Bridgewater Debuts RAN Congestion Solution

Innovative, policy-driven approach to reducing RAN congestion and providing guaranteed service levels on a per subscriber basis

BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Mobile World Congress Hall 1 Stand 1F47 - Bridgewater Systems (TSX: BWC), the mobile personalization company, today announced Bridgewater's Radio Access Network (RAN) congestion solution. It extends the Bridgewater(R) Policy Controller with a new RAN Congestion module that together combine real-time cell site congestion information with subscriber entitlements to deliver enhanced services.

    News

    -   Mobile operators are facing RAN congestion challenges as a result of
        increasing 3G penetration, widespread adoption of new smart devices,
        and increasing use of bandwidth intensive applications. In many urban
        centers, it is estimated that 80% of network traffic is managed by
        only 10% of cell sites. This has resulted in service degradation for
        mobile subscribers attached to congested cell sites.

    -   Bridgewater's new RAN congestion solution addresses these challenges
        and includes the following components:

        -  The new RAN Congestion module for the Bridgewater Policy
           Controller receives dynamic cell site information from congestion
           probes, usage analyzers, and Deep Packet Inspection from leading
           vendors.

        -  The market leading, 3GPP Release 9 compliant Bridgewater Policy
           Controller uses a dynamic session database to identify subscribers
           on the congested cell site, including their profile, usage, and
           state information. It then applies real-time network, application,
           and subscriber policies to adjust service levels. When congestion
           subsides, the Policy Controller receives a congestion notification
           and regular service levels are restored.

    -   The solution offers several benefits for mobile operators:

        -  Manage RAN congestion in real time on a per cell site, per
           subscriber, and per application basis. Operators can adjust
           subscriber service levels based on service entitlements and
           dynamic cell site conditions.

        -  Increase customer loyalty by applying policies in real time that
           ensure a consistent and positive experience. For example,
           customers attached to a congested cell site can be prioritized
           based on service plans, customer value, personal preferences, or
           application type.

        -  Drive incremental revenues with tiered and usage based service
           plans that guarantee service levels. Target subscriber segments
           with real-time upgrades when the network is congested such as a
           service plan upgrade, a bandwidth boost, or Wi-Fi access.

    Quotes

    Stephen Chau, Chief Technology Officer, SmarTone-Vodafone

    "SmarTone-Vodafone's successful deployment with Bridgewater has allowed us
to deliver an unbeatable customer experience including personalized service
tiers, guaranteed service levels, and network policies that ensure fair usage
and reduce network congestion."

    David Sharpley, Senior Vice President, Bridgewater Systems

    "Bridgewater's new patent-pending RAN congestion solution addresses a
major challenge faced by mobile operators worldwide. By combining real-time
visibility of individual cell site congestion with dynamic policy control and
subscriber data, Bridgewater is providing a compelling and innovative solution
that can improve customer loyalty and reduce congestion."

    Tags/Keywords

    Bridgewater Systems, RAN congestion, Policy Control, mobile data growth,
PCRF, 3GPP, mobile operators

    Links

    http://www.bridgewatersystems.com/RAN-Congestion.aspx
    http://www.bridgewatersystems.com/Policy-Controller.aspx
    http://www.bridgewatersystems.com/Policy/

About Bridgewater Systems

Bridgewater Systems, the mobile personalization company, enables service providers to efficiently manage and profit from mobile data services, content and commerce. The company's market leading mobile personalization portfolio provides a real-time, unified view of subscribers including entitlements, devices, networks, billing profiles, preferences and context. Anchored by Bridgewater's Subscriber Data Broker(TM), the portfolio of carrier-grade and standards-based products includes the Bridgewater(R) Service Controller (AAA), the Bridgewater(R) Policy Controller (PCRF) and the Bridgewater(R) Home Subscriber Server (HSS). More than 140 leading service providers including America Movil, Bell Canada, Clearwire, Cox, Hutchison Telecom, Iusacell, Scartel, SmarTone-Vodafone, Sprint, Tata Teleservices, Tatung, Telmex, Telstra, and Verizon Wireless use Bridgewater's solutions to rapidly deliver innovative mobile services to over 150 million subscribers. For more information, visit us at www.bridgewatersystems.com.

Bridgewater, Bridgewater Systems, the Bridgewater Systems logo, WideSpan, Smart Caps, myPolicy, and Subscriber Data Broker are trademarks or registered trademarks of Bridgewater Systems Corporation. All other company, product names and any registered and unregistered trademarks mentioned are used for identification purposes only and remain the exclusive property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Bridgewater Systems