The IMS: IP Multimedia Concepts And Services, Second Edition

Foreword by Alan Duric

For centuries, communications were known as the ways in which people, goods and ideas move from one place to another. It usually referred to roads and railways and their way of operating, and, more recently, letter writing and telephone calls.

With advances in naval, terrestrial and aerial infrastructure as well as in their modus operandi we have come a long way. The advent of electronic personal and business communications, and the way that electronic goods are being exchanged, has revolutionized the communications industry, but, as seen in the last few years with the rise of real-time IP communications, we have barely scratched the surface of what is about to come. Not only do people want to be mobile and achieve seamless integration of all applications (voice, video, TV, IM, chat, conferencing, presence, e-mail, file sharing, contact information, identity, etc.) on a single device, but they also want freedom to change this device for different use scenarios.

The emergence of a new set of intelligent, interactive and location-based broadband services (video, push to talk, mobile access to speech-enabled services) is currently occurring and, along with them, the perceived quality of services provided are moving to new heights. These services, along with their personalization by matching the behavioral characteristics of their users, will bring to service providers new business models and opportunities, creating and shaping the future for competition.