{{Short description, Service for sharing images during a mobile phone call
Image Share is a service for sharing images between users during a
mobile phone
A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones ( landline phones). This rad ...
call. It has been specified for use in a
3GPP
The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is an umbrella term for a number of standards organizations which develop protocols for mobile telecommunications. Its best known work is the development and maintenance of:
* GSM and related 2G and ...
-compliant
cellular network
A cellular network or mobile network is a telecommunications network where the link to and from end nodes is wireless network, wireless and the network is distributed over land areas called ''cells'', each served by at least one fixed-locatio ...
by the
GSM Association
The GSM Association (GSMA) is a non-profit trade association that represents the interests of mobile network operators worldwide. More than 750 mobile operators are full GSMA members and a further 400 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem ar ...
in the PRD IR.79 Image Share Interoperability Specificatio
According to the specification, "The terminal interoperable Image Share service allows users to share Images between them over PS connection with ongoing CS call, thus enhancing and enriching end-users voice communication."
An Image Share session begins by end-users setting up a normal Circuit switching, circuit switched (CS) voice call. After the voice call is set up, terminals perform a registration to an IMS core system with a
packet switched
In telecommunications, packet switching is a method of grouping data into short messages in fixed format, i.e. '' packets,'' that are transmitted over a digital network. Packets consist of a header and a payload. Data in the header is used b ...
(PS) connection. Then based on successful capability negotiation between the terminals, the end-user will be presented with an option in terminal UI offering the possibility of sharing one or several images. If this is selected, then these images are transferred between the Image Share software clients located in the mobile phones using the PS connection and the recipient is able to see the images. During this process the normal CS voice session has been ongoing continuously.
Image Share can be seen as a kind of spin-off from the Video Share mobile phone service. Video Share is commercially launched for example by
AT&T
AT&T Inc., an abbreviation for its predecessor's former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the w ...
in USA, but Image Share is not yet available from any mobile operator/service provider.
Technical features
*
Interoperable
Interoperability is a characteristic of a product or system to work with other products or systems. While the term was initially defined for information technology or systems engineering services to allow for information exchange, a broader de ...
multi-vendor compliant service, i.e. Image Share works across different mobile phones from various vendors (as long as they have the necessary software client installed)
* IMS service, i.e. 3GPP compliant IMS core system required for the service provider/operator offering Image Share
* CSI (CS and IMS combinational) service compliant to 3GPP specifications TS 22.279, TS 23.279 and TS 24.279, i.e. CS voice call set up required prior to sharing the images
* SIP used for signaling via IMS, i.e. registration for the service is performed using the capabilities offered by IMS platform with SIP protocol
* MSRP (Message Session Relay Protocol, RFC 4975) used for transporting media between the mobile phones
* IETF File transfer mechanism utilized for negotiating shared images between offerer and answerer via SIP/SDP offer/answer model
* Capability query performed using SIP OPTIONS method between the mobile phones to find out whether the recipient is Image Share capable
*
Peer-to-peer
Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network, forming a peer-to-peer network of Node ...
service, i.e. no server required in the network for sharing the images
* Both live and pre-stored images can be shared between the participating mobile phones
* Requires 3G or
EDGE
Edge or EDGE may refer to:
Technology Computing
* Edge computing, a network load-balancing system
* Edge device, an entry point to a computer network
* Adobe Edge, a graphical development application
* Microsoft Edge, a web browser developed by ...
DTM (Dual Transfer Mode) mobile network
Usage
According to GSMA press releas interoperability between different Image Share clients was successfully tested in a multi-vendor trial in May 2007, including interworking between multiple networks.
No mobile operator has launched Image Share so far (as of March 2008).
See also
* Video Share, which (re)uses similar basic architecture
* IM, especially OMA SIMPLE I which also utilizes MSRP for transporting media
* Multimedia Messaging Service, MMS, which also provides the means for users to exchange images between mobile phones
* Multiple different file/image sharing applications & services available from various companies
References
* GSM Association PRD IR.79 Image Share Interoperability Specificatio * IETF RFC 4975 Message Session Relay Protocol
* 3GPP TS 22.279 Combinied Circuit Switched (CS) and IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) sessions; Stage 1
* 3GPP TS 23.279 Combining Circuit Switched (CS) and IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) services; Stage 2
* 3GPP TS 24.279 Combining Circuit Switched (CS) and IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) services; Stage 3
IMS services