News Highlights:

• New Ovum Report confirms over 147 million CPE devices managed using TR-069 CPE WAN management protocol (YE2011) and that number is growing rapidly

• The Broadband Forum is beta testing a new TR-069 conformance test suite with multiple vendor devices to continue to ensure interoperability and further enhance market availability
• University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) has been named as the official Test Laboratory for all Broadband Forum TR-069 testing

 
A new report published by global research & analyst firm Ovum confirms the widespread market adoption of TR-069 CPE WAN Management Protocol, in numbers triple what originally was publically known. The report, based on surveys of operators, auto-configuration server (ACS) vendors and CPE vendors, plus Ovum’s own forecasts and a wide range of other data, shows that - by the end of 2011 - TR-069 enabled devices globally totalled more than 147 million and are growing fast.
 

TR-069 enabled devices:  total installed base by region 

YE 2011

Asia/Asia Pacific

59,825,000

Europe

46,703,000

Americas

28,230,000

Middle East & Africa

13,218,000

 
Source:  Ovum TR-069 Report, 2011
 
Commissioned by the Broadband Forum to give an independent assessment of the standing of TR-069 in the market of connected home devices, the Ovum Report states, “In the medium term, we expect the development of integrated experiences which bridge multiple screens, applications, and content to increase in relevance. This demands greater control over the underlying "infrastructure" of the extended home than has previously been necessary, especially on the device-side, on cloud software platforms, and in integrated network access. TR-069 has an important role to play here, allowing operators to monitor, manage and control the increasingly complex collection of connected devices in the home. This in turn will enable operators to ensure quality of experience and will also provide them with the tools to improve customer service, two important factors for a successful multi-screen proposition.”
 
With such a huge influx of new devices coming online, it is critical that these devices adhere to the TR-069 protocol so they can be easily recognized, provisioned and maintained over their lifecycle.  To ensure that the TR-069 protocol is followed consistently, enabling interoperability, the Broadband Forum is launching protocol conformance testing that will lead to a global certification program.  This will be the only program in the broadband industry that will certify TR-069 functionality of CPE.
 
According to the Ovum Report, Broadband Gateway devices make up the largest proportion of TR-069 enabled devices in today’s market – they account for around 70% of devices managed by TR-069. The remainder includes IPTV set top boxes (15%), VoIP phones (2.5%) and femtocell access points (5%).  
 
“TR-069 is recognized throughout the broadband industry as a major enabler of the connected home, and we at Broadband Forum are proud of its widespread acceptance and its continued progress, confirmed and reinforced in this important piece of work by Ovum,” said Robin Mersh, CEO of the Broadband Forum.   “As the number and range of new devices continues to grow, particularly in home networking and in enterprise communications, in the retail environment and M2M amongst others, interoperability and consistent protocol adherence will be key factors.  Device conformance is a critical first step towards ensuring interoperability.”
 
At the current time, the Broadband Forum has developed the conformance test plan and has begun beta testing with a variety of devices.  The beta testing is being managed by UNH-IOL, the officially selected laboratory for this Broadband Forum TR-069 testing program.
 
Independent Labs UNH-IOL to conduct TR-069 testing
The Broadband Forum chose UNH-IOL as the official test house for TR-069 testing because UNH-IOL has been actively driving the test suite development in the Broadband Forum and has a long history of conducting test events for the Broadband Forum.   With this intimate knowledge of the TR-069 protocol and test plan, UNH-IOL will be a valuable partner in this conformance testing. 
 
Erica Johnson, Director at UNH-IOL, commented, “We have been working with the Broadband Forum since 2006 so we are excited to be named the official certification test house for TR-069. Our goal is to provide the facilities, test services, test tools and procedures that allow for a higher level of confidence and experience in the connected home.”
 
For further information about the Broadband Forum or for information about how to join the work or to access the latest free white papers and technical reports, please visit www.broadband-forum.org. 
 
The Ovum report contains forecasts for the global installed base of TR-069 Enabled Customer-Premises Equipment for the period 2011 – 2013. The forecast data includes a regional split, providing data for North America, South and Central American, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East and Africa. Additionally the forecast features a split by device type, covering residential gateways, femtocells, set-top boxes, IP phones, network attached storage, and home automation and control. The forecast data is based on detailed interviews with fixed line telecoms operators and network equipment vendors.  To purchase a copy of this report, please contact William Bishop (william.bishop@ovum.com).
 
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For further information please contact Brian Dolby on +44 (0) 7899 914168 or Dana Corson on +44 (0) 16363 812152 or send an email to brian.dolby@proactive-pr.com  or dana.corson@proactive-pr.com.
 
About the Broadband Forum
Broadband Forum, a non-profit industry organization, is focused on engineering smarter and faster broadband connections. Our work defines best practices for global networks, enables service and content delivery, establishes technology migration strategies, engineers critical device & service management tools, and is key to redefining broadband.  Our free technical reports and white papers can be found at www.broadband-forum.org.