What are the PeerConnect services?

PeerConnect services enable cable operators and their partners to connect together and dynamically exchange the data necessary to establish end-to-end IP communications. Each participating cable operator decides how to exchange data with a partner and what data to exchange. The PeerConnect Registry is cable's tier-one registry for IP communications providing data provisioning and number translation services using open, secure and standard Internet protocols.

The PeerConnect services are built on CableLabs technologies that provide data provisioning and number translation services for end-to-end IP communications. These technologies leverage common Web Services and open Internet protocols from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).

The PeerConnect Registry is a technology platform supporting three primary service elements

• Registration Services allowing cable operators to dynamically provision various data elements into the registry. Examples of such service data include telephone numbers or routing numbers commonly used to establish Voice over IP (VoIP) calls, all the associated session establishment data such as a SIP route (SIP is the IETF Session Initiation Protocol, the defacto standard for establishing VoIP calls between voice service providers), or other data to provide links to the SMS gateways capable of receiving SMS to these numbers.
• Resolution Services for cable operators or their PeerConnect partners to perform number translation querying the registry
• Replication Services to dynamically distribute data for SMS-MMS and VoIP services to select partner companies primarily for session routing purposes.

In brief, PeerConnect services are

• an easy way to manage the dissemination of operational data once two companies have established a bilateral business relationship to exchange real-time communication traffic or enable SMS-MMS value-added services
• a set of BSS-OSS operational tools for cable operators to better control and dynamically share session-related data with their partners to enable IP communications end-to-end
• a solution for companies partnering with cable operators to get authoritative data for voice, SMS-MMS and other real-time communication services via IP, the Internet Protocol through one distributed service platform

What it is not

• It is not a traffic exchange hub: no voice, SMS-MMS or any multimedia traffic traverses the PeerConnect platform, it is just an OSS automation engine
• It is not a signaling interconnect point: the PeerConnect registry optionally provides a look-up function; session signaling between a cable operator and its partner is established directly between the two partners
• It is not a single stop to create business relationships. The PeerConnect services are essentially in the operational layers. There is no support for rating, charging or billing. Each MSO makes its own business decisions and traffic exchange accounting and other compensations are outside the scope of CableLabs services