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The IMS Forum, a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of standardized, interoperable IMS services and solutions, is hosting the first-ever “IMS Plugfest for Applications and Services,” Jan. 15 to 19, 2007, at the University of New Hampshire’s Interoperability Lab (IOL).

The event, which was announced yesterday during INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & Expo, WEST, will bring together service providers and IMS vendors committed to furthering the development of IMS certification, and will provide a unique opportunity to establish agreed upon requirements and criteria for IMS applications and services interoperability.

According to a press release, the goal of the event is to develop an industry-recognized “stamp of approval” for IMS applications and services, thus accelerating adoption of this new technology. Participants who attend will be able to give valuable feedback to the Forum, which in turn will use that feedback to develop a certification program.

Numerous companies which are pioneers in the realm of IMS will be attending the event, including Empirix (News - Alert), Sonus Networks (News - Alert), Tekelec (News - Alert), Genband, Trendium and GlobalTouch Telecom (News - Alert). It will be the first in a series of Plugfest events planned by the Forum.

“The IMS Plugfest represents a significant milestone in the Forum’s mission to accelerate the deployment of IMS by resolving critical interoperability issues, developing best practices, and showcasing standards-based architectures in the application layer,” said IMS Forum (News - Alert) Chairman, Michael Khalilian, in the release. “IMS is fundamental to next-generation IP services deployment, as it allows the realization of true fixed-wireless convergence. However, IMS adoption and development is still in its nascent stages, and many questions. The IMS Forum Plugfest represents the ideal setting in which to clarify the ambiguity surrounding this emerging standard.”

The market research firm Frost & Sullivan predicts the IMS market will grow to $12.6 billion by 2012. This growth will be driven primarily by a raft of new services and systems that IMS technology enables.

“I am impressed with the IMS Forum’s commitment to collaborating and working with other groups and standards bodies for the continued advancement of IMS architecture, and to ensuring that there is no duplication of efforts within the industry,” said Ronald Gruia, senior telecom analyst, Frost & Sullivan. “With IMS poised to serve as a primary catalyst for telecommunications growth over the next five years, there is a definite need for applications and service certification and interoperability, a much under-emphasized aspect of telecommunications.”

Registration for the event, which is open to non-Forum members, will begin next Wednesday, Oct. 18. Details are available at www.imsforum.org.

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Patrick Barnard is Associate Editor for TMCnet and a columnist covering the telecom industry. To see more of his articles, please visit Patrick Barnard’s columnist page.