Huawei's leadership role in IMS standards development and in its own proprietary Softswitch

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a case study of Huawei's leadership role in the Internet Protocol Multi‐media Subsystem (IMS) international standards effort while it developed its own proprietary Softswitch solution. This strategy of leading the standards bodies, developing proprietary standards, and being the low‐cost provider is helping Huawei to become the number one telecom company in the world. Design/methodology/approach – For this case study over 20 industry experts, both outside of Huawei and within were interviewed, and web resources utilized. The big challenge was the nebulous name IMS which combined technical standards with a vision for the future of the telecommunications. Findings – It is a common assumption that China is a copier of technology and not one of the world's leaders in terms of technical innovation. China's Huawei Technologies Company Ltd (Huáwei Jíshu Youxiàn Gongsi) is rapidly becoming one of the world's largest telecom manufacturers and one of the key innovators in the telecom field. For example, Huawei is the world's largest supplier of Softswitch products, the software‐based solution that is the backbone for VoIP switching and is also being used in mixed Public Stitched Telephone Networks (PSTN) and VoIP networks. Huawei also plays a leading role in the standards committees for developing Next Generation Network (NGN) solutions and in 2008 Huawei had 300 engineers working on international standard committee bodies. One of the core technologies of NGN is a group of standards grouped together under the title of IMS that makes possible multimedia solutions across a wide number of platforms: cell phone (both GSM and CDMA), landlines, and television. Ultimately, most carriers have continued to invest in the old Time Division Multiplexing technology and have not stepped up to either IMS or proprietary technology. Huawei's foray into IMS demonstrated that though it is a low‐cost provider, it can be counted on to provide a pathway to the most advanced telecommunication capabilities if the customer decides they need them. Social implications – China is now a leader in the development of global telecommunications standards. Originality/value – The originality in this paper is its thesis that Huawei's ability to be at the forefront of standards while being the low‐cost provider is critical to Huawei's ability to become the number one telecommunications manufacturer in the world.