessly across unified wired and wireless networks via a hybrid SDN approach without requiring a rip-and-replace of the network.”
“Today’s work-anywhere-anytime #GenMobile user expects non-stop Wi-Fi access via mobile devices to business critical applications, including UCC services like Microsoft Lync, and this requires a fundamental rethinking of IT architecture,” said Michael Tennefoss, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Aruba Networks. “Wired networks with their rigid VLANs are out. Today you need over-the-air adaptive quality of service mechanisms that automatically recognize and prioritize applications, and provide end-to-end monitoring and root-cause diagnostics. For example, Aruba’s interface with the standards-based Lync SDN API reflects this new reality, providing unparalleled Lync and network visibility into real-time calls, fault locations, and device issues. The SDN API empowers you with confidence to cut the cord to wired IP phones, deliver the best possible #GenMobile user experience, and realize the productivity and rightsizing benefits that come from UCC mobility.”
The UCI Forum UC SDN TG was formed in August of 2013 and has a charter to define use cases (including scenarios in automating diagnostics, security, etc.), define any NBIs (with a liaison agreement with the Open Network Foundation North Bound Interface Working Group), and define a certification program if required.
About the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) is a non-profit alliance of worldwide communications technology leaders working together to realize the potential of unified communications (UC) by increasing efficiency, decreasing implementation costs and improving the interoperability experience for UC customers. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook or visit http://www.uciforum.org
and the UCI Forum blog to learn more.
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The UCI Forum is an open industry alliance that works with its members to fully leverage customers’ investments in communications systems and unite their global organizations. To learn more about the UCI Forum, please complete the online interest form.
An early goal of the #UCIForum was to facilitate inter-vendor interoperability of SIP implementations. The Voice Study Group was formed in 2011 to examine the state of voice interoperability. Its conclusion was that there was a significant gap in the readiness of SIP networks and technologies to interoperate over IPv6.
IANA allocated the final blocks of IPv4 addresses in February 2011. With the rapid expansion of the internet and the end-points that operate on it, in particular various classes of mobile devices, it was therefore inevitable that the bulk of voice traffic would be carried on IPv6 networks in the future. Nevertheless, there was no global standards group or forum that had established interoperability guidelines or certification for SIP over IPv6 (SIPv6). The closest to such a standard was a set of US Department of Defense documents (Unified Capabilities Requirements 2008 Change 3) defining the requirements for SIP technologies to operate on an IPv6 network; although few, if any, vendors were able to demonstrate compliance with this specification.
The ‘SIP over IPv6’ (SIPv6) Task Group of the Test and Certification Working Group (CWG) was chartered in 2012 to address this challenge. Using the UCR Change 3 requirements as its starting point, it defined a plan for a pre-certification program that would enable vendors to establish their readiness for the JITC certification process. The goals of this program would be:
1. A comprehensive test plan that would establish compliance with the UCR Change 3 requirements.
This test plan would comprise a set of test cases that would exercise either a client element (e.g. a SIP-enabled device) or an infrastructure element (e.g. a ‘SIP Proxy’) with repeatable procedures and expected results.
2. An automated test tool that would implement the test plan.
This test tool would run in a test network that would initiate various connections that would exercise the test plan and produce results of the test.
3. A secure IPv6 test network over which testing could be conducted
4. A test environment that would contain various components (e.g. IPv6 compliant routers) that could be used to simulate a comprehensive SIPv6 network.
After CWG had established its Test Vendor program, the University of New Hampshire’s InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) was selected to implement the SIPv6 program. Rapid progress has been achieved over the last few months and the test plan is in the final stages of acceptance by UCI Forum members. This very comprehensive document is 400 pages long containing all of the test cases required for compliance with the UCR 2008 Change 3 document, including:
· IPv6 Core Operations
· Neighbor Discovery
· SLAAC
· Path MTU
· ICMPv6
· Addressing Architecture
· DHCPv6
· Comprehensive SIPv6 session scenarios
The test tool is based on the UNH IOL INTACT™ test scripting platform and was demonstrated to the UCI Forum membership in October. Completion of the remaining 3 deliverables was completed in December and acceptance testing is currently being conducted by the CWG.
Once the deliverable has been accepted, this tool will be available for download free of charge by the UCI Forum members on completion of acceptance testing. In the future, it will also be possible to use the test network to conduct interoperability testing with other members as well as to interoperate with equipment that is installed in the test environment that is hosted at UNH-IOL. UCI Forum has plans to use this network not only to verify SIPv6 compliance but also to conduct public demonstrations and interop events throughout 2014 and beyond.
With the accelerating deployment of IPv6 voice and data networks, 2014 promises to be the start of a new era in unified communications.
Collaborative relationship ensures that work leverages framework-development
in the SDN community, accelerating wider adoption
SAN RAMON, Calif., November 20, 2013 – The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) today announced that it has signed an agreement with the Open Networking Foundation (ONF) to establish a collaborative relationship in the area of SDN integration into unified communications (UC) environments. Under the terms of the agreement, the two organizations have identified areas of mutual interest for their collaborative efforts:
- Research and publication of use cases that leverage SDN architectures and protocols to enhance or enable UC
- Demonstration and communication of the effective deployment of UC solutions that are supported by SDN architecture
- Identification of a basic framework for a common northbound interface for UC applications
The UCI Forum will define a UC SDN framework and API that describes the interaction of UC with various SDN functions and will attempt to build on frameworks that are being proposed or developed by other SDN communities like ONF. As ONF is developing their framework for Northbound APIs to SDN controllers, the UCI Forum will liaise with ONF to leverage the ONF framework development efforts.
“The UCI Forum is pleased to be working with ONF, and we see this relationship as a great way to support SDN integration into UC,” said Matt Collier, president of UCI Forum.
This collaboration reinforces both organizations’ commitments to openness and promoting the interests of SDN. As part of this collaboration, UCI Forum participated at the ONF Northbound Interface Leadership Roundtable on November 19 in Santa Clara, CA.
“Our relationship with the UCI Forum supports and demonstrates the exciting potential of providing SDN’s benefits to user applications,” said Dan Pitt, executive director of the Open Networking Foundation. “The collaboration between our two organizations will further accelerate the adoption of open SDN, within UC.”
About the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) is a non-profit alliance of worldwide communications technology leaders working together to realize the potential of unified communications (UC) by increasing efficiency, decreasing implementation costs and improving the interoperability experience for UC customers. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook or visit http://www.uciforum.org and the UCI Forum blog to learn more.
The UCI Forum is an open industry alliance that works with its members to fully leverage customers’ investments in communications systems and unite their global organizations. To learn more about the UCI Forum, please complete the online interest form.
UCI Forum Signs Agreement with University of New Hampshire
Establishes SIP over IPv6 Pre-Certification Test Program for Members
SAN RAMON, Calif., July 23, 2013 – The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) today announced that it has signed an agreement with the University of New Hampshire’s InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) to develop SIP over IPv6 (SIPv6) test tools for the use of its members to establish a SIPv6 Test Network, a SIPv6 Interoperability Environment and a pre-certification suite for compliance to the US DoD SIP over IPv6 profile. Under the terms of the agreement, UNH-IOL will develop the SIPv6 software, documentation and provide pre-certification testing services for validating DoD UCR 2008 Change 3 requirements.
Benefits to UCI Forum members:
- Any UCI Forum member company that passes the UCI Forum SIPv6 DoD pre-certification test will have a high degree of confidence in passing the DoD UCR 2008 Change 3 test.
- UCI Forum members may schedule on-site SIPv6 testing to be run by UNH-IOL laboratory staff on UCI Forum member equipment that has been delivered to the laboratory by the UCI Forum member. At the conclusion of testing, an official laboratory report will be issued to the UCI Forum member.
- UCI Forum members have the option to install and operate a stand-alone version of the test environment within their own network to conduct the SIPv6 DoD pre-certification test.
- Access to a secure and remote IPv6 virtual network, scheduled on a booked reservation basis. Using this network, UCI Forum members may perform pre-certification testing for their internal testing purposes
- A SIPv6 interoperability environment where members can host their products in a secured and supported site where they may hold a virtual plug fest or to do their own interoperability testing while connected to the UCI Forum SIPv6 network.
“We are delighted to team with UNH-IOL to deliver this valuable interoperability testing service to our members. We selected UNH-IOL after an extensive search for labs because of their strong reputation for independent, vendor-neutral testing and years of experience,” said Matt Collier, president of UCI Forum. “We are providing our members access to the labs for interoperability testing, which helps simplify the process and streamline the resources required when seeking certifications like this.”
“The UCI Forum was founded with an aggressive goal of enabling interoperability of UC hardware and software across enterprises, service providers, and consumer clouds, as a means of protecting customer’s existing investments,” said Henry Dewing, Principal Analyst at Forrester Research. “The newly announced agreement with UNH-IOL is one more proof point that the forum is delivering on that promise. The industry as a whole is better able to meet business’ ever-increasing appetite for innovative solutions when working together to enable reliable communication and collaboration across network boundaries and among heterogeneous infrastructures.”
About the UNH-IOL
Founded in 1988, the UNH-IOL provides independent, broad-based interoperability and standards conformance testing for data, telecommunications and storage networking products and technologies. Combining extensive staff experience, standards bodies’ participation and a 32,000+ square foot facility, the UNH-IOL helps companies efficiently and cost effectively deliver products to the market. For more information, visit http://www.iol.unh.edu/, or connect with the UNH-IOL on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/UNHIOL, on Twitter at @UNH_IOL and on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/company/unh-interoperability-lab.
About the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) is a non-profit alliance of worldwide communications technology leaders working together to realize the potential of unified communications (UC) by increasing efficiency, decreasing implementation costs and improving the interoperability experience for UC customers. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook or visit http://www.uciforum.org and the UCI Forum blog to learn more.
The UCI Forum is an open industry alliance that works with its members to fully leverage customers’ investments in communications systems and unite their global organizations. To learn more about the UCI Forum, please complete the online interest form.
© 2013 Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum). All rights reserved. The UCI Forum logo and UCI Forum are trademarks and/or service marks of the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
SAN RAMON, Calif., February 11, 2013 – The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) today announced that its Board of Directors has approved the Unified Communications Specification for H.264/MPEG-4 Part 10 AVC and SVC Modes Version 1.0. Coupled with a certification program that is currently under development, it will allow customers to deploy mixed-vendor solutions with confidence.
Video conferencing solutions from a number of leading vendors have already incorporated H.264/SVC; however, current implementations may not fully interoperate. The approved specification defines configurations of H.264/SVC-based systems to ensure their interoperability. The approved specification builds on the profiles submitted by the UCI Forum to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), and adopted in early 2012, concerning use of H.264/MPEG-4 Part 10 AVC and SVC in Unified Communication (UC) systems.
The UCI Forum approved H.264/SVC specification defines a carefully selected set of capabilities that have proven to be effective in real-life deployments from different vendors. The specification takes into consideration the needs of UC users that use various devices, ranging from handheld and mobile devices (e.g., smart phones, tablets, and notepads) to larger, location systems (e.g., desktop computers and video conference suites) to connect into visual collaboration meetings.
The new specification is the first step in the UCI Forum’s planned interoperability certification program for H.264/SVC-based video systems and covers the bit stream. Additional specifications are planned in the area of transport and signaling, enabling the negotiation of different transmission modes between the video source and the video destination, as well as parameters such as picture resolution, video refresh rates and screen size.
“The UCI Forum’s approval of the H.264/SVC specification is a significant milestone because it represents the first step towards enabling the video conferencing and unified communication industries to offer fully interoperable video solutions,” said Bernard Aboba, president of the UCI Forum. “The H.264/SVC task group defined a specification that addresses market needs as well as interoperability challenges among vendors.”
The UCI Forum is an open industry alliance that works with its members to fully leverage customers’ investments in communications systems and unite their global organizations. To learn more about the UCI Forum, please complete the online interest form.
About the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) is a non-profit alliance of worldwide communications technology leaders working together to realize the potential of unified communications (UC) by increasing efficiency, decreasing implementation costs and improving the interoperability experience for UC customers. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook or visit www.uciforum.org and the UCI Forum blog to learn more.
© 2013 Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum). All rights reserved. The UCI Forum logo and UCI Forum are trademarks and/or service marks of the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
It’s hard to believe two years have passed since the Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) came together to form the non-profit alliance we know today. We’re an organization dedicated to realizing the potential of unified communications – which means we’re committed to increasing efficiency, decreasing implementation costs and improving the interoperability experience for UC customers.
Over the past two years, UCI Forum membership has grown to 40 organizations sharing a vision to enable interoperability of standards-based UC hardware and software across enterprises, service providers and consumer clouds. Just this year, we welcomed five new members to the Forum including GENBAND, ShoreTel, Meru Networks, Wipro and Blue Jeans Network.
Our next big event is our Fall Annual Member Meeting, which will be held in Austin, Texas and co-located with IT EXPO West in October. We hope you will join us Oct. 2 – 3 for the meeting, which will have a full agenda including analyst and end-user tracks (open to the public), a networking reception (open to the public), task group updates and a State of the Union address from Bernard Aboba, chairman of the UCI Forum Board.
We’re also making great strides in addressing the interoperability challenges of the UC industry. Below are some highlights and milestones since our one-year anniversary:
- In March of this year we were extremely proud to announce that the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) reviewed and approved a set of video coding profiles developed by the UCI Forum. The UCI Forum submitted these profiles to the ITU for inclusion in the Scalable Video Coding (SVC) design for its H.264 Advanced Video Coding (AVC) standard.
- November 2011 saw the UCI Forum launch the SIP over IPv6 Task Group, chartered to establish a SIP over IPv6 test network infrastructure for vendors to test their IPv6 SIP interoperability.
- In October, 2011 we held our Second Annual All Member Meeting Hosted in Austin, Texas. The meeting was a huge success and featured guest speakers like industry analysts Irwin Lazar of Nemertes and Henry Dewing of Forrester. We also heard from a number of end users about the UC interoperability challenges they face very day.
- In August 2011, the UCI Forum grew its Board of Directors to include members from both RADVISION and Vidyo.
- And one year ago this month, the UCI Forum received great news when the UCIF USB Webcam recommendation was adopted by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) Video Work Group and submission of the completed specification was delivered to the USB-IF board.
As you can see, we’ve accomplished quite a bit, but there still a lot of work to be done including establishing our first certifications. We’re working hard on achieving a certification program for H.264 SVC. In order to succeed, we count on volunteer members like you to participate. If you’re interested in helping us achieve our goals, please let us know by contacting info@ucif.org.
Are you interesting in learning more about the UCI Forum? If so, please check out the resources below. Thanks!!
- Website http://www.UCIF.org
- Whitepaper “UC, Driving the Next Step to Interoperability“
- UCIF Blog https://uciforum.wordpress.com/
Please follow us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube
SAN RAMON, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) today announced that the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has reviewed and approved a set of video coding profiles developed by the UCI Forum. The UCI Forum submitted these profiles to the ITU for inclusion in the Scalable Video Coding (SVC) design for its H.264 Advanced Video Coding (AVC) standard. A corresponding adoption of the same profiles into the MPEG-4 Part 10 AVC standard has also entered into the approval process of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).
SVC is already implemented in enterprise-class videoconferencing solutions from a number of leading vendors including RADVISION, Teliris and Vidyo, with the intent to implement SVC on the roadmap for companies like LifeSize, Microsoft and Polycom. However, current SVC implementations are not fully interoperable, and therefore a standard needs to be defined in order to certify interoperability scenarios.
“The UCI Forum is gaining momentum and making great strides toward defining interoperability, and this is another positive step in that direction,” said Bernard Aboba, president of UCI Forum. “ITU and ISO/IEC acceptance of our SVC profile proposal will accelerate interoperability verification and give end users the confidence that their UC technologies are fully interoperable, even in heterogeneous environments.”
To see the entire release, please visit:
The UCI Forum continues making advances toward unified communications interoperability. Most recently, the forum launched its SIP over IPv6 Task Group. The new Task Group, which successfully completed the member review and comment period, is the first test program chartered to operate under the Test and Certification Work Group (CWG).
This Task Group will establish a SIP over IPv6 test network infrastructure for vendors to test their IPv6 SIP interoperability. Members will be able to stand up their gear anywhere in the world and be able to test interop with any other member regardless of proximity. Additionally the IPv6 infrastructure will be capable to host a virtual plugfest to test SIP voice sessions over IPv6.
The IPv6 test infrastructure will be based on the Department of Defense Unified Capabilities Requirement (UCR) 2008 Ch 3 specification. The UCR specifies the functional requirements, performance objectives, and technical specifications for DoD networks that support Unified Communications. One of the major benefits of this task group will be aiding members in achieving IPv6 SIP interoperability for the DoD UCR by pre-testing their solutions.
The SIP over IPv6 Task Group is chartered to:
- Provide a secure environment that allows members to perform online testing for SIP over a known good working IPv6 infrastructure.
- Provide a test suite for member companies to simulate DoD UCR 2008 Ch 3 IPv6 requirements. Some examples of tests that can be performed are: make an IP call, receive an IP call, transfer a call, call to PSTN, incoming call from PSTN and call to E911.
- Provide a cloud-based test platform that is available online and at any time.
- Provide a platform for virtualized interoperability testing at various formal events.
For more information on the SIP over IPv6 Task Group and the UCI Forum in general, please contact info@ucif.org.
The Unified Communications Interoperability Forum (UCI Forum) 