Home Gateway Initiative
Encyclopedia
The Home Gateway Initiative (HGI) is nonprofit organization launched by a number of telephone companies
(Belgacom
, BT
, Deutsche Telekom
,
France Telecom
, KPN
, Teliasonera
, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
(NTT), Telefonica
, Telecom Italia
) in December 2004 to provide a place where operators, content providers, service providers and manufacturers can discuss the key specifications and standards of residential gateway
s, also known as home gateways. Several manufacturers have also joined the alliance.
The HGI's aims included:
The initiative will build on the work of existing bodies (such as the ITU
, Broadband Forum
, Digital Living Network Alliance
(DLNA) and Open Services Gateway initiative
(OSGi) Alliance) and will contribute to appropriate standards bodies such as the ITU-T
.
Telephone company
A telephone company is a service provider of telecommunications services such as telephony and data communications access. Many were at one time nationalized or state-regulated monopolies...
(Belgacom
Belgacom
The Belgacom Group is the largest telecommunications company in Belgium, headquartered in Brussels. Belgacom Group is primarily state owned, with the Belgian state holding 53.3% + 1 share...
, BT
BT Group
BT Group plc is a global telecommunications services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is one of the largest telecommunications services companies in the world and has operations in more than 170 countries. Through its BT Global Services division it is a major supplier of...
, Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom AG is a telecommunications company headquartered in Bonn, Germany. It is the largest telecommunications company in Europe....
,
France Telecom
France Télécom
France Telecom S.A. is the main telecommunications company in France, the third-largest in Europe and one of the largest in the world. It currently employs about 180,000 people and has 192.7 million customers worldwide . In 2010 the group had revenue of €45.5 billion...
, KPN
KPN
KPN is a Dutch landline and mobile telecommunications company, including both 2G and 3G mobile operations...
, Teliasonera
TeliaSonera
TeliaSonera AB is the dominant telephone company and mobile network operator in Sweden and Finland. The company has operations in other countries in Northern, Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Spain, with a total of 150 million mobile customers...
, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone
, commonly known as NTT, is a Japanese telecommunications company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Ranked the 31st in Fortune Global 500, NTT is the largest telecommunications company in Asia, and the second-largest in the world in terms of revenue....
(NTT), Telefonica
Telefónica
Telefónica, S.A. is a Spanish broadband and telecommunications provider in Europe and Latin America. Operating globally, it is the third largest provider in the world...
, Telecom Italia
Telecom Italia
Telecom Italia is the largest Italian telecommunications company, also active in the media and manufacturing industries. Now a private concern listed on the Borsa Italiana, it was founded in 1994 by the merger of several state-owned telecommunications companies, the most important of which was...
) in December 2004 to provide a place where operators, content providers, service providers and manufacturers can discuss the key specifications and standards of residential gateway
Residential gateway
A residential gateway is a home networking device, used as a gateway to connect devices in the home to the Internet or other WAN.It is an umbrella term, used to cover multi-function networking computer appliances used in homes, which may combine a DSL or cable modem, a firewall, a consumer-grade...
s, also known as home gateways. Several manufacturers have also joined the alliance.
The HGI's aims included:
- Release specifications of the home gateway.
- Boost the market of home communication services to the millions of broadband customers served by its founding members.
- Improve the interoperability of gateways with home devices.
The initiative will build on the work of existing bodies (such as the ITU
Itu
Itu is an old and historic municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population in 2009 was 157,384 and the area is 641.68 km². The elevation is 583 m. This place name comes from the Tupi language, meaning big waterfall. Itu is linked with the highway numbered the SP-75 and are flowed...
, Broadband Forum
Broadband Forum
The Broadband Forum is a non-profit industry consortium dedicated to developing broadband network specifications. Members include telecommunications networking and service provider companies, broadband device and equipment vendors, consultants and independent testing labs...
, Digital Living Network Alliance
Digital Living Network Alliance
The Digital Living Network Alliance is a non-profit collaborative trade organization established by Sony in June 2003, and has more than 250 member companies in the mobile, consumer electronics, PC, and service provider industries...
(DLNA) and Open Services Gateway initiative
OSGi
The Open Services Gateway initiative framework is a module system and service platform for the Java programming language that implements a complete and dynamic component model, something that does not exist in standalone Java/VM environments...
(OSGi) Alliance) and will contribute to appropriate standards bodies such as the ITU-T
ITU-T
The ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector is one of the three sectors of the International Telecommunication Union ; it coordinates standards for telecommunications....
.