CONTACT: SHARON GRACE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(703) 907-7721 APRIL 16, 1997
[email protected]
TR-41 CREATES NEW ENGINEERING SUBCOMMITTEE FOR PRIVATE NETWORK ISDN STANDARDS
Arlington, VA -- The Telecommunications Industry Association's (TIA)
TR-41 engineering committee, User Premises Telephone Equipment Requirements, has
created a new engineering subcommittee, TR-41.10, to define private integrated
services digital network (ISDN) standards. This subcommittee will continue the
work that was formally done in the Information Technology Industry Council's
X3S3.6, which was disbanded approximately a year ago. Subcommittee TR-41.10
will develop positions for use in the International Standards
Organization/International Electrotechnical Commission/Joint Technical
Committee/ Subcommittee 6 (ISO/IEC/JTC1/SC6) that define international standards
on private ISDN networks.
ISO/IEC/JTC1/SC6 has completed several private ISDN standards, and the
American National Standard Institute (ANSI), under the old X3S3 committee,
adopted those standards for the United States. Both the ISO and ANSI are
defining a new set of standards for services including virtual private network,
mobility and broadband ISDN for international and U.S. markets.
Standardization work in this area started in the European Computer
Manufacturers Association (ECMA) six years ago. ECMA began by defining ISDN
standards for private
branch exchange (PBX)-to-PBX, known as the Q reference point. Therefore, these
standards are referred to as Q-SIG (Special Interest Group) standards.
Q-SIG is based on the International Telecommunication
Union-Telecommunications sector's (ITU-T) (formerly CCITT) Q.931/2
recommendation. The Q-SIG standards define the
signaling protocol for PBX-to-PBX connections at the Q reference point. Q.931/2
defines call control for applications such as PBX-to-network and is based on a
master-slave or asymmetrical relation. Q-SIG, however, defines the call control
signaling and services applicable to a peer-to-peer or symmetrical relation.
The Q-SIG standards have been expanded to include Centrex, as well as
PBX
connectivity, and have been published by the European Telecommunication
Standards Institute
(ETSI) and by ISO. ANSI has adopted those ISO standards which have reached
international standards level for use in the United States. The standards in
ECMA, ISO and ANSI are very closely related. For the first time, PBX vendors
are provided an opportunity to develop a single product for the global market
capable of operating in a multi-vendor environment.
TIA is a full-service national trade organization with membership of 625
large and small companies which provide communications and information
technology products, materials, systems, distribution services and professional
services in the United States and countries around the world. TIA represents
the telecommunications industry in association with the Electronic Industries
Association.
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EDITORS: Please note that information regarding the Telecommunications Industry
Association is available via TIA's World Wide Web site at
http://www.tiaonline.org.
P.A. Release 97-30
4.16.97
