Mobile TV and other mobile multimedia services may be fairly new on the scene, but expectations for service quality and continuity already are being set. LongBoard, a Santa Clara, Calif., vendor that recently has focused on how to deliver seamless roaming for fixed/mobile converged voice services, today announced a new platform to enable roaming for mobile video and other multimedia applications.

The company’s MediaRoam product is an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) based platform that allows service providers to ensure performance of such services, said Paul Murphy, vice president of engineering at LongBoard. MediaRoam uses network policies to monitor and maintain session continuity for a mobile multimedia service, while also monitoring available bandwidth and congestion levels as users of those applications cross into new areas of mobile or Wi-Fi network coverage, Murphy said.

“We can force that session to move over to the more bandwidth-optimized network,” he said. “We adapt the streaming content to the better environment. This allows carriers to more easily offer tiered levels of service. Carriers are beginning to feel the need to offer available bandwidth guaranteed to those customers who are willing to pay for it.”

LongBoard’s development of the new platform arose from the need of a Tier 1 European operator that had been looking to support quality of service for mobile data roaming, in addition to the Voice Call Continuity specification provided in the 3GPP IMS standards, according to Rob Fuggetta, vice president of marketing and chief marketing officer at LongBoard.

The vendor has engaged in a three-month trial with that network operator.