I n t e r n a t i o n a l T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n U n i o n

ITU-T E.847
TELECOMMUNICATION (03/2017)
STANDARDIZATION SECTOR
OF ITU

SERIES E: OVERALL NETWORK OPERATION,

TELEPHONE SERVICE, SERVICE OPERATION AND
HUMAN FACTORS
Quality of telecommunication services: concepts, models,
objectives and dependability planning – Objectives for
quality of service and related concepts of
telecommunication services

Quality of service norms for time-division

multiplexing interconnection between telecom
networks

Recommendation ITU-T E.847

 ITU-T E-SERIES RECOMMENDATIONS
OVERALL NETWORK OPERATION, TELEPHONE SERVICE, SERVICE OPERATION AND HUMAN
FACTORS

INTERNATIONAL OPERATION
Definitions E.100–E.103
General provisions concerning Administrations E.104–E.119
General provisions concerning users E.120–E.139
Operation of international telephone services E.140–E.159
Numbering plan of the international telephone service E.160–E.169
International routing plan E.170–E.179
Tones in national signalling systems E.180–E.189
Numbering plan of the international telephone service E.190–E.199
Maritime mobile service and public land mobile service E.200–E.229
OPERATIONAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO CHARGING AND ACCOUNTING IN THE
INTERNATIONAL TELEPHONE SERVICE
Charging in the international telephone service E.230–E.249
Measuring and recording call durations for accounting purposes E.260–E.269
UTILIZATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL TELEPHONE NETWORK FOR NON-
TELEPHONY APPLICATIONS
General E.300–E.319
Phototelegraphy E.320–E.329
ISDN PROVISIONS CONCERNING USERS E.330–E.349
INTERNATIONAL ROUTING PLAN E.350–E.399
NETWORK MANAGEMENT
International service statistics E.400–E.404
International network management E.405–E.419
Checking the quality of the international telephone service E.420–E.489
TRAFFIC ENGINEERING
Measurement and recording of traffic E.490–E.505
Forecasting of traffic E.506–E.509
Determination of the number of circuits in manual operation E.510–E.519
Determination of the number of circuits in automatic and semi-automatic operation E.520–E.539
Grade of service E.540–E.599
Definitions E.600–E.649
Traffic engineering for IP-networks E.650–E.699
ISDN traffic engineering E.700–E.749
Mobile network traffic engineering E.750–E.799
QUALITY OF TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES: CONCEPTS, MODELS, OBJECTIVES
AND DEPENDABILITY PLANNING
Terms and definitions related to the quality of telecommunication services E.800–E.809
Models for telecommunication services E.810–E.844
Objectives for quality of service and related concepts of telecommunication services E.845–E.859
Use of quality of service objectives for planning of telecommunication networks E.860–E.879
Field data collection and evaluation on the performance of equipment, networks and services E.880–E.899
OTHER E.900–E.999
INTERNATIONAL OPERATION
Numbering plan of the international telephone service E.1100–E.1199
NETWORK MANAGEMENT
International network management E.4100–E.4199

For further details, please refer to the list of ITU-T Recommendations.

 Recommendation ITU-T E.847

Quality of service norms for time-division multiplexing interconnection between

telecom networks

Summary
Recommendation ITU-T E.847 analyses and identifies quality of service (QoS) parameters for
time-division multiplexing (TDM) interconnection between telecom networks, which are needed to
facilitate effective interconnections with reasonable traffic handling capacities. The proposals, as
given in this Recommendation, provide a guiding framework for TDM interconnection of telecom
networks and will facilitate effective monitoring of performance, QoS at point of interconnections
(POIs), as well as endeavour to ensure end-to-end customer satisfaction and quality of experience
(QoE). Regulators may also use this Recommendation to envision effective interconnection
regulations in their respective countries.

History
Edition Recommendation Approval Study Group Unique ID*
1.0 ITU-T E.847 2017-03-01 12 11.1002/1000/13169

Keywords
Link utilisation, mobile network operators, POI congestion, POI seizure, quality of experience (QoE),
quality of service (QoS), TDM interconnection, telecom networks' interconnection.

* To access the Recommendation, type the URL http://handle.itu.int/ in the address field of your web
browser, followed by the Recommendation's unique ID. For example, http://handle.itu.int/11.1002/1000/1
1830-en.

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) i

 FOREWORD
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the United Nations specialized agency in the field of
telecommunications, information and communication technologies (ICTs). The ITU Telecommunication
Standardization Sector (ITU-T) is a permanent organ of ITU. ITU-T is responsible for studying technical,
operating and tariff questions and issuing Recommendations on them with a view to standardizing
telecommunications on a worldwide basis.
The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA), which meets every four years, establishes
the topics for study by the ITU-T study groups which, in turn, produce Recommendations on these topics.
The approval of ITU-T Recommendations is covered by the procedure laid down in WTSA Resolution 1.
In some areas of information technology which fall within ITU-T's purview, the necessary standards are
prepared on a collaborative basis with ISO and IEC.

NOTE
In this Recommendation, the expression "Administration" is used for conciseness to indicate both a
telecommunication administration and a recognized operating agency.
Compliance with this Recommendation is voluntary. However, the Recommendation may contain certain
mandatory provisions (to ensure, e.g., interoperability or applicability) and compliance with the
Recommendation is achieved when all of these mandatory provisions are met. The words "shall" or some other
obligatory language such as "must" and the negative equivalents are used to express requirements. The use of
such words does not suggest that compliance with the Recommendation is required of any party.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

ITU draws attention to the possibility that the practice or implementation of this Recommendation may involve
the use of a claimed Intellectual Property Right. ITU takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or
applicability of claimed Intellectual Property Rights, whether asserted by ITU members or others outside of
the Recommendation development process.
As of the date of approval of this Recommendation, ITU had not received notice of intellectual property,
protected by patents, which may be required to implement this Recommendation. However, implementers are
cautioned that this may not represent the latest information and are therefore strongly urged to consult the TSB
patent database at http://www.itu.int/ITU-T/ipr/.

 ITU 2017
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, by any means whatsoever, without the prior
written permission of ITU.

ii Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

 Table of Contents
Page
1 Scope............................................................................................................................. 1
2 References..................................................................................................................... 1
3 Definition ...................................................................................................................... 1
3.1 Terms defined elsewhere ................................................................................ 1
3.2 Terms defined in this Recommendation ......................................................... 2
4 Abbreviations and acronyms ........................................................................................ 2
5 Conventions .................................................................................................................. 2
6 QoS norms for TDM interconnection between telecom networks ............................... 2
6.1 Subscriber attempt success ratio for a POI ..................................................... 3
6.2 POI seizure success ratio ................................................................................ 3
6.3 Subscriber attempts-seizure success ratio ...................................................... 3
6.4 Inter-operator POI efficiency (η) .................................................................... 3
6.5 Time frame for activation of a new POI ......................................................... 4
6.6 Time frame for POI capacity enhancement .................................................... 4
6.7 Interconnection route utilisation parameter .................................................... 4
6.8 Mean time to repair for POI ports .................................................................. 4
6.9 Time to repair interconnection route .............................................................. 4
6.10 Dual seizure ratio ............................................................................................ 4
6.11 Signalling link utilisation ............................................................................... 5
6.12 Unit of time measurement and recordings in CDRs ....................................... 5
6.13 Clock synchronisation and accuracy of switch time ...................................... 5
6.14 Acceptance testing and monitoring ................................................................ 5
7 Review of influences on QoS of TDM interconnection ............................................... 5
Annex A – Guiding regulatory framework for interconnection .............................................. 7
Appendix I – Further guidance to regulators ........................................................................... 10

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) iii

Introduction
In multi-operator, multi-technology and multi-service environments, it is imperative to ensure
effective interconnection between different operator networks in order to provide quality service to
end users. To ensure effective time-division multiplexing (TDM) interconnection between networks,
the network-related parameters to measure the quality of telecom services may relate to:
– network availability;
– connection establishment (accessibility);
– connection maintenance (retainability);
– optimal point of interconnection (POI) capacity provisioning and its effective utilization;
– POI congestion (no. of POIs not meeting the benchmark).
Interconnection in TDM networks can be considered relatively simple and well established since all
legacy telephone networks usually use the same signalling system (i.e., SS7 signalling), media
transport as in TDM and numbering scheme such as that of Recommendation ITU-T E.164 and also
interfaces such as E1 and T1 links that are well used depending on the region or network equipment
provider.
From a regulatory point of view, the purpose of interconnection is to ensure end-to-end network
service connectivity and enable consumers of interconnected operators to establish connections with
one another. Access also enables service providers to utilise facilities of other providers to further
influence their own business plans for providing service to customers.

iv Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

Recommendation ITU-T E.847

Quality of service norms for time-division multiplexing interconnection between

telecom networks

1 Scope
This Recommendation is intended to facilitate effective interconnection and support the following:
– non-discriminatory benchmarks for interconnection parameters, interconnect resources
allocated to and congestion faced, if any, by outgoing as well as incoming traffic at point of
interconnection (POI) of telecom networks;
– end-to-end quality of service (QoS) for users;
– prevention of under-utilization and over-provisioning of interconnect capacity and resources;
– flexibility and freedom for interconnecting parties to negotiate and finalise mutually
agreeable interconnection arrangements.

2 References
The following ITU-T Recommendations and other references contain provisions which, through
reference in this text, constitute provisions of this Recommendation. At the time of publication, the
editions indicated were valid. All Recommendations and other references are subject to revision; the
users of this Recommendation are, therefore, encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the
most recent edition of the Recommendations and other references listed below. A list of the currently
valid ITU-T Recommendations is regularly published. The reference to a document within this
Recommendation does not give it, as a stand-alone document, the status of a Recommendation.
[ITU-T E.600] Recommendation ITU-T E.600 (1993), Terms and definitions of traffic
engineering.
[ITU-T E.800] Recommendation ITU-T E.800 (2008), Definitions of terms related to
quality of service.
[ITU-T P.10] Recommendation ITU-T P.10/G.100 (2006), Vocabulary for performance
and quality of service.
[ITU-T Q.700 series] ITU-T Q.700-Q.799 series of Recommendations, Specifications of
Signalling System No. 7.
[ITU-T Q.780] Recommendation ITU-T Q.780 (1995), Signalling System No.7 test
specification – General description.

3 Definition

3.1 Terms defined elsewhere

This Recommendation uses the following terms defined elsewhere:
3.1.1 QoE assessment: [ITU-T P.10].
3.1.2 quality of service (QoS): [ITU-T P.10] and [ITU-T E.800].
3.1.3 quality of experience (QoE): [ITU-T P.10].
3.1.4 time consistent busy hour (TCBH): [ITU-T E.600].

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) 1

3.2 Terms defined in this Recommendation
This Recommendation defines the following terms:
3.2.1 interconnection: The physical and logical linking of public communications networks used
by the same or a different service provider to allow the users of one service provider or network to
communicate with users of another service provider or network, or to access services provided by
another service provider or network.
3.2.2 POI (point of interconnection): The demarcated point or the facility for exchange of traffic
between networks to facilitate inter-network communication of/for respective subscribers, who are
end users of such networks.
3.2.3 POI congestion: The ratio of calls failed over the POI (between two network operators) due
to unavailability of free circuits to the total call requests for seizure of POI circuit.

4 Abbreviations and acronyms

This Recommendation uses the following abbreviations and acronyms:
CDR Call Data Record
DSR Dual Seizure Ratio
KPI Key Performance Indicator
MNO Mobile Network Operator
MSC Mobile Switching Center
MTTR Mean Time to Repair
POI Point of Interconnection
PSSR POI Seizure Success Ratio
QoE Quality of Experience
QoS Quality of Service
SASR Subscriber Attempt Success Ratio
SASSR Subscriber Attempts-Seizure Success Ratio
SLA Service Level Agreement
TCBH Time Consistent Busy Hour
TDM Time-Division Multiplexing
TSP Telecom Service Provider

5 Conventions
None.

6 QoS norms for TDM interconnection between telecom networks

This clause shows some parameters and their thresholds that aim to help network operators set
measureable and realistic key performance indicators (KPIs) to ensure effective compliance of
regulations and help them in negotiating interconnection agreements to mitigate unforeseen disputes.
The following non-discriminatory benchmark parameters are proposed to be included for
monitoring/observations by national regulators, to ensure effective performance and QoS of

2 Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

time-division multiplexing (TDM) interconnection, thereby resulting in improved quality of
experience (QoE) for users.

6.1 Subscriber attempt success ratio for a POI

subscriber attempt success ratio (SASR) = y/x
Where:
y = No. of successful attempts/call requests for seizure of circuit at a POI
x = Total number of subscriber call attempts meant for that POI.
An improved SASR means improvement in the success of subscribers' call attempts toward a
particular POI and also leads to meting out of non-discriminatory treatment by telecom
network/service providers to all POIs. It will also discourage intentional deterioration in QoS of a
particular POI, with respect to delivery of end-to-end customer satisfaction (QoS/QoE).

6.2 POI seizure success ratio

POI seizure success ratio (PSSR) = z/y
Where:
z = No. of actual seizures at a POI
y = No. of successful attempts/call requests for seizure at POI.
Alternatively, POI congestion = (y-z)/y = 1 − z/y
POI congestion = failed call requests over the POI due to unavailability of free circuits
(total call requests for seizure of POI circuit).
NOTE – The benchmark threshold for POI congestion may be set at <0.5%, i.e., 0.005, which means that out
of 200 successful call attempts or seizure requests at the POI between two operators, not more than one attempt
should face congestion. Any relaxation in POI threshold above 0.5% would allow a mobile network operator
(MNO) or telecom service provider (TSP) to manage with lesser provisioning of interconnection links and
resources at POI but would burden them with the responsibility to ensure a higher service-level agreement
(SLA) by adhering to a more stringent mean time to repair (MTTR), e.g., a relaxed POI congestion threshold
of 1% would demand adherence to a more stringent MTTR to meet the expected QoS/QoE norms. Hence,
while relaxing the POI threshold, a regulator has to exercise great caution and take a balanced view with the
objective of ensuring delivery of an end-to-end high-quality service experience to the user.

6.3 Subscriber attempts-seizure success ratio

subscriber attempts-seizure success ratio (SASSR) = z/x
Where:
z = No. of actual seizures at a POI
x = Total number of subscriber call attempts meant for that POI.
The SASSR reflects the performance of a particular POI regarding the subscriber attempts made, so
as to render end-to-end QOE to the subscriber.

6.4 Inter-operator POI efficiency (η)

η = PSSR of a particular inter-operator POI
Sum total of PSSRs of all inter-operator POIs
η = (PSSR of a particular inter-operator POI)/(sum total of PSSRs of all
inter-operator POIs)
This parameter, when calculated for all inter-operator POIs, will give comparative performance of
any particular inter-operator POI with respect to the other inter-operator POIs.

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) 3

6.5 Time frame for activation of a new POI
The time frame for activation of a new POI is the time duration permitted for commissioning of
interconnect capacity or link after confirmation or acceptance of demand for interconnect capacity
provisioning and commissioning. The prescribed time limit benchmark for providing POI
connectivity is 90 days, counted from the date of confirmation or acceptance of demand for POI
connectivity.

6.6 Time frame for POI capacity enhancement

The time frame for POI capacity enhancement is the time frame given for the expansion of links for
interconnection where a POI between networks already exists. POI capacity enhancement may be
possible within 60 days from the date of acceptance or confirmation of demand, where POIs between
networks already exist. However, in cases of specific situations or events, alternate POI capacity,
wherever applicable or required, can be augmented temporarily by mutual agreement between service
providers to maintain their utilization targets.

6.7 Interconnection route utilisation parameter

This is the POI dimensioning parameter based on traffic growth. The prescribed benchmark for the
route utilisation parameter is 70%. For example, if POI route utilisation crosses 70% during
time consistent busy hour (TCBH), it may trigger immediate bandwidth expansion/stream
augmentation with a buffer of 10% for handling lead time traffic until the expansion/augmentation is
completed. On the lower side, however, if the POI has been consistently operating for a monitoring
period at less than 60% utilization, then the resource can be released up to the extent of 10%; this will
avoid resource wastage and the utilization can be maintained between 60-70%. Further, as a route
may have more than one interconnection link, the traffic on a route is a cumulative sum of the traffic
on all interconnection links in that route.
NOTE – The suggested approach in the previous clause shall ensure operation of all POIs effectively with 60%
and 80% capacity utilization as lower and upper thresholds, respectively. This approach not only discourages
excess capacity allocation/wastage of resources, but also discourages inadequate buffer capacity/poor service
experience during traffic surges and provides adequate lead time for augmentations.

6.8 Mean time to repair for POI ports

An MTTR is the expectation of repair time for a statistically significant number of repairs carried out
from the instant a fault has been reported to the instant the service is restored for use by the customer,
and is usually expressed as the arithmetic mean.
The MTTR for a POI port failure should not be greater than 72 hours. However, if all interconnect
capacity is down, or congestion levels are above threshold on the following hour of a POI failure,
then the restoration needs to target a shorter duration of within four hours.

6.9 Time to repair interconnection route

The time to repair (TTR) = time at which total service restoration is achieved – time at which fault is
notified.
Maintenance is carried out after fault recognition and is intended to restore to a state in which it can
perform the required function. This could be measured by sum of duration of each repair time in hours
for all the fault incidences in a day. The TTR interconnection route should not be more than one hour
from the time the fault occurred.

6.10 Dual seizure ratio

The dual seizure ratio (DSR) should ideally be zero. Dual seizure occurs if a local POI/mobile
switching center (MSC) sends/receives a request to/from a corresponding POI/MSC on the other end,

4 Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

to seize the same circuit simultaneously. That is, dual seizure occurs if a trunk circuit is seized by an
incoming call and outgoing call simultaneously.
dual seizure ratio = E1/(E2+E3+E4)
Where:
E1 = Dual seizure times
E2 = Seizure times
E3 = Overflow times
E4 = Trunk reflection times.
E4: This measurement entity counts the number of times that second attempts are made after the first
attempt to seize an outgoing trunk fails. The local POI/MSC may reselect an outgoing circuit after
the first attempt to seize a circuit fails, owing to the factors such as non-controlling dual seizure.

6.11 Signalling link utilisation

This should not exceed 40% of handling capacity in case of a failure condition [ITU-T Q.780]. There
should be sufficient number of signalling links provided between POIs to avoid any signalling
congestion. It is, therefore, suggested to apply the above criteria for provisioning of interconnection
signalling links as well. An augmentation trigger point at 35% can be followed for addressing the
lead time.

6.12 Unit of time measurement and recordings in CDRs

It is desirable to have uniformity in recording and measurement of time duration in call data records
(CDRs). It is, therefore, suggested that the unit of time measurement should either be in 'seconds' or
'milliseconds' in CDRs in order to avoid any inter-operator billing disputes. International practice is
to measure in milliseconds.

6.13 Clock synchronisation and accuracy of switch time

The POI must have synchronised clocks in order to avoid any failure of data calls, as well as to avoid
bit error or slip in pulse-code modulation (PCM). If there is no synchronisation mechanism in place,
then it may also lead to differences in CDR billing. Hence, it is recommended that synchronisation
may be with reference to the clock of the interconnection provider or another operator.
All POIs should have the same time stamp so that the CDR comparison/call tracing and disputes, if
any, can be quickly resolved.

6.14 Acceptance testing and monitoring

It is recommended to use a uniform testing procedure (which should be reviewed from time to time)
with a regular monitoring mechanism, by a governmental agency or accredited third-party, to avoid
any delay in POI connectivity or augmentation.

7 Review of influences on QoS of TDM interconnection

QoS mainly refers to the perceivable quality between source and destination and is usually influenced
by many factors from terminal equipments.
TDM transport techniques provide end-to-end fixed bandwidth designed to provide a guaranteed level
of QoS. The POI congestion parameter, as a tool to ensure QoS of TDM interconnection, may be
defined as, ''The ratio of calls failed over the POI (between two operators/licensees) due to
unavailability of free circuits to the total call requests for seizure of POI circuit''.
However, poor quality of TDM interconnection may occur due to the following:

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) 5

– insufficient capacity of the POI that may not be in accordance with the traffic flows through
the interconnect links between the networks;
– insufficient or discriminatory provision or allocation of routing or control equipment
resources at the receiving or transmitting end;
– growth in existing capacity of interconnection not being commensurate to the fast growing
demands of the telecom services traffic on such interconnections;
– other technical reasons or issues.
The above prescribed identification of parameters and their corresponding thresholds intend to
provide a guiding framework for effective TDM interconnection of telecom networks and is expected
to facilitate effective monitoring of performance as well as QoS of POIs, thereby helping to ensure
end-to-end customer satisfaction or QoE for users. However, the level of interconnection may need
to be reviewed at regular intervals in view of technological advances in the telecom services sector
and migration of networks towards IP networks as handing over of inter-connection traffic may be
feasible at alternate locations, thereby leading to savings for both the parties to interconnect.

6 Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

 Annex A

Guiding regulatory framework for interconnection

(This annex forms an integral part of this Recommendation.)

The term 'interconnection' refers to physical or logical linking between telecom networks and
'interconnection agreement' refers to the commercial and technical arrangement which facilitates
TSPs to interconnect their equipment, networks and services so that subscribers of a TSP have access
to the subscribers, services and networks of another TSP. An interconnection agreement must
endeavour to ensure fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms and conditions of interconnection
between TSPs keeping in view the technological, market, licensing, regulatory and legal
developments in the telecommunication sector.
All TSPs should register with their administration's regulatory authority, the interconnect agreements
that they are party to. This interconnection agreement may, among other things:
– meet all reasonable demands for the transmission and reception of messages between
interconnected systems;
– establish and maintain such POIs as are reasonably required with sufficient capacity and in
sufficient number to enable transmission and reception of messages by means of the
applicable systems;
– connect and keep connected, to their applicable systems.
While interconnection is purely a matter of mutual agreement between interconnecting parties, any
interconnect capacity creation, augmentation and/or disconnection of the interconnect capacity may
have to be mutually agreed upon. However, it is desirable for administrations to have ex-ante
regulatory guidelines for establishing a proper environment to facilitate effective and expeditious
interconnection in the interest of consumers. For this purpose, they may prescribe broad guidelines
based on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory principles and leave the details of interconnection
agreement to be mutually decided by the interconnecting TSPs in a time-bound manner. Alternatively,
they may prescribe a standard interconnection agreement, which must be entered into between
interconnecting TSPs, in case they are unable to mutually agree upon terms and conditions of the
interconnection agreement between themselves in a specified timeframe.
The broad guidelines suggested above are a sort of model reference interconnect offer (RIO)
(describing, among other things, the technical and commercial conditions for interconnection) which
may form the basis of all interconnection agreements to be entered into. However, if the parties fail
to amicably negotiate a mutually beneficial interconnection arrangement in a prescribed period or a
specified timeframe, then the default option of a standard template can be pursued in a transparent,
fair and non-discriminatory manner to serve the larger interest of consumers and the telecom sector
as such.
Interconnection between networks of different service providers for carrying circuit-switched traffic
may be as per standards of common channel signalling (CCS) No. 7 protocols defined in the
[ITU-T Q.700 series] series of Recommendations as amended from time to time and also subject to
technical feasibility and technical integrity of the networks and shall be within the overall framework
of interconnection regulations, directions and orders issued by respective administrations. A media
gateway switch will be installed for internetworking between circuit-switched and IP-based networks.
The interconnection tests for each and every interface may be carried out by mutual arrangement
between the connecting parties. In case of a disagreement for rectification of deficiencies or
deviations in conducted interconnection tests, reference could be made to the concerned
administrative authority.

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) 7

The regulatory framework for interconnection may periodically be reviewed, keeping in view the
market and technological changes to ensure a level playing field for orderly growth on the basis of
reciprocal, fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms and conditions.
The network resources, including the cost of upgrading or modifying interconnecting networks to
meet service requirements, may be mutually negotiated. The general principle followed in these
negotiations is that each party may bear the incremental costs incurred for the additional ports
required for meeting the QoS standards relating to its outgoing traffic to the other party. The cost of
upgrading and modifying interconnecting networks should be shared by both the interconnection
seeker as well as the interconnection provider as both are benefiting from interconnection.
It is recommended to quantify and prescribe:
– timeframe for entering into an interconnection agreement;
– criteria to ensure that inflated demand for ports (at E1 or synchronous transport module
level-1 (STM1) level) is not made by the interconnection seeker;
– minimum number of interconnection ports required for start of service;
– maximum time period permissible for issuance of payment demand note by the
interconnection provider;
– maximum time period for payment for demanded ports by the interconnection seeker;
– time permitted for intimation of provisioning of requested ports by the interconnection
provider;
– space allocation for collocation of transmission equipment;
– maximum time period for establishment of transmission links by the interconnection seeker;
– maximum time period for acceptance testing;
– maximum time period for issuance of the final commissioning letter by the interconnection
provider; and
– maximum time period for start of traffic in the POI after provisioning/augmentation of ports
for which payment has been made. In cases where the interconnection seeker agrees to bear
the total cost of equipment required for augmentation in advance, the interconnection
provider may give the requested ports irrespective of the volume of traffic at the POI.
The prescribed time periods for provisioning of ports may be different for:
– fixed-line networks; and
– mobile and IP networks.
Financial disincentive may be imposed on TSPs for:
– not entering into an interconnection agreement within the stipulated timeframe;
– not providing the initial POI;
– not augmenting the POI within the stipulated timeframe;
– violation of any prescription in the regulations.
The regulatory framework may also prescribe, if there is a need, bank guarantee to securitize payment
of interconnection usage charges in the interconnection agreement and the basis for determining the
amount of the bank guarantee. Once the interconnection has been in operation for a prescribed time
period, the bank guarantees to securitize payments of applicable interconnection usage charges (IUC);
if initially taken on a fixed amount basis, they may subsequently be made on a net-off basis and any
such payment should be reciprocal. Though interconnection providers may intend to place reliance
on their own billing records or CDRs, settlement of wrong/excess billing may be equitable,
transparent and fair.

8 Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

Any infrastructure taken for interconnection under one license may be allowed to be shared for all
services authorised for provision under that license. The interconnection and interconnection
agreement should be license specific and service-agnostic (i.e., a TSP can send any type of traffic on
a POI which is allowed under the terms and conditions of the license) as all TSPs are equipped with
CDR-based billing systems. However, for such integrated POIs, a suitable mechanism for discovery,
prevention and penalization of any traffic manipulation by TSPs (whereby higher IUC traffic is
recorded as lower IUC traffic in the CDR of the originating TSP) can be put in place. For TSPs having
implemented an IP-based core transport network for carrying voice and data traffic, by deploying IP/
Ethernet elements extending into access and aggregation networks, there is apparently, a need to
establish appropriate policy and regulatory framework/measures for encouraging TSPs to migrate to
interconnection at the IP level, as well as to evolve terms and conditions for inter-connection at the
IP level.
To solve many interconnection related problems by eliminating bilateral interconnection issues and
to ensure effective interconnection, one option could be to establish an interconnect exchange. The
interconnect exchange may provide interconnection ports to all variety of TSPs and, in turn, it may
reduce the number of POIs. Under such a scenario, the existing peer-to-peer interconnection may
continue as before; however, all new augmentation of ports may be mandated to be done through the
interconnect exchange. Thus, there is a need to establish a framework for an interconnect exchange
and to explore options to operate such an interconnect exchange.
Sometimes TSPs, unilaterally, disconnect POIs in certain circumstances, based on their interpretation
of terms and conditions for non-payment of dues etc., thus resulting in the blockage of services to
consumers. Subsequently the interconnection seekers have to resort to court proceedings, injunctions
etc., to restore services. Thus, there is a need to define the circumstances under which a TSP can
disconnect POIs and procedures which need to be followed before disconnection of a POI.
Since seeking and providing interconnection is an ongoing process, issues related to interconnection
keep surfacing at various stages, even when formal interconnection agreements between TSPs are in
place. Therefore, there may be a need to have a coordination committee with a defined constitution
and operating framework to facilitate effective and expeditious interconnection.

Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017) 9

 Appendix I

Further guidance to regulators

(This appendix does not form an integral part of this Recommendation.)

Failure of calls during the setup phase or dropping of calls after they are established, deteriorate
subscribers’ QoE and result in customers’ dissatisfaction. Therefore, there definitely is a strong need
for having regulations concerning cause codes for call failures during the process of establishment of
calls.

10 Rec. ITU-T E.847 (03/2017)

 SERIES OF ITU-T RECOMMENDATIONS

Series A Organization of the work of ITU-T

Series D Tariff and accounting principles and international telecommunication/ICT economic and
policy issues

Series E Overall network operation, telephone service, service operation and human factors
Series F Non-telephone telecommunication services

Series G Transmission systems and media, digital systems and networks

Series H Audiovisual and multimedia systems

Series I Integrated services digital network

Series J Cable networks and transmission of television, sound programme and other multimedia
signals
Series K Protection against interference

Series L Environment and ICTs, climate change, e-waste, energy efficiency; construction, installation
and protection of cables and other elements of outside plant
Series M Telecommunication management, including TMN and network maintenance

Series N Maintenance: international sound programme and television transmission circuits

Series O Specifications of measuring equipment

Series P Telephone transmission quality, telephone installations, local line networks

Series Q Switching and signalling, and associated measurements and tests

Series R Telegraph transmission
Series S Telegraph services terminal equipment
Series T Terminals for telematic services

Series U Telegraph switching

Series V Data communication over the telephone network

Series X Data networks, open system communications and security

Series Y Global information infrastructure, Internet protocol aspects, next-generation networks,

Internet of Things and smart cities
Series Z Languages and general software aspects for telecommunication systems

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Geneva, 2017