Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) is a critical building block for service delivery in the Next Generation Networks. It has a prominent role in IMS network architecture as the new framework for service delivery and management over fixed and mobile networks.
The adoption of SIP by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) as a call control protocol was a major milestone for the standardization world as the IMS architecture became the first SIP-based standard commercial system, setting the guideline for following developments. Driven by the demand for multimedia communication services, the industry had to search for an efficient way to deploy those services in the existing and new networks. Wireless telecommunication operators and vendors had to adapt quickly, enabling a rapid introduction of IP and SIP services into their network through the IMS. The standardization effort has been driven by the 3GPP in close work with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to ensure the harmonization of standards.
SIP standards set the baseline for the creation of CSCF and other functional elements in the IMS network, ensuring the interoperability of various network elements (UE, CSCF, etc), defining basic communication rules between the elements, and setting the guidelines for interconnecting with other network architectures. The standard body comprises the standards for data plane, user plane as well as session control in the SIP network.
Ensuring standards compliance helps to keep the number of implementation- and vendor-specific workarounds in the core network to a bare minimum, resulting in a more stable and better-performing network. Below is a list of some of the SIP standards which are essential for the stable operation of all network elements.
Standards are defining service functions that enable the creation of new services, content and media distribution, and various formats of multimedia services. They are wide-ranging, defining everything from the network interoperability functions, legacy functions such as SMS to particular aspects of IMS function such as QoS reservation or voice call continuity (where 3GPP extensions rely on particular SIP messages and headers for the call handover). Standards also define particular aspects of IMS function that form the end-user experience and fulfill the mission-critical role, such as enabling emergency calling.
The availability of service enablers ensures service compliance and lowers the cost of implementing the more complex end-user services in terms of both capital expenses (CAPEX) and operational expenses (OPEX). To ensure simple and rapid integration of services, the network must support open standard-based interfaces and apply service-oriented architecture principles. Even though many IMS equipment vendors are capable of creating new services, that is just the first of many steps required to get a given service operational and ensure the best customer experience. Successful integration requires taking service applications from diverse sources and integrating them in an innovative way. SIP provides session establishment capabilities for application, using SDP protocol offer/answer (RFC3264) mechanisms.
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