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<DIV class=Section1>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>Dear All,</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>You might have read in the press the recent ITU-T SG 15 decision on
<FONT color=#000000>MPLS-TP transport networks. </FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>ITU’s recent </SPAN><A
href="http://www.itu.int/net/pressoffice/press_releases/2011/03.aspx"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>announcement</SPAN></A><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB> on an OAM standard for MPLS in transport networks has seen
considerable interest, but not always for the right reasons with </SPAN><A
href="http://isoc.org/wp/newsletter/?p=3287"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>claims</SPAN></A><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB> from the Internet Society that it will jeopardize the Internet.
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
/><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>Experts cast doubt on ISOC’s statement: “</SPAN><SPAN
class=apple-style-span><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: black">… ongoing
evolution along this path will jeopardize the … Internet</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>”. </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>They point to the fact that</SPAN><SPAN class=apple-style-span><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333"> several interoperability tests have
been successfully performed with no reported problems. In addition
</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">the solution being proposed by
ITU conforms to the MPLS-TP architecture as defined by the IETF.<SPAN
class=apple-style-span><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333">
</SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>When network equipment uses different protocols, interoperability of
the functioning of that protocol, in this case OAM, may well be affected.
However, since packets for different protocols are identified by pre-assigned
different codepoints, protocols running behind these different codepoints will
not interfere with each other. This means that the core functionality – in this
case Internet traffic – will not be affected. Therefore various protocols can
coexist without causing any confusion in the network. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>It is also important to understand who has contributed to this
standard (draft Recommendation ITU-T </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>G.8113.1</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>) and why. The membership of ITU is made up of representatives from
over 700 private sector companies (including most major ICT companies) and 192
Member State governments. In general technical work such as that being discussed
here is undertaken by the private sector members. This solution was called for
by a majority of the ITU membership in SG15 that has grown frustrated with a
lack of progress in the development of a standard which is necessary to meet a
market demand.</SPAN><SPAN lang=EN-GB> </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>Given that there are over 100,000 MPLS Transport Profile nodes
already in transport networks, it is essential that the corresponding OAM
toolset is standardized. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>As background, in 2006 ITU started work on standards on
T-MPLS</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB>, which leveraged</SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB"
lang=EN-GB> </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">a sub-set of MPLS that was
targeted specifically for application in the transport network. However, in late
2007 the IETF indicated that T-MPLS may be in conflict with IP/MPLS. The
ITU suspended work on T-MPLS and in 2008 agreed to work in cooperation with the
IETF on the evolution of MPLS to meet the needs of the transport network. It was
anticipated that the five existing Recommendations on T-MPLS would be replaced
by mid 2009 with MPLS-TP Recommendations following within a
year.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">However some of the IETF input
(RFCs) required to move forward were not made available and are currently still
pending following the unilateral disbanding by the IETF of its group assigned to
work with ITU in September 2009. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">ITU has issued a formal request
for the necessary codepoints from IETF as these codepoints are currently
administered by ICANN/IANA and can only be issued by IETF.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">ITU collaborates and
coordinates, in good faith and on the basis of reciprocity, with other relevant
organizations in the development of IP networks to ensure maximum benefits to
the global community, in accordance with the decisions of the 2010 ITU
Plenipotentiary Conference. However, this should not lead to a situation where
the ITU fails to deliver on its commitments to its own membership.</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Regards,</SPAN></P>
<P style="LINE-HEIGHT: 11pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; BACKGROUND: white"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT
color=#0000ff face=Arial>Alexander NTOKO</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN
lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial>Head, Corporate Strategy
Division</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff
face=Arial>International Telecommunication Union (ITU)</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN
lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial>Place des Nations</FONT></SPAN>
<BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial>CH-1211 Geneva
20</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff
face=Arial>Switzerland</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff
face=Arial>Email: strategy@itu.int</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT
color=#0000ff face=Arial>Web: www.itu.int</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN
lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial>Tel: +41 22 730
5525</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial>Fax: +41
22 730 6453</FONT></SPAN> </P></o:p></SPAN>
<P class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P></DIV></FONT>
<P><FONT size=2></FONT> </P>
<P><FONT size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR>From: africann-bounces@afrinic.net
[<A
href="mailto:africann-bounces@afrinic.net">mailto:africann-bounces@afrinic.net</A>]
On Behalf Of Anne-Rachel Inné<BR>Sent: mardi, 1. mars 2011 15:59<BR>To:
africann@afrinic.net<BR>Subject: [AfrICANN-discuss] Internet interoperability in
doubt as ITU & IETFsplit over MPLS standards<BR><BR><A
href="http://www.itwire.com/business-it-news/networking/45499-internet-interoperability-in-doubt-as-itu-a-ietf-split-over-mpls-standards">http://www.itwire.com/business-it-news/networking/45499-internet-interoperability-in-doubt-as-itu-a-ietf-split-over-mpls-standards</A><BR><BR>Internet
interoperability in doubt as ITU & IETF split over MPLS standards<BR><BR>By
Stuart Corner<BR>Tuesday, 01 March 2011 16:04<BR><BR>Business IT -
Networking<BR>Digg Facebook Reddit StumbleUpon Twitter<BR><BR>The Internet
Engineering Taskforce (IETF) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
have decided to go their separate ways in the development of standards for
multiprotocol label switching<BR>(MPLS): a move that the IETF warns could
jeopardise the future interoperability of the Internet.<BR><BR>The IETF has
announced plans to continue "to gather transport requirements and work to extend
IETF MPLS forwarding, operations administration and maintenance (OAM),
survivability, network management, and control plane protocols."<BR><BR>This
announcement comes on the heels of a decision taken at the ITU on<BR>25 February
to move ahead with parallel technology development for OAM in MPLS transport
networks.<BR><BR>According to IETF, "This step, over time, will affect the flow
of Internet traffic, as separate standards will lead to products that are not
able to interoperate." It described the split between the two organisations,
which have a long history of technical collaboration, as being "without
precedent."<BR><BR>Russ Housley, IETF chair, said; "The Internet we know today
could not have come about without open, interoperable, global standards. I am
surprised and disappointed by the action taken by the ITU.<BR>Collaboration on
MPLS transport profile specifications have taken longer than expected, but the
result is quality specifications, and many vendors are implementing
them."<BR><BR>Lynn St Amour, president and CEO of the Internet Society, added:
"This action takes us away from the path of global interoperability. It will
have a detrimental effect on the long term health of the Internet, and reduce
the benefits to all of us as users.<BR><BR>In what it said was "a big step
towards leveraging existing MPLS deployment in transport networks," the ITU said
it had agreed first stage approval of a key new standard that would "give
network operators the tools necessary to manage large scale deployments of
MPLS-based networks."<BR><BR>According to the ITU, "Network operators will now
have a choice of OAM (operations, administration and maintenance) tools to best
meet their specific transport network requirements. These OAM tools in the hands
of network operators will, in particular, allow quick detection of defects and
fault isolation."<BR><BR>It explained: "MPLS is widely embraced in backbone
networks as a way to speed up routers. The OAM tools in the ITU-T standard are
based on technology proven in carrier grade ethernet services and legacy
transport networks, making it easier for operators to upgrade. In addition to
reducing labour costs, network operators will see significantly reduced capital
expenditure (capex) costs given that the standard allows for more efficient
allocation of bandwidth."<BR><BR>However, according to IETF "If both
technologies are deployed, it is likely that there will be confusion; if only
one is deployed, the existence of the alternative is irrelevant. In this
instance, there are believed to be commercial products in development for both
proposals, so confusion appears inevitable."<BR><BR>The IETF blamed the split on
"Certain [ITU] members [that] chose to develop this competing technology in the
ITU…instead of just one as recommended by the [ITU & IETF] Joint Working
Team."<BR><BR>MPLS is a networking standard, created by the IETF, that assigns
labels to data packets, which can then operate across multiple different
protocols. Forwarding or switching decisions for MPLS packets from one network
node to another are made on the basis of the label (ie without requiring
equipment to examine the packet's content) facilitating easy to create
end-to-end circuits.<BR><BR>MPLS is commonly used to create virtual private
networks (VPNs), and it can be used to deliver different levels of quality of
service (QoS) for different types of data. It is also gives service providers
flexibility in routing; for example, to avoid broken links or
failures.<BR><BR>The IETF defined the MPLS specification, as part of the overall
Internet technology specifications, which include the Internet Protocol version
4 (IPv4) and Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6).<BR><BR>This article first
appeared in ExchangeDaily, iTWire's daily newsletter for telecommunications
professionals. Register here for your free
trial.<BR>_______________________________________________<BR>AfrICANN mailing
list<BR>AfrICANN@afrinic.net<BR><A
href="https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/africann">https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/africann</A><BR></P></FONT></BODY></HTML>