iBasis and Sparkle to peer for LTE roaming and signaling

ROME: iBasis, a KPN company, and TI Sparkle, Telecom Italia Group's international operator, today announced an LTE Roaming peering agreement that will ensure interoperability between LTE networks and a consistent user experience for roaming LTE subscribers.

The LTE roaming peering between iBasis and TI Sparkle is an extension of an existing IPX inter-provider interconnect agreement the two companies implemented in 2012 which enables live traffic including signaling, voice and data roaming, as well as end-to-end QoS.

The new agreement further develops the global IPX ecosystem, which continues to grow as an increasing number of interconnected operators add value to their propositions with new IPX- enabled solutions such as LTE roaming.

According to Elisabetta Ripa, TI Sparkle, chief executive officer: "Providing seamless LTE roaming to mobile service providers through our Diameter Signaling is very important for TI Sparkle as it fulfills our promise of developing solutions that provide and facilitate interoperability among operators. We are pleased to expand our partnership with iBasis and enhance our existing multiservice IPX connection to make LTE roaming an easier proposition for operators and their end consumers."

"As mobile operators complete their LTE roll-outs in their national networks, they are beginning to recognize the complex challenges of meeting customer expectations for a consistent LTE experience anywhere, any time. Our LTE Signaling eXchange service solves the technical challenges, and peering agreements like this one with Telecom Italia Sparkle are vitally important to deliver the global footprint required to make LTE roaming a reality," said Willem Offerhaus, iBasis CEO.