Dual-Mode Phones May Expedite IMS Development

The complex hand-offs and back-office capabilities inherent with seamless roaming may lure carriers to IMS for mobility among different access networks.

Whether people will be able to roam seamlessly from their homes to their cars to airports and cafes eventually will depend on intercarrier agreements and interconnections. However, the groundwork is being laid, as dual-mode phones and pioneering carriers are starting to allow customers to hop from WLANs to cellular networks within the same call or event session.