1.4. Self-Organizing Networks (SON)

All capacity expansion techniques that have been discussed so far are valid paths, and operators’ strategies need to rely on them to cope with growing data volumes and demanding customer expectations (in terms of QoS and service cost). Nonetheless, the techniques that are available today involve outstanding capital outlays, and therefore it is worth reflecting on whether the current infrastructure is being operated at its full performance potential before considering network expansions or evolutions.

Going back to basics, it is important to remember that, for example, the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is a complex technology in which coverage, capacity and quality are deeply coupled to each other. There are many optimization levers that currently remain untouched or, at best case, fine-tuned at network level, i.e. with the same settings for all different cells. The bottom line is that, even though a UMTS network may be delivering acceptable Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), most likely there is still room for increasing its capacity, just by carefully tuning the different settings on a cell-by-cell basis.