Tektronix announced new network monitoring tools for operators in the vital GSM
market, where a majority of revenue is currently derived.

Being profitable in the established GSM market is critical to network
operators, because the rollout of next-generation (2.5G and 3G) networks is
dependent on revenue generated from GSM services. To be profitable, GSM
operators rely on statistical data of network traffic, network element
performance and Quality of Service (QoS). Tektronix' new Planet and
Intelligent Roaming Monitoring Application (IRMA) software features leverage
the proven NET-7 monitoring system to enable efficiencies in network
planning and network performance estimations in roaming scenarios, enabling
operators to maintain a high-level of QoS and maximise GSM revenue.

"Operators rely on their existing GSM networks for steady revenue and must
devote critical resources to maintain network performance and profits", said
Bob Agnes, Vice President, Monitoring & Protocol Test, Tektronix. "By
leveraging our expertise in 2G, 2.5G and 3G mobile networks, we've been able
to design the new NET-7 features to automatically detect performance
problems and report data, enabling operators to easily maintain the
profitability of GSM networks."

NET-7 Planet network planning software automates activities, aids
decision-making
The new NET-7 Planet feature provides a steady, reliable supply of
statistical data which allows expert planners to verify and modify routing
tables at various nodes to handle peaks, bypass problem nodes and adapt to
network reconfiguration. This is done with NET-7 Planet’s four main
elements: Planet/TR Core, Planet/TR BSC-BSC, Planet/Sig, and Handover
Matrix. These tools integrate into the NET-7 monitoring system and together
address multiple protocol layers to provide comprehensive information about
network traffic. The data correlates down to the individual call level and
spans the whole network, from origin to destination. The result is an
analytical view of traffic flow across the network. This level of detail,
unique among network monitoring solutions, gives planning engineers the
support they need as they make decisions about sharing traffic loads among
available network resources.

NET-7 IRMA measures network performance, detects poor QoS
The IRMA feature provides clear, definable measurements of the inter-working
performance among different networks. The application extracts raw data from
the transmission trunk at the interconnection level of the network. Analysis
is then taken by combining both Mobile Application Part (MAP) and ISDN User
Part (ISUP) signalling data, which support the mobility of roaming users.
The comprehensive set of measurements includes real-time analysis of all MAP
transactions and the Mobile Terminated Calls (MTCs). These measurements
provide a constant view of the service being provided to roamers and quickly
disclose QoS degradation in order for operators to take immediate action,
minimising impact on users. In addition, the application immediately alarms
network planners to QoS issues via specific parameters set by the software
tool. This allows operators to assess dropped calls experienced by visitors
to the network.

About the NET-7 monitoring system
The NET-7 is a full-featured SS7/GSM network analysis platform that houses a
wide range of applications specifically designed to meet the most demanding
troubleshooting and business analysis needs. It is a non-intrusive
monitoring system that consists of a central unit and remote probes that
connect to the signalling network. The NET-7's Windowsâ-based user interface
provides a familiar operating environment and compatibility with office
applications and analysis tools. The NET-7 is seamlessly integrated with
NET-GPRS to provide a complete SS7/GSM/GPRS solution.