Five key telecom buzzwords

1. Private APN

APN stands for Access Point Name. It is a connection point or gateway between a mobile network (3G, 4G, ...) and another data network, which can be either private or public like the Internet. An APN ensures a seamless, secure transition between these networks.

APNs are often described as dedicated. A dedicated Access Point Name (APN) connects your mobile users directly to your company’s local data network (LAN). Wit-Gele Kruis in the province of Antwerp has recently chosen for Orange because Orange offers a permanent, dedicated APN with guaranteed bandwidth in a completely secure environment.
 

2. MPLS

MPLS stands for Multi-Protocol Label Switching. It is the process used to transport data packets in a network. Each data packet gets a label that determines and reserves the route to be followed in advance. MPLS allows so-called quality of service (QoS) categories, which enables you to assign the appropriate priority to every application. This ensures critical applications, such as telephony, suffer (almost) no delays. Orange’s IP VPN range also relies on the high-performance, secure and reliable MPLS mechanism.
 

3. IP telephony

Voice over IP (VoIP) or IP Telephony (IPT) converts and sends voice over the data network in so-called IP packets. IPT offers companies flexibility. An IP phone can be positioned anywhere in the network, even as more and more employees use their PCs to make phone calls. IP telephony also opens up the possibility of additional services, such as integration with applications such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM).

IPT can also reduce the cost of calls between multiple company locations, if they are connected with IP VPN, for example. Orange SIP Trunking offers a voice service for sites connected with IP VPN. In that case, your fixed telephony is incorporated into the network and connected to the public network.
 

4. FMU

FMU stands for Fixed Mobile Unification, a concept that integrates your employees’ mobile and fixed communication. Just as you can fully integrate mobile data into your corporate network, you can do the same with mobile calls. IRISnet, which is responsible for the telecommunication services of the Brussels Capital Region, has integrated the Orange mobile network into its IP telephony solution.

This allows IRISnet to offer its business telephony solution to mobile users as well. Its phone exchange can communicate with fixed IP devices, VoIP software and mobile devices alike.
 

5. Hybrid network

A hybrid network combines a company's or opertor's private network with a public network, such as the Internet. Companies are using these hybrid environments more and more nowadays. They distribute their IT infrastructure across a private network (the LAN) and the public network. In order to link these two worlds, Orange offers an IP VPN gateway that can connect every external business application with your IP VPN.

An example of this is CRC Industries, a developer of chemical products. CRC Industries has its own data centre and IP VPN, but also has part of its ICT such as Microsoft Office365 in the cloud. CRC uses its own Microsoft applications via the private connection provided by Orange.