Panasonic Communications Co., Ltd.

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IP Centrex implementation by corporations should take place step by step

IPv6style: What are your views on the market for IP phones or adaptation of phones to IP?

Mizutani:I think corporate phones will change to IP phones which are directly hooked up to the Ethernet. When the PBX function starts to change like that of an IP Centrex type, the total cost should be lower. Given the fact that investment in PBX facility happens in a six-year cycle, many corporations must now be mulling on how to change the current PBX and what next to invest in. It's still questionable whether corporations will decide to go fully IP and incorporate IP Centrex while doing away with the current PBX. After a couple of years, when the carriers equip themselves with the IP phone backbone and launch an IP phone service for corporations, then the possibility of going fully IP and have the center take on the PBX function becomes highly plausible. New offices may even decide not to wire metallic phone cables and instead go fully IP with Ethernet. Considering the usage of IPv6, commercial service must start for consumers to use, but firms have one very effective way of use. We have over 20 offices nationwide, but when we connect all offices with the intranet, the local addresses tend to overlap. If all phones acquire a global address, and if we build an intranet with IPv6, the burden of information system maintenance should decrease considerably. Using IPv6 for intranet may sound contradictory, but I think its efficacy will be proved in the future.

IPv6style: With VoIP being a good application example to illustrate Ipv6, is the idea to go fully IPv6 by adopting an IP-PBX and changing the internal network into IP?

Mizutani: I think it would be a convincing reason to implement in the early stages of IPv6. We also believe it is necessary to clarify our system philosophy in promoting the IP-PBX business; we must be able to say, "This will enable you to shift to IP at a low cost." While we are planning on shipping IP-PBX products, I think the actual shipment will take place from the next fiscal year since we believe we first need to solidify the solution for going fully IP.

IPv6style: What scale of business do you anticipate for IP-PBX?

Mizutani: While the PBX market is really shrinking domestically, our company's share of mid-range PBX worldwide is still top level. Considering our future overseas strategy, I believe it would be highly advantageous from a business perspective to take the Japanese example when going global. But it will also be necessary to make a soft landing from a narrowband and analog world to a broadband and digital world for the company to succeed. In this context, making PBX IP compatible is one area where we must work hard on. That is the greatest merit for the three companies, Matsushita Communication Industrial which engaged in the PBX business, Matsushita Denso System and Kyushu Matsushita which engaged in the terminal business, to merge into one company.

IPv6style: What new areas do you plan to expand in your new company?

Mizutani: A popular topic is video streaming. When FTTH becomes more prevalent, then the TV and HDD recorders can go IP, but in the interim stage, the home gateway needs to deal with video streaming. Another area to emphasize in the receiver terminal genre, other than the phone and the fax, would be IP cameras, as visual equipment is very attractive to users. In any case, there is the issue of how household appliance network should be. With the standardization of household appliance network in the homes progressing very slowly, the issue of the relationship between the ECHONET for household appliances and IP is still unclear. Panasonic as a whole must deal with the question of standardizing the household electrical appliances network, and at least the issue of IP conversion from ECHONET will remain our key theme.


Half of the products will be IPv6-aware in the next 3 years

IPv6style: What percentage of Panasonic Communication's products will be IPv6-aware, three years from now?

Mizutani: It would depend on the country. If for example we want to launch an IP phone service in China, there won't be enough global addresses with IPv4, so we may try to do it with IPv6 from the beginning. But in the time span of three years, I want to make 50 percent of our company's product shipment to be IPv6-aware. In other words, we want 50 percent of the total shipment to be IPv6-related products by making various products, from network MFP to gateway and IP cameras, into dual stack.

IPv6style: This may sound a little vague, but what is the significance of IPv6 to Panasonic Communications?

Mizutani: Since we're defining the network's future to be IPv6, it all amounts to providing useful products by shipping IPv6-aware products from our company before the entire world turns IPv6. The atmosphere now is similar to that of ground digital broadcast. It's been talked about a lot, and development is progressing fast, but no one knows when the broadcasters will turn digital and when users will buy digital television. But eventually, they will. Likewise, our current business may be IPv4 or analog, but our future is bound to be where terminals will be connected over an IPv6 network and the users can browse the content smoothly. I am convinced about that.

IPv6style: With VoIP, if the ISP can provide a dual stack service, it will be possible to appeal "easy installation, easy setup,” to users without having the users actually be aware of IPv6.

Mizutani: It's possible, but for VoIP to be IPv6, the long distance carriers must first be IPv6 compatible. Even if the ISP access network becomes IPv6, if the tunnelling remains IPv4 at the backbone, then the router stage will increase and time lag will occur. We first need to see the installation of an IPv6 backbone so we can say there won't be any problem with 050 numbers even if it exceeds 10 million. There was talk about launching VoIP business with IPv6, but reality is that the service was launched without it.

IPv6style: Do you have any other issues of interest concerning IPv6?

Mizutani:I happen to go to China frequently, but the proliferation of phones in China is still below 20 percent of its population. Proliferation of fixed-line phones may rise to about 50 percent, but I, as a terminal seller, am very interested in how China will see IP phones in IPv6.