Telecom Lead @ Mobile World Congress 2013: SK Telecom on Monday said it would evaluate Nokia Siemens Networks’ Radio Applications Cloud Server (RACS), which enables Liquid Applications, in the first half of 2013.

Liquid Applications technology helps operators provide a unique and personalized mobile broadband experience. This is achieved by turning base stations into a local hub for new service creation and delivery that exists closer to the mobile subscriber.

SK Telecom will be the world’s first mobile operator to test Liquid Applications in an LTE environment.

Ovum says NSN’s Liquid Applications will turn the base station into an intelligent cache store for frequently accessed local content. NSN CEO Rajeev Suri talked about how the innovation will enable telcos to deliver a better service and make their networks more efficient. NSN has also signed up IBM as a partner to deliver the mobile edge computing platform and is lining up a telco partner to be unveiled soon.

Emeka Obiodu, telco strategy analyst, Ovum, said: “NSN proclaims this as the biggest transformation in the role of the base station since the launch of GSM 22 years ago. This is true to an extent, although we note that NSN is not the first vendor to tout local caching at the base station. Much smaller vendors like Altobridge have developed similar local caching solutions.

“But this is still a big development for the mobile industry. Research consistently shows that consumers use their mobile phones predominantly when at home or in the office. Therefore, it is logical to map user preferences and provide local intelligence at the base station. This extension of intelligence from the core to the base station is thus something to watch in the next few years,” Obiodu added.

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The operator is focusing on realizing Service-Aware RAN (radio access network) as part of its evolution toward an upgraded network.

SK Telecom and Nokia Siemens Networks will sign an agreement on February 27, 2013 during the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013, to cooperate in the testing of Liquid Applications.

Service-Aware RAN base station provides customers with a unique mobile experience through a variety of customized services. Based on the diverse features of intelligent base stations such as localized processing, storage and access to real-time radio and network data, the operator expects to develop services and applications that deliver a contextualized and personalized experience to customers.

“Telecom providers are realizing that optimized transmission of data alone can no longer guarantee success in the market,” said Choi Jin-sung, executive vice president and head of ICT R&D Division at SK Telecom.

Jarmo Häkkinen, head of mobile broadband value creation, Nokia Siemens Networks, said: “SK Telecom’s dense network of mobile base stations transformed with Liquid Applications processes content locally and interacts with subscribers to provide a totally unique mobile broadband experience.  This will help SK Telecom to generate revenue from new business models, new services and new applications.”

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