Another interesting panel that I participated on at VON Canada was the IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) general session.  So what is IMS?  Many folks still think of IMS as it was originally by design, i.e. a spec geared towards delivering SIP services to the wireless space (as defined by the 3GPP folks).  In reality, it is much bigger than that. 

The best way to define IMS is as an access agnostic spec that enables service providers to deliver a new generation of SIP-based multimedia apps (in the SS7 and SIP domains).  This allows for the convergence of wireline and wireless network architectures and the benefits are OPEX savings (due to a decreasing incremental cost of deploying apps within this framework), a faster time-to-market (due to reduced complexity) and the new apps, which are geared towards increasing subscriber stickiness and the uptake of enhanced services.  The key idea is the re-use of common functions: IMS takes the network from a vertical integration modus operandi to a horizontal architecture model where these common functions are re-utilized.

In other words, IMS is supposed to be everything the intelligent network was supposed to be plus more.  But before drinking all the vendor Kool Aid, much work still needs to be done, both in terms of the actual IMS standard itself, the value proposition of vendors to service providers, the conceptualization of new services and the establishment of new pricing models that will make this network evolution a bit more palatable to service providers.

The session proved to be really interesting - I was particularly impressed with the candor of all the panelists.  Some folks might have expected that given the fact that there were four vendors (IP Unity, Lucent, MetaSwitch and Nortel) and one lone service provider (Bell Canada), the tone of the session would have been based on more hype and promotion.  However, that was not at all the case - in fact, the session provided a realistic view of the current state of the market, the realities facing both vendors and service providers, as well as the issues that still need to be worked on.  I will be posting more on IMS in the future, so stay tuned.