IP/MPLS and Broadband forums unite

May 19, 2017

The Broadband Forum and IP/MPLS Forum have joined together to form a central body for next gen packet network specifications.

The union of the two organisations brings together the core and access aggregation work of the IP/MPLS Forum with the local transport and digital home management specifications of the Broadband Forum.

The new organisation, which will keep the Broadband Forum name, has 220 members from all parts of the telecoms industry.

With the range of technologies growing rapidly, the forum’s role will be to define interoperable network equipment for local broadband access.

In the UK, the news was quickly welcomed by Kevin Foster, Head of Wireline Access at BT, who said:

“This union means we will all benefit from a greater end-to-end approach for network and protocol standardisation, and that includes end-to-end performance, interoperability, architecture and protocols. It is good news for the industry”.

Orange welcomed the move towards to consolidation.

“We are very enthusiastic to see the industry defragmenting,” said Philippe Lucas, Vice President, International Standards and Industry Relationships at Orange.