Brussels – Belgium, 13 May 2014: BICS, a global provider of international connectivity and interoperability services, has further invested in its next generation voice platform to enable MNOs internationally to accelerate their launch of services such as HD Voice and VoLTE to their end-users. The BICS IPX platform will enable higher quality voice calls which will increase usage and drive revenues for operators.

The BICS IPX platform is a future-proof solution supporting HD voice and is VoLTE-ready, adhering to the GSMA and i3 Forum’s recommendations. According to the GSA, the Global mobile Suppliers Association, over 100 operators have already deployed HD Voice services and this is expected to increase as operators internationally accelerate the transition to VoIP. Following the establishment of an extensive LTE data roaming community worldwide using the IPX platform’s IP-based next-generation services, the infrastructure is now in place for the rollout of an international VoLTE community.

The widely-used BICS premium voice transit service “First Class Mobile”, since 2009 also accessible to non-mobile players, will now also allow seamless migration to IP thanks to this network enhancement and offer call-by-call optimised routing, ensuring high quality TDM and VoIP transit to 1,500 networks around the world. This will allow operators to offer enriched voice services, providing a more natural-sounding call experience to drive usage and increase voice revenues independently of the underlying technology.

Jorn Vercamert, VP Voice Business, BICS, says: “The transition to next generation voice services will reinvigorate the voice market and increase its profitability. HD Voice delivers a considerably improved call experience for the subscriber transmitting the human voice more clearly and resulting in more effective and natural conversations. BICS is committed to providing operators with access to the best quality services for their subscribers with guaranteed performance, security and low operational costs.”