80% service providers plan to leverage NFV in 2014: Survey

According to a study by Dialogic, the Network Fuel company, an overwhelming majority of 80% of service providers plan to leverage NFV in 2014.
The survey says that 81 percent of respondents foresee a diminishing role for the Central Office; but more than half expect purpose built hardware to have longevity. The top benefits of NFV were seen as relating to CAPEX and OPEX, with 70 percent of respondents believing they could be more operationally efficient with NFV and 67 percent indicating it is a better way to invest capital.
Dialogic  announced the results of its first Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) Survey, to cut through market speculation and deliver relevant information on NFV and virtualization and how it will alter the way service providers deploy the networks of tomorrow.

“It all comes down to the fact that virtualization of Network Functions is just a matter of when, not if,” according to Thomas Schroer, director of service provider marketing for Dialogic. “Because the timing is right now for virtualizing UC and VoIP applications and 70 percent of survey respondents expect to see gains in operational efficiency right away.”

The survey results reveal that an overwhelming majority of respondents see service providers benefitting the most from NFV with Unified Communications the likely starting place for NFV deployments followed by 4G and 3G a distant consideration.

It was no surprise that security and scalability are leading challenges for those implementing a virtualization strategy, so the take away here is for companies to look for solutions and partners who can be trusted to address those concerns.

source: http://www.telecomtiger.com/Technology_fullstory.aspxpassfrom=topstory&storyid=19267&section=S210

Sprint dead last in Consumer Reports' phone service survey

The nation's third-largest wireless carrier by subscriber base sank to the bottom of a survey conducted by Consumer Reports over cell phone service. Sprint scored "dismal marks" in value, voice, text messaging, and 4G reliability, according to Consumer Reports' survey released Thursday. Sprint ranked No. 2 behind Verizon Wireless a year ago.

t's the latest headache for a carrier that is going through a long and painful transformation of its network. Sprint is in the middle of upgrading its network to allow for better and faster service, but the transition has been rough on customers. As a result, many have left the carrier in the last few years.

"While the findings in the Consumer Reports' survey are disappointing, they're not necessarily surprising," said a Sprint representative. "We've asked customers during the past year to 'pardon our dust' as we build out and upgrade our network."

Sprint is hoping the rate of customer attrition will fade once the network improves. To drum up interest for its next-generation network, the company last month demonstrated Sprint Spark, its enhanced LTE network. The company said in areas where the coverage has improved, the customer satisfaction has moved up accordingly.

Verizon Wireless was once again the top-rated carrier, though Verizon recently conceded that it was facing pressures in big cities such as New York and San Francisco.

AT&T and T-Mobile scored "ho-hum" results, Consumer Reports said, but AT&T was the lone carrier to get a top rating for 4G reliability.

source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57613261-94/sprint-dead-last-in-consumer-reports-phone-service-survey/