Technology Review 1/2013 by Comarch

no 1/2013 [16] The Magazine of Comarch Telecommunications Business Unit

www.comarch.com

IN FOCUS: MONETIZE THE ENTERPRISE OPPORTUNITY

ARE YOU READY TO CATCH THE M2M MARKET OPPORTUNITIES 4 KEY ELEMENTS OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE MANAGEMENT FOR TELECOM OPERATORS

TABLE OF CONTENTS WHAT’S NEW

News in Brief

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

mutually beneficial 6 Streamlining partnerships between telcos and enterprises

With operators across Europe increasingly seeing flat lined revenue growth from residential mobile customers, new sights currently are being set on cultivating and enhancing relationships with enterprise customers.

practices to improve your offering 9 5forbest enterprise customers Enterprises are currently one of the key customer segments for every telecoms operator. The revenue opportunities stemming from this area not only come from the budgets that business customers are willing to spend on telecom services, but are also driven by employees who are becoming more mobile, devices which are becoming more powerful and secure, the increasing coverage of telecommunication services.

14 Telesperience Chief Analyst Teresa Cottam looks at Loyalty – what loyalty?

why there is little loyalty amongst European SMEs towards their service provider, and argues this is both a business risk and an opportunity.

outsource or not to outsource… 16 ToOutsourcing is always worth considering, especially if coupled with the reshaping of business and operational procedures. The execution of any tasks outside company premises is no threat to the service provider’s competiveness, as long as the main ideas, how to attract and address customers are kept in-house.

a perfect offer for enterprises 18 Towards – from connectivity “pipes” to tailored business solutions Enterprises will be expecting the CSPs to not only deliver communication pipes, but a complete solution – i.e. a comprehensive platform, which enhances the productivity of the enterprise customer’s employees in their everyday work. This article will refer to it as a “productivity platform”.

HOT TOPIC: M2M

you ready to catch the M2M market 22 Are opportunities? Whether you believe the 50 billion connected devices forecasted by AT&T by 2020 or the 1 trillion connected devices projected by IBM for 2015, it is safe to say that M2M is an exploding marketplace that brings new challenges and opportunities to companies worldwide.

of M2M and Internet of Things on 24 Impact IT architecture These days all Tier-1 operators have some Machine to Machine (M2M) offer that has been available for a couple of years and this market segment can be found on various positions of their list of priorities, being even sometimes placed at number 1. Because of the development of the business, many Communication Service Providers evaluate various options related to IT platforms to support sophisticated business models in the area of M2M.

HOT TOPIC: DELIVERING TRUE QUALITY OF EXPERIENCE

Key Elements of Customer Experience 29 4Management for Telecom Operators Customer experience is currently all the hype for most businesses and the telecom industry, being on top of innovations and buzz as it usually is, has not been left behind. But what does “providing great customer experience” actually mean for a telecoms operator? Being able to quickly deliver new services? Delivering precisely these services that customers want?

ustomer Experience-centric Network 33 CPlanning & Optimization The era of voice-centric network planning and optimization is over. Nowadays, operators have to search for innovative services to generate new revenue streams. However, the introduction of such services usually entails increased traffic in the network, and thus requires constant capacity enhancements and quality monitoring.

Implementation of Comarch NG Service 36 Assurance for MTS Russia The customer’s perception of the service quality becomes the key issue which operators should try to address and assure that the various variables which influence it are prioritized. However, this is only possible by changing their approach to network management. MTS decided to face this challenge with a structured transformation.

Extreme OSS 39 Service Quality and Customer Experience Management systems have continued to gain attention in recent years. Since the why and the how regarding business levels have already been discussed many times, in this article I would like to concentrate on the technical aspects of such systems.

HOT TOPIC: CONNECTED ENTERTAINMENT

LNA already works in millions of home 46 Dnetworks – does it work in yours?

Shane Buchanan, Certification Administrator & Technical Operations Support at Digital Living Network Alliance is the first point of contact in all matters related with DLNA certification programs. Here he speaks about DLNA’s objectives, its future and its most recent innovations.

from Tokyo: 2013 – MirrorLinkTM 48 Minessage the consumers’ hands During the second week of November 2012, I was in Tokyo to attend the 2012 MirrorLink Summit. Let me share a few thoughts about this event with you.

HOT TOPIC: CLOUD COMPUTING

obile Workforce Management 49 M– How to Shift Enterprise Applications into Public Clouds for SMEs Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) generate more than 60% of GDP in all industrialized countries. They employ 2/3 of the available manpower. In times of crises, SMEs try to find new ways of making profit and to improve productivity. They outsource non-core activities, invest in tools which reduce paperwork, they also try e-commerce to increase sales and many others too.

s it too late for telecoms to become Cloud 54 Iservice providers? We live in the advanced world of advanced technologies, the Internet and omnipresent services providing useful features available in the Cloud. Every day we use but even today not everyone fully understands what the popular industry buzzword “Cloud” really means. Isn’t it really just another new word for what has already been available for quite some time?

HOT TOPIC: TECHNOLOGICAL CORNER

– is the risk worth the gamble? 56 ASTETRA ow to Combine CRM and eTOM for Better 42 HCustomer a wise man once said: “Two things are infinite: Experience? Operational excellence in customer relationship management helps companies build and sustain positive customer experience. The way I see it, using TM Forum’s set of standards is a good foundation for designing and implementing new levels of operational excellence in service providers’ day to day activities. In particular, the eTom Process Framework can come in handy.

ier 1 Telecom Operator Automates Service 44 TAssurance, thus reducing CAPEX and OPEX with Comarch NGSA Comarch has proven to be a strong and reliable business partner, able to not only provide high quality, COTS software products and professional services, but also adapt to new business requirements when necessary.

the universe and human stupidity…” Unfortunately, everything else has its limitations. So, what is the best way to ensure constant connectivity for police forces, fire departments, ambulance services or military personnel when operations time can mean the difference between life and death and cellular networks are not available?

PREFACE

he monetization of opportunities presented by the enterprise market has been a hot topic in the telecoms world for quite a long time now. It has been discussed across industry blogs, during major events, like the Mobile World Congress and in the business strategy documents of telecom operators. This might be due to the fact that enterprise customers are becoming one of the most important customer segments for Communication Service Providers (CSPs) nowadays. Business opportunities seem to be far more worthwhile here than in the consumer segment. Where can these opportunities be found? CSPs must embrace new trends, such as Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), employee mobility, broadening the range of services offered to enterprises (from traditional telecom services to offering office applications from a Cloud) or by striving to provide enterprises with the highest degree of service quality by delivering a “unified experience” and efficiently managing Service Level Agreements (SLAs).

In this issue of Comarch Technology Review we focus on this very topic – the opportunities offered by enterprise customers. You have in your hands the valuable thoughts of some of my esteemed colleagues who have chosen to share some of their knowledge and experience they have gained from various projects in this area. In the article written by Krzysztof Kwiatkowski you will learn about best practices which could help you succeed in the enterprise market. Lukasz Mendyk shares his thoughts on the necessary shift that CSPs need to make when building products for their enterprise customers, the importance of really understanding the needs of enterprise employees and the ability to translate “business language” into “technology language”. We could not have released a new issue without discussing one of this year’s hottest topics – Cloud services. In his article, Szymon Uczciwek shows how Mobile

Workforce Management can be used to shift enterprise applications into public clouds for Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Adam Gowin ponders on whether or not it is too late for telecom operators to enter the Cloud market. Staying in the area of innovative services, you will also find interesting articles on the Machine to Machine (M2M) sector in this issue. Thierry Geraci of BuzzinBees talks about the many M2M market opportunities and Krzysztof Kwiatkowski writes about the impact of M2M and the Internet of Things on the IT infrastructure of communication service providers. And, to provide a bit of a different perspective on the Internet of Things, Grzegorz Kafel talks to Shane Buchanan from Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) about the organization’s objectives, its future and its most recent innovations in the area of connectivity.

Comarch SA

Editor-in-Chief

And what about service quality? Jakub Zaluski-Kapusta elaborates on the key elements that telecom operators need to remember when embarking on a Customer Experience Management (CEM) transformation program. Andrzej Wąż-Ambrożewicz provides insight into the topic of customer experience-centric network planning & optimization, while Pawel Lamik offers some advice on how to combine CRM and eTOM for better customer experience. In another article, Pawel Sabina raises the subject of “Extreme OSS”. And, moving from words to deeds, we also present a case study concerning the implementation of Comarch NG Service Assurance for MTS Russia, to show you our vision in action. In the technical section, Jakub Stalmirski focuses on taking a risk… so check if he thinks Tetra is worth taking a gamble on. So, sit back and relax with your favorite hot drink and enjoy the latest issue of Comarch Technology Review.

Comarch Technology Review is a publication created by Comarch experts and specialists. It is created to assist our customers and partners in obtaining in-depth information about market trends and developments, and the technological possibilities of addressing the most important issues. Editor-in-Chief: Alina Wietrzny Alina.Wietrzny@comarch.com Copy Editor: Małgorzata Siwiec-Polikowska Malgorzata.Siwiec@comarch.com Layout & DTP: A dam Dąbrowski, Dominik Pietruszka Photos: www.fotolia.com Publisher: Comarch SA Al. Jana Pawła II 39a, 31-864 Kraków Tel. +48 12 64 61 000, Fax: +48 12 64 61 100 www.comarch.com Print: Skleniarz Printing House

ALINA WIETRZNY

ul. J. Lea 118, 31-033 Kraków Circulation: 1 500 Technology Review is a free publication available by subscription. The articles published here can be copied and reproduced only with the knowledge and consent of the editors. The names of products and companies mentioned are trade marks and trade names of their producers. To receive your subscription to the electronic version or see the previous issues, please visit: tr.comarch.com

NEWS IN BRIEF

News in Brief

Comarch helps E-Plus Group increase network efficiency with NG Performance Management

Gartner’s Magic Quadrants for IRCM and OSS place Comarch in the Challenger quadrant

Comarch helps E-Plus Group transform their network performance management landscape, leading to improved customer experience and lower operational costs.

Comarch, a global provider of end-to-end BSS/OSS solutions, announced that it has been positioned in the Challenger quadrant in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Integrated Revenue and Customer Management (IRCM), with a positive evaluation of its BSS portfolio completeness, modularity and standard-based architecture.

Comarch Deploys a Connected Cars Solution for Application and Device Testing Comarch, a global software house and systems integrator, today announced a partnership with the Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), an organization driving global technologies for phone-centric car connectivity solutions, to host the MirrorLink™ Application Certification Management System (ACMS).

Comarch Partners with Telecom Operators in Deploying Cloud for Business Comarch, a global software house and system integrator, has just extended its Cloud Service Management platform with the brand new Cloud Marketplace Management module, as well as a set of pre-defined business applications and vertical services from Comarch’s Cloud portfolio.

Kabel Deutschland Upgrades its OSS Capabilities with Comarch Comarch helps Kabel Deutschland build a consolidated OSS landscape embedded into a next practice approach to network plan, build and run to support its growing network infrastructure and a developing service portfolio.

Gartner’s report on Customer Experience names Comarch as a “vendor to watch” Comarch, an end-to-end OSS/BSS software vendor was named as one of the “vendors to watch” in a report on bridging the customer experience gap, recently published by a renowned analyst company, Gartner.

Comarch M2M Platform recognized among leading connectivity solutions in Gartner’s report Comarch, a global provider of IT business solutions and system integrator has been evaluated in a recent report issued by a renowned analyst company, Gartner. Comarch M2M Platform was assessed aside three other leading vendors of connectivity platforms.

Comarch supports Turkcell Europe in ofering MVNO services in Germany A comprehensive BSS platform delivered by Comarch enables Turkcell Europe to run innovative and unique MVNO operations on the German market.

Comarch Technology Review 02/2012

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

Streamlining mutually beneficial partnerships between telcos and enterprises

ith operators across Europe increasingly seeing flat lined revenue growth from residential mobile customers, new sights currently are being set on cultivating and enhancing relationships with enterprise customers.

port for ordering systems and devices in different countries, a single point of contact [where enterprises can] place their orders, higher quality billing etc. In enterprise markets, there are a number of additional things that can enhance the customer experience with telcos.”

And while the transition towards offering comprehensive service bundles to enterprise customers can involve a lot of legwork on the telco side, companies like Comarch offer software systems and solutions helping telcos better support enterprises.

According to Machnik, the level of customer experience that telcos can offer enterprise customers is becoming a more important differentiating factor in today’s very competitive market.

“The customer experience from the enterprise standpoint is a little different than the customer experience from the residential market side,” says Piotr Machnik, EVP of product management and marketing at Comarch – a global supplier of innovative software and IT services for telecommunications and a number of other industry verticals. “When you have a fleet of connected devices, you expect not only quality from voice and data services – you expect… sup-

“The customer experience is very important on both a system and service level – enterprises expect more than just invoices,” he says. A significant value-added service that a telco can offer to enterprise customers is the opportunity to merge different devices, applications, tablets, smartphones personal computers and more onto one cloud platform. Comarch’s Cloud Service Management solution, for instance, supports next-generation telecom operators in offering cloudbased services in multiple business scenarios, such as cus-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

ple, it is very important to keep this data in their respective countries… telco operators can meet this requirement – offering local data centres and local connectivity.” Being based in Europe, Comarch can make that happen for service providers in the region. Machnik adds that there are many other value-added services that telcos can offer to help streamline the everyday business operations – “infrastructure as a service (IaaS); communications with a guaranteed quality of services – ie, enhanced video conferencing; and content delivery networks,” to name just a few.

PIOTR MACHNIK

Comarch SA

In an economic climate where a huge amount of turnover happens with smaller, or start-up vendors, a telco’s long track record can also be reassuring to enterprises looking for services and solutions, says Machnik.

EVP of product management and marketing Telecommunications Business Unit

“You can expect these telcos won’t disappear from the market in three months’ time.” Comarch’s work with Dutch operator KPN is one example of how its solutions have helped an operator and its business customers create mutually beneficial relationships. Comarch is currently delivering a comprehensive set of business support systems (BSS) models to help KPN lower operational costs, improve customer satisfaction and launch new services faster.

KRZYSZTOF KWIATKOWSKI

Comarch SA

Having discovered a market opportunity for managed mobile services, KPN began delivering mobile communications to European multinational companies, which, as a result, saw end customers benefitting from the significant reduction in overall costs of mobile communications within the company. tomer support/billing for partner-branded applications and authorisation, authentication and accounting in real-time. While the idea of storing important or sensitive data on a cloud platform has long been a security or privacy concern for companies, Machnik says that having a telco as the cloud provider should actually soothe enterprise executives. “Telco operators could actually play the role of guarantor of security and privacy,” he says, adding that while many of the bigger cloud platforms are often based abroad – largely, in the US – telco cloud solutions would often be based closer to home. “Cloud solutions often cause big problem for larger enterprises, where their regulations, policies, etc... say that data should be stored in the country where it is being processed,” he continues. “Big OTT players are often from the US, and have hosting services there – but for German or French companies, for exam-

The real benefits come from the fact that, instead of having several providers from different countries, enterprises are provided with one contract – which means a unified service in every country – along with advanced self-service and mobile telephony cost reporting functionalities. Several modules of the Comarch BSS Suite were implemented at KPN, including convergent billing; customer management and data analysis and reporting. Another plus for KPN is the proximity of some Comarch offices (ie, Belgium and Poland), as the whole solution is hosted in Cracow and Warsaw, at the Comarch Data Centre, and provided as a managed service. Krzysztof Kwiatkowski, head of BSS product management at Comarch, said that through this partnership, everything is automated and integrated into a single platform: “There is less manual work, everything is organised by consistent

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Head of BSS product management, Telecommunications Business Unit

IDEAS IN BRIEF: The customer experience – very important on both a system and service level Unified service in every country Challenges in implementing BYOD at the enterprises

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

Instead of having several providers from different countries, enterprises are provided with one contract - which means a unified service in every country - along with advanced self-service and mobile telephony cost reporting functionalities.

workflow management, a consistent dashboard, and unified communications,” he explains.

Also, financial and corporate enterprises are not the only potential beneficiaries of such services.

“This plays into not only gaining customers, but maintaining customers. According to Machnik, at a time where the mobilisation of enterprises is also growing quickly, one of the biggest solutions that companies are currently looking for in the face of demand for increased connectivity has to do with the way in which the mobile workforce is shifting.

In the healthcare sector, for instance, says Machnik, “telemedicine” (the use of telecommunications and IT to provide remote clinical health care) could benefit: “At the moment, I see companies offering professional telemedicine… connecting professional devices to central monitoring systems,” adding that he expects this segment to grow strongly given European doctor shortages.

With this, enterprises are currently trying to cope with the bring your own device (BYOD) trend, where employees bring personally-owned mobile devices to work, and use them for business and personal needs. “Telcos can use the capacity of the BYOD market and offer workforce management in the cloud,” says Machnik. There are of course, challenges in implementing BYOD, he said, such as certifying and testing process of mobile devices to ensure compatibility with an organisation’s work standards. Another obstacle is privacy concerns over whether private accounts would remain inaccessible by employers, and important business documents would not spill into personal accounts. “BYOD needs to be thought of like the managing of containers… where the ‘containers’ within these devices would be secured by the telecom operator or another vendor,” says Machnik, explaining that a user’s business ‘container’ and personal ‘container’ would remain two separate entities, from folder access to billing. He predicts systems accommodating BYOD could become so advanced a mobile device would switch automatically from personal mode to business mode as an employee enters their office building.

Machine-to-machine (M2M) communications in the automobile industry is also posing significant potential, from broadband connected devices in personal vehicles, to remote management of fuel consumption for fleets. With this, Comarch’s M2M platform, for example, can help support mobile operators enter the M2M market, providing functions such as an efficient billing and rating module that can process vast amounts of data; an efficient CRM that enables managing all relationships with business partners; and a built-in resource and SIM management functionality that increases control over the M2M equipment. “Overall, a lot of enterprises are, at the moment, feeling big pressures in terms of cost cutting… and on the other hand, telcos need to improve their revenues,” says Machnik, explaining that both sides have much to gain from enhanced partnerships and streamlining of operations. “Operators in the past focused on transforming organisations from B2C, and transforming systems – and almost forgot about the enterprise customer segment,” concludes Kwiatkowski. “Now, because of declining revenues from B2C, they are seeing that business customers generate a lot of revenue – especially if you deliver a good service.”

The above article was published by: European Communications www.eurocomms.com To watch the video with the presentation on the above issue visit: http://www.eurocomms.com/video/8878-video-the-enterprise-opportunity-for-telcos-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

5 best practices to improve your offering for enterprise customers How Communication Service Providers can increase the role of B2B segment

nterprises are currently one of the key customer segments for every telecoms operator. The revenue opportunities stemming from this area not only come from the budgets that business customers are willing to spend on telecom services, but are also driven by employees who

are becoming more mobile, devices which are becoming more powerful and secure, the increasing coverage of telecommunication services and the need for more comprehensive solutions such as Information & Communications Technology (ICM), Machine to Machine (M2M) and Cloud services.

Comarch Technology Reviewâ&#x20AC;&#x2026; â&#x20AC;&#x2026;01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

This is why delivering a superior customer experience to business customers is on every Communications Service Provider’s (CSP) list of priorities. But how easy is it to achieve? Providing the right level of traditional telecommunications services, as well as entering new areas such as integrating IT systems or offering applications from the Cloud can be very challenging for CSPs, who are often faced with the challenges that go hand in hand with silo organizations and architectures. This is why transforming their approach to enterprise customers often requires substantial changes in organizational structures, as well as redesigning the IT architectures that support areas of business. New ways of thinking require new ways of working.

Ask yourself 3 basic questions related to your enterprise customers

Services

Who is the final user of the service you deliver? A company or its employees? The way you think about this will influence the way you sell a service and will help shape what you ultimately deliver. It is quite common for telecoms to sell services to businesses and thus design their offer for companies, however the services are then actually used by individual people – the various types of employees who work for them. And these employees need proper support from the operator, just like any enterprise would. It means that various tools, such as business analysis, selfmanagement and cost control should not only be available for managers but also for other types of employees and they should be given the possibility to manage the services they use on their own. This includes split billing management for telecommunication services or using tools related to applications delivered in the Cloud.

Cloud offering

Voice mobile

Voice fixed

What exactly is the product you are going to sell? What’s the best way to providing a “single service experience”?

Broadband

Offerings

Experience

For many enterprises security and cost are the main criteria for selecting a telecom service provider. But they are not the only ones. High flexibility, simplicity and speed are often

just as important and may in fact be significant differentiators to gaining a competitive advantage over other providers. These three criteria are not only related to a technological approach (such as enabling Fixed-Mobile Convergence), but also to the way services are sold and how entities interact with customers. To meet customer expectations, your company should be able to answer a few basic questions:

Services for enterprises are often delivered using separate silos for fixed broadband, fixed voice, mobile, Cloud and others. Unfortunately, these services are also sold in the same silos, and as a result they are perceived by customers as if they were delivered by many different telecom operators. Even if the customer gets a single invoice for all these services, this misconception still remains. Telecom operators need to be able to answer the question of how important it is for their customers to get a simplified, “single service” experience. This means having a single point of contact, a single bill, and a single self-care and analytical tool for all types of telecom and non-telecom services used by the enterprise. Sales departments may need to shift from a traditional selling model to consultative selling, where the CSP acts as an expert and is able to educate the enterprise on their requirements and the most suitable service package. For example, an enterprise should not need to go into the details of broadband technology restrictions (should we use copper of fiber wires?) or the quality of service needed by various types of employees. An enterprise needs tools to run a business and it is the telecom operator, who must know what should be delivered and what the optimal con-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

figuration of providing services is to a secretary or an international sales manager or technical employees.

What elements are the most important for your customers? Prepare a priority list Enterprise customers do not always expect the full bells and whistles treatment. What they do expect however, is to be able to run their businesses in an optimized way and therefore they need tools to facilitate this. Business support systems (BSS) and operations support systems (OSS) platforms are two examples of such tools. We may think that the bringyour-own-device (BYOD) trend, i.e. managing employee-owned devices is a top priority that enterprises want to address right now, but this may not necessarily be true. It is security, together with simple cost management and mobility that really matters to them. While BYOD is an interesting opportunity and definitely a market differentiator, it doesn’t have to hold the top position on a telecom operator’s list of priorities.

Experience

Another example? Let’s look at acquiring new customers in the enterprise segment. The companies which telecoms are

Choose a partner willing to get involved Once your company decides to redefine its approach to the needs of enterprise customers, changes in the IT architecture will be necessary. You will then need to find a partner for the project, typically an IT software vendor or system integrator.

Finding a partner for the project willing to get involved

Here’s a piece of sound advice that should be heeded; forget about a typical vendor-customer relationship, where you simply tell a vendor what you need and they supply it without asking any questions. Find a real partner that understands your position, your restrictions and preferences regarding the desired changes, and one that comprehends exactly the best way forward for your business.

Managing transformations in the context of end-to-end processes

ICT, ...

Cloud offering

Voice mobile

Voice fixed

Broadband

IDEAS IN BRIEF: Delivering superior customer experience to business customers – define a good strategy to achieve it

Single experience

Offerings Services

targeting here are not greenfield companies, they are already using many telecom services. This is why acquiring new enterprise customers means that new providers must migrate them from one or multiple telecom operators. For enterprises all that matters is that the process is carried out smoothly – and this can be the main differentiating factor that will make some telecoms companies broaden their market share in the enterprise segment, while others will lose business.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Make sure the vendor gets involved in the change management processes just as much as you do, and that the selected company has a perfect understanding of all the business and technical levels of the organization involved in the project. Cooperation with such a business partner should start long before the IT project launches. Make sure you partner with a company that is able to react quickly when something goes wrong (and make sure they will tell you, when it does) and that escalation paths for such situations are predefined. What’s more, give them the chance to simply say “no”. Such cooperation will most likely result in the success of your transformation project.

KRZYSZTOF KWIATKOWSKI

Comarch SA

Head of BSS product management, Telecommunications Business Unit

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

Think twice while deciding on your desired IT architecture and choose the correct elements In most cases a new, redefined strategy for selling services to enterprises requires a set of new tools on the IT side. This leads to substantial transformation projects, related to changes in the organization, processes and IT systems. The selected partner, described in the previous paragraph, should be able to help you manage these changes, making strategic decisions, as well as preventing unnecessary changes in the existing IT architecture. Once you embark on a transformation you should make sure the selected IT platform includes the following areas: Service level agreement (SLA) management and monitoring, Contracts, Customer relationship management (CRM), Billing, Selfservice, Product and service catalog, Automated fulfillment.

Use the systems you already have When you decide on what areas you want to include in your solution, it is best to check if your existing tools can become part of the desired IT architecture. For example, in some cases it may not be necessary to introduce a new Enterprise Product. Sometimes your existing product catalog, used as part of a powerful billing system will be enough. A similar situation may happen in the case of service factories – your existing fulfillment logic, spread across various silos, doesn’t always have to be completely replaced. In some cases it is enough to treat existing systems as black boxes and move them to a higher level in a central fulfillment solution. The partner described in the previous paragraph should be able to help you with these difficult decisions and prevent too much unnecessary changes in existing IT architecture.

Focus on end-to-end processes One of the most important lessons learned from transformation projects is that it is crucial to manage transformations in the context of end-to-end processes. Ready-made products delivered by some vendors are, for the most part, just elements of such processes. This poses a risk that there may be many specifications for you to prepare regarding specific requirements and processes. And once the organizational changes start, you may not be able to go into too much detail regarding your requirements. You cannot be 100% sure that your system vendor will be able to fill all the gaps with standard processes and elements of processes. The result of such a potential project is then easy to foresee.

This is why it is better to manage the project (the analysis, the delivery, the tests etc.) in the context of well-defined endto-end processes such as Order-to-Payment, Request-toAnswer, Complaint-to-Solution and others (TMForum Frameworx lends a helping hand by defining such processes). By following this rule during the transformation, you will not be forced to face an unfortunate situation where all the systems work and pass all the required tests, but somehow the endto-end processes don’t work properly. When it comes to your project methodology, think twice. Agility is trendy but it’s probably not the best methodology for a large transformation project.

Prepare operations and delivery for a new way of working Depending on the strategy defined in the first paragraph, you should adjust the roles of your operations and delivery teams accordingly. Traditionally, some of these new roles may have been played by your business partners in the past. Your operations and delivery processes must be transformed to Managed Services (both in the context of telecom and non-telecom services), instead of just Delivering Services like in the past. This means that you don’t just provide fiber links to a few locations of your customer’s offices and sell a hundred mobile subscriptions as an addition. Instead, you start delivering a comprehensive service for several business consultants and technical employees of the enterprise located in a few locations. Your enterprise customer shouldn’t care about the details. Everything must work as it should, and it is up to you how you achieve this and how you care about it. A Managed Service may refer to much more than traditional telecommunication services – Cloud or M2M applications may be provided in this model. To get a clearer picture, you can always refer to industry standards. The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is crucial in relation to your customers, as it covers such elements as End-to-End Incident Management and Performance Management. Some other standards may also be useful – e.g. TMF Frameworx, with its business metrics for Revenue & Margin, Customer Experience and Operational Efficiency.

Summary The main goal of redefining your strategy for the enterprise segment is of course to increase the number of enterprise customers and boost revenues earned from services sold

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

to enterprises. How much these numbers can increase depends on the decisions made when defining a strategy, as well as on churn rates directly related to your operations and delivery teams. Finding the right partner for the project and planning the desired IT architecture carefully, based on your company’s requirements and the vendor’s expertise, will get you a step closer to improving the offer for your enterprise customers. However, in order to achieve your ultimate goal of complete satisfaction for enterprise customers, you have to analyze and understand the needs of your clients, find out what really matters to them and who the final user of your service is. By possessing that knowledge, you can perfectly tailor your products and services to fit the needs of your enterprise customers and deliver an offer that will push your success in that segment.

The metrics related to the success of your transformation project indicate that it is always a good idea to redesign the strategy and, as a result, really improve customer experience and achieve a competitive position on the market. It is enough to take a look at some figures for telecom transformations: average time-to-market for new product offerings can be decreased from months to weeks or even days. Mean Time Order-To-Activation can even fall by up to 90%. Many other indicators can also be improved, depending on the areas of IT architecture that are part of the transformation process. To sell differently and operate in a new way, you not only need to have the right IT tools, but they also need to be delivered without any problems – and the success of such a project directly depends on successful cooperation with the vendor or system integrator that you select, as well as on the methodology of introducing the changes in your architecture and organization.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Enterprise customers do not always expect the full bells and whistles treatment. What they do expect however, is to be able to run their businesses in an optimized way and therefore they need tools to facilitate this.

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

Loyalty – what loyalty?

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

elesperience Chief Analyst Teresa Cottam looks at why there is little loyalty amongst European SMEs towards their service provider, and argues this is both a business risk and an opportunity.

The small and medium sized enterprise (SME) market is the new hot target for many European communications service providers (CSPs). Hyper competition in the consumer market, and thinning margins in the enterprise market, mean that many embattled CSPs are now turning the spotlight on the long underserved SME market. There are sound reasons for this strategy: the market potential is enormous and the timing is right. Over 99% of European businesses are SMEs, and they employ 67.1% of the European workforce. What’s more, Gartner said in October that it is forecasting European ICT spending will move back into growth in 2013, reaching $1.247 trillion by 2016. The problem is though that, CSPs are starting from a weak position. Telesperience research reveals a very low level of loyalty in the SME sector – 80% of SMEs we talked to during our recent programme said they are planning to churn or are open to churn. It’s true that low levels of loyalty are a business risk and do not provide a firm foundation for creating a SME business. However, rather than see this as a problem, the most strategic CSPs will see this as an opportunity. It means there are few entrenched incumbents in this market, and that customers are willing to be persuaded to churn to a better service. In other words, the sector is wide open for product and service innovation backed up by high levels of operational efficiency.

What does this mean in practice? Well, creating loyalty isn’t easy. Transforming SMEs into loyal and engaged customers will require CSPs to have competitive and differentiated offers in place, be able to deliver against their promises, and be able to resolve problems quickly and efficiently. This means being able to create dedicated SME portals that encourage self-service in a manner that decreases the cost of supporting SMEs but also provides a better customer experience for them by giving them the tools to order new products, change tariff plans or adjust service or spending controls. By providing services that appeal to SMEs, CSPs can create stickiness – attracting and retaining the most lucrative SMEs. Some services though are perceived as being more valuable to SMEs than others. To find out which these are download our Research Paper which is free thanks to sponsorship from Comarch. The paper reveals the findings from a study of 298 European SMEs, and explains which services SMEs value most, what frustrates them, and the differences between countries. With this invaluable insight you can start honing your SME strategy today and position yourself to be one of the big winners in this sector. To find out for yourself what SMEs want and value, go to our website and read the free report: (You will be required to register.) Telesperience Strategy Insight: How European CSPs can create new revenue streams by meeting the needs of SMEs

http://www.comarch.com/telecommunications/resources/white-papers/contact-form-telesperience/

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Teresa Cottam is the Chief Analyst and Founder Telesperience, an independent telecoms IT analyst company. She has more than 18 years’ industry experience and was previously an Associate Principal Analyst with UK-based telecoms consultancy Analysys Mason, covering the billing, CRM and service delivery sectors. Before that she was Research and Publications Director at Chorleywood Consulting, a specialist BSS/ OSS consultancy which was acquired by Informa Telecoms and Media. Prior to this she was Managing Editor at industry analysts Ovum.

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

To outsource or not to outsource…. Is someone else able to solve your problems?

oday’s economic circumstances call for efficiency on all stages of business activities. This is particularly important for BSS/OSS vendors and telecom operators struggling with falling average revenue per user (ARPU), the cost of introducing new tech-

nologies and monetizing the surge in data traffic. Faced with these challenges, operators are looking for ways to transform their IT environments, to shorten time-to-market, improve customer experience and reduce operational costs.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

But this article is not just about monetary issues. Leave these to your accountants, while we’ll examine other aspects far more fundamental to business operations. Mobile Network providers run numerous procedures related to network design and operations, as well as business and administrative activities. Examples of such activities range from network planning and optimisation, through to maintenance and operations, up to service assurance and billing. These processes have never been simple nor easy to manage, and the future will only exacerbate problems, as more technological platforms come into play.

Outsourcing is not magical remedy prerequisites of the effectiveness Regardless of the selected delivery model, outsourcing operations or resolving all issues in-house cannot be done quickly and effectively without an efficient, information-centric IT architecture. Breaking the existing information silos and correlating data coming from multiple sources is a key factor influencing the effectiveness and speed of problem solving. On top of that, such an architecture provides complete visibility regarding the context of issues and allows businesses to proactively design customized solutions to the most important issues affecting clients.

ANDRZEJ WĄŻ-AMBROŻEWICZ

Comarch SA

Outsourcing benefits Outsourcing these routine procedures in a Managed Services model may free up resources and allow operators to focus on core business processes – establishing and maintaining relationships with clients. An outsourcing partner may be more effective, thanks to using a larger pool of IT expertise and resources. Scale effects may also be leveraged, as one Managed Service provider can offer the same kind of service to multiple operators (albeit with different KPIs specified for each one). As a result, routine engineering and administrative procedures can be executed in a better, cheaper and faster way. The abovementioned facts can justify Managed Services models as a serious alternative to executing in-house activities. However, the real gains from outsourcing are located elsewhere. Telecom operators often discover inefficiencies on various stages of their engineering, operational and administrative procedures. Historical reasons and the silo structures of telecom companies, as well as the necessity to continuously adhere to existing procedures, are usually the causes of these inefficiencies. It is worth remembering that the professional experience of telecom operators’ staff is usually limited to single project involvement, resulting in a lack of a broader view of the organization of engineering and administrative efforts. An experienced Managed Services partner can help a telecom service provider accumulate knowledge gained through involvement in numerous projects over time. Thus, commissioning a Managed Services deal to such a company enables a telecom operator to learn from any mistakes that have been made by others in the past.

In other words, superior performance is only possible when supported by a superior IT infrastructure. A properly crafted IT solution can help cut costs, speed up services and technology delivery times and create standardized, open and integrated IT ecosystems. Some business functions of such an ecosystem constitute a strategic asset of every telecom provider, therefore outsourcing options need to be considered with great care. Customer Experience is a good example of an area that should be carefully considered before outsourcing as it constitutes an important market differentiator. A critical business function, such as Customer Experience Management should be controlled by the operator itself. However, the underlying IT infrastructure supporting this function can be delivered in a Managed Services model. An experienced outsourcing partner can offer a far more advanced solution than any other telecom operator can design and operate on its own, but business logic should be developed and controlled by the service provider. In other words, a data processing platform can be delivered by an outsourcing partner, while the business logic should remain a proprietary one.

…and the winner is… Outsourcing is always worth considering, especially if coupled with the reshaping of business and operational procedures. The execution of any tasks outside company premises is no threat to the service provider’s competiveness, as long as the main ideas, how to attract and address customers are kept inhouse. A cost/benefit analysis, the current IT landscape and the efficiency and limitations of the existing systems and procedures should all be taken into consideration when weighing various delivery options. Managed Services coupled with business transformations can be particularly attractive, especially if delivered by a reputable and experienced partner.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Radio Networks & Managed Services Product Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

IDEAS IN BRIEF: Outsourcing routine procedures in a Managed Services model An experienced outsourcing partner offering advanced solutions Superior performance – only possible when supported by a superior IT infrastructure

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

Towards a perfect offer for enterprises – from connectivity “pipes” to tailored business solutions

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

A new era of CSP-Enterprise relationship It was not long ago that many enterprise customers, especially the ones with multiple locations, used to have their own infrastructure departments; managing all of the office communication infrastructure. This kind of enterprise customer had network expertise, as well as exact expectations as to what services were necessary to be delivered by their CSP (communications service provider). Those services were usually only “raw” communication pipes. Such customers also used to define precisely what connectivity service they needed – e.g. the bandwidth required to have their location connected but also VPNs, traffic classes and their prioritization. In other words, it was the customer’s responsibility to translate their own business requirements into low-level communication services and technology. The economy slowdown has changed the situation significantly. Cost pressure has forced even big enterprise customers to consider outsourcing their existing infrastructure and IT departments. CSPs on the other hand, need to look for new sources of revenues, as those from traditional telecom services have gone flat or down. All of this means that there is room for both CSPs and enterprises to enter new areas of mutually beneficial cooperation. Enterprise customers need to delegate designing the connectivity and office infrastructure to CSPs. CSPs can thus generate new revenues through providing additional value for enterprises – by taking the responsibility for matching their business requirements with the underlying telecomIT infrastructure. This means CSPs can enrich their portfolio with hype services such as managed LAN or Cloud services. Enterprises, however, will be expecting the CSPs to not only deliver communication pipes, but a complete solution – i.e. a comprehensive platform, which enhances the productivity of the enterprise customer’s employees in their everyday work. This article will refer to it as a “productivity platform”.

From “connectivity pipes” to a complete productivity platform Individual employees of an enterprise do not directly use the “communication pipes”, but rather the services that those pipes deliver. The communication-based services used by those employees may range from traditional voice services (including fixed and mobile phones), through access to collaboration suites (including a corporate e-mail system), to videoconferencing, Cloud-based office applications and business-specific IT systems (available from any office location as well as on-the-go). The business needs of an enterprise do not define what bandwidth is needed to connect individual office locations,

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

ŁUKASZ MENDYK

Comarch SA

OSS Product Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

IDEAS IN BRIEF: How you can

move from being a “raw” pipes provider to becoming a true business partner for your enterprise customers

How to translate

what the necessary VPNs topology are, traffic classes and QoS. This is why they need to be translated into specifications of “raw” communications services, needed to support high-level business-related expectations. Traditionally, translating business requirements into “raw” communication services was done by the enterprise’s internal IT and infrastructure departments, today a CSP can take over this role and benefit from additional revenues. At the same time, from an enterprise’s perspective, being able to outsource this costly activity creates an opportunity for significant budget savings.

technology into business for your customers

Building a true partnership by better understanding your enterprise customers

How to transform

In order for CSPs to fully embrace this new role, better understanding of enterprise customers’ business is essential. It does not mean that CSPs need to become experts in banking, car selling, fashion retailing or any other industry, but it may mean that CSPs need to get a deeper understanding of what the business specifics of a given customer are and what requirements they create for a productivity platform; while also taking into account the necessary ICT (Information and Communications Technology) services.

your product portfolio to better fit the current needs of enterprises

How to

orchestrate existing IT silos for providing enterprise services in a new way

How to use

product and service catalogs to help the transformation process

A good starting point is to understand what employees of an enterprise need for their everyday work. In order to achieve this, CSPs need to closely collaborate with their enterprise customers to establish a real partnership relation. It is important that the language used by CSPs to communicate with enterprises is more concentrated on value of the underlying technology, rather than on the technology itself. It is also crucial that CSPs identify the number of enterprise employees and their types, to take their individual requirements into account when designing the productivity platform. For example, a sales representative may need to access the enterprise selling platform or stay in touch with his / her customers, and do these things when both working from the office and on-the-go. A back-office employee, on the other hand, may not need such a high level of remote access, but may need to have an extended access to all back-office systems, located in the company’s data center or in the public Cloud. Having defined the types of employees, who will be supported by the productivity platform, a CSP can more confidently speak the “business language” about a given enterprise.

Speaking the “business language” of enterprise customers For a business-oriented manager, representing an enterprise customer, it may be challenging to justify paying a CSP for

VPNs, support for high-quality traffic classes or other technology-oriented services, because of the difficulty in matching them with the high-level business needs. This is why CSPs need to learn to speak the “business language” that nontechnical managers can easily understand. Equipped with this new capability, CSPs will be able to offer products that are much more than communication pipes. For example, if a CSP can offer a productivity platform, which can support X sales representatives, Y back office employees and Z customers of the given enterprise, then a business-oriented manager can easily map the costs of the CSPs products with their value for the business. Moreover, in this model an enterprise’s managers do not have to choose the underlying communication technology, leaving this decision to the CSP, who chooses the appropriate technology so as to provide a service that will bring the commonly agreed extra value to the given enterprise. Once more CSPs embrace this approach, enterprises will be able to freely choose between the offerings delivered by various telecom service providers. This will create a new dimension in the competition between telecoms – whoever will have the competence to best transform the underlying communication technology into real business value, will win. As enterprises will be able to better understand the communication offers and the extra value that they bring to the business metrics, they will be more inclined to bare the extra costs. This creates a world of new possibilities for revenue from the enterprise segment for the whole CSP community.

A new approach to services for enterprises – where to start? Transformation from selling communication pipes to selling complete productivity platforms to enterprises entails a need to introduce new products. The old products may thus be degraded to technical services that will not be sold directly to enterprise customers, but will still be needed to support the new offers. Trying to look at it from the TMF SID model’s perspective, it means that old products and the related Customer Facing Services (CFS) are degraded to play the role of Resource Facing Services (RFS). This relates to the concept of modeling business and technical aspect of telecom products, which is further elaborated in a separate whitepaper: How to align the business and technical side of products and shorten time to market. The best way to introduce the new products is to apply a stepby-step approach, where the existing products and the systems that support them don’t need to be replaced. Instead, these old products and systems, quite often located in sep-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IN FOCUS: ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS

arate silos in a CSP’s BSS/OSS ecosystem, can be orchestrated to deliver new value to the customer.

To better understand this concept, please refer to the product modeling depicted on Figure 1.

Product catalog «Product» EnterpriseWorkspace

«Product» CloudServiceBundle

«Product» Employee profile «Product» Fixed&Mobile

«Product» Cloud Based Office Suite

Service catalog

«CFS» Employee profile

«CFS» VPN «CFS» MobileVoice

«CFS» FixedVoice VoIP

«CFS» BroadBandAcces

«CFS» Cloud Based Office Suite

«CFS» PC

«RFS» Cloud Based Office Suite

«RFS» PC

«CFS» InternetAcces «RFS» VPN

«RFS» FixedVoice VoIP

«RFS» MobileVoice

«RFS» BroadBandAcces

«RFS» InternetAcces

Fixed&Mobile Silo Data silo

Cloud Services #1

«Product» Fixed&Mobile

«CFS» MobileVoice

«CFS» VPN

«CFS» FixedVoice

«CFS» BroadBandAcces

«RFS» Cloud Based Office Suite

«CFS» InternetAcces

Figure 1. New products spanning across multiple silos

The picture presents a situation, where a new product called “Enterprise Workspace” is decomposed into many “Employee Profiles”, which play the role of enterprise products. These new products are mapped onto the old products, such as fixed and mobile phone services, VPNs and the related IT applications, which a given employee need to access to be productive. Even

if an enterprise won’t order these old products directly, but will instead, for example, define how many sales representatives will be using the product (modeled as an “Employee Profile”), the system should be able to translate it to orders composed of existing products and then issue orders for VPNs, broadband accesses, fixed, mobile voice services etc.

This article is an abstract of a more detailed white paper that will be available soon for downloading at Comarch website.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Managed LAN

«RFS» PC

«RFS» Router

HOT TOPIC: M2M

Are you ready to catch the M2M market opportunities? Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: M2M

hether you believe the 50 billion connected devices forecasted by AT&T by 2020 or the 1 trillion connected devices projected by IBM for 2015, it is safe to say that M2M is an exploding marketplace that brings new challenges and opportunities to companies worldwide. (Kontron)

Revenue does not scale with cost Machine to machine (M2M) communication exacts as much toll on network resources as person to person (P2P) or person to machine (P2M) communication, in terms of attachment or location update capacity, paging requests or opened sessions. In fact, operators must add a new radio access network (RAN) access channel for each new 1000 devices. At the same time, M2M communication often generates very little traffic, hence commanding very low average revenue per unit (ARPU).

Charging must be flexible and real-time To support the diverse world of M2M applications, subscription models must be highly flexible and allow basic composition: flat for life, flat per year, per connection, per message,… In particular, M2M subscriptions must easily blend with prepaid models, sometimes in a very dynamic manner. For instance, consumers must be able to rent short lived M2M services and charge their prepaid account for these.

Pre-provisioning is no longer an option Keeping expensive resources tied up to inactive M2M devices is simply not an option for operators. Routing entries in network databases must be provisioned at the time a device is first activated and used, not when the device is manufactured or registered with the operator.

Furthermore, when devices roam to other networks, the inbound and outbound operators must have the option to re-home the device from home to visited network in a secure way, without exchanging highly confidential information such as encryption keys.

Fortunately, in these issues lie opportunities to differentiate These challenges entice operators to think about how M2M affects network utilization and how to revisit the core infrastructure so that the cost of the RAN scales only at a tiny fraction of the M2M device growth curve. This is all about controlling network device attachments (priority and time control, number of M2M devices connected to the network, etc…), as well as pooling network addresses (MSISDN) among devices, along with real-time provisioning of network resources when devices get switched on for the first time. In addition to this, proper handling of M2M requires adequate billing with flexible and scalable M2M service commercialization. This can be achieved by integrating charging control in the core of the network, in a way that is fully compatible with existing online charging systems (e.g. prepaid). Last but not the least, enhanced security can also become a key differentiator: the ability of re-homing devices between partner networks, without compromising sensitive information such as encryption keys for example, or that of preventing invalid or misused devices from registering to the network can allay the fears of partner operators and thus make it practical to strike global alliances. Comarch partners with Buzzinbees who has developed patented technology allowing to deploy M2M solutions to address these opportunities. Do you agree that now is a good time to consider a M2M project ?

You can discuss the ideas expressed in this article on our blog: telcosphere.comarch.com or Facebook www.facebook.com/comarch.telecoms

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

THIERRY GERACI Buzzinbees

Global Sales and Business Development Director

Thierry Geraci is in charge of Global Sales and Business Development at Buzzinbees since the company creation in 2009. Previously, he worked for the HP telecom division and was in charge of business development for large accounts -network equipment providers and software vendors- and product marketing. Prior to holding this position, he subsequently worked in R&D and sales, first as a project manager for naval communication systems and then as sales manager in the telecommunication domain.

HOT TOPIC: M2M

Impact of M2M and Internet of Things on IT architecture

hese days all Tier-1 operators have some Machine to Machine (M2M) offer that has been available for a couple of years and this market segment can be found on various positions of their list of priorities, being even sometimes placed at number 1. Because of the development of the business, many Communication Service Providers evaluate various options related to IT platforms to support sophisticated business models in the area of M2M. Depending on the selected options of the M2M platform and business models, it can have varying impacts on the entire IT architecture.

KRZYSZTOF KWIATKOWSKI

tions have already been discussed in my article “How Telecom Operators Stay Independent in the Strategic M2M Business” published in Technology Review no. 2/2012 [15] and in Pipeline, Volume 8, Issue 10.

M2M impact on EAI architecture As presented in Figure 1, an M2M Platform must be integrated with the many existing systems that operators already use. The most important ones include:

Comarch SA

Head of BSS product management, Telecommunications Business Unit

There are various options regarding the implementation of an M2M platform – in-house (build by own IT department), software as a service (e.g. Jasper Wireless), partnership (e.g. with Vodafone) or licensed (e.g. from Comarch). These op-

Provisioning System – in most cases M2M platforms will not have direct access to equipment such as existing HLR. The existing provisioning system can be used however, and the M2M

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: M2M

IDEAS IN BRIEF:

Verticals

IT Systems of M2M Partners

Vehicle of Logistics Company

M2M Platform must be integrated with existing systems that operators already use

CRM

Vehicle of Logistics Company

M2M Application

Subscriber Database Monitoring

M2M Application

Interface

M2M Platform

Sample Existing Systems Retail Billing System

CSP

Interface

Provisioning

Generic M2M platform

Billing & Revenue Sharing

CRM - Partner Management

Order Management

M2M Dashboards

Provisioning

Monitoring

Product catalog

B2B Gateway Web Services

Partner Billing System

M2M application enablement platform

M2M connectivity and applications as a part of more comprehensive offering

M2M connectivity platform

Billing must be capable of handling connectivity level services

Application Enablement Service Provisioning

Data Collection

Triggers & Actions

Device Software Deployment

Service & Network Inventory

Integrated with existing systems

Intelligent Conectivity Service Monitoring

AAA

Policy Management

SIM Management

connectivity

Network

M2M Devices

Figure 1. Typical M2M Platform for managing connectivity and application level

Platform should have access to business APIs exposed by the operator’s Enterprise Service Bus. Sales Support – an M2M Platform must provide many features but sometimes sales departments already have the tools for campaign and lead management at their disposal and an M2M Platform will not replace this functionality. It must integrate with existing platforms to provide necessary information and also provide the possibility to easily convert leads into contracts. Billing – an M2M Platform can have its own charging and billing capabilities. But operators may want to use existing billing systems for their M2M services, which in some cases makes sense. In that case, the M2M Platform must integrate with the existing external billing system and provide billing data for it. Integration with external invoice printing may also be necessary. Logistics system – logistics processes in M2M are very specific and must by partially covered by an M2M platform, however it is usually a sub process of corporate logistic processes, e.g. related to ordering M2M SIM cards.

There can be various sources regarding service usage data on the connectivity and application levels. On the connectivity level it means that the M2M Platform must be integrated with GGSN or obtain data from existing mediation systems. On the application level, the integration will be managed by Application Enablement platform.

Integration with existing Data Warehouse systems may be necessary in order to gather reports for Business Analysis.

An external Credit Check module must be integrated for Order Management purposes.

A crucial area related to the integration concerns API exposure. This includes a set of interfaces for partners or ones that will need to be used by the Application Enablement platform. These APIs are important because partners in M2M tend to use APIs rather than GUIs. When it comes to technologies used the most important is REST, however SOAP must also be supported as well as the exchange of files. Providing different interfaces for partners brings additional challenges related to security and capacity control, these must be very carefully addressed as part of the EAI architecture.

Integration with existing G/L systems may be needed if billing processes are in the M2M platform.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: M2M

Open

Telematics

...

Security & Surveillance

Automotive

Dynamic

Utilities

Specialized

M2M Application Enablement as a Service

M2M Application Enablement Platform M2M Connectivity Platform CSP

Figure 2. Application Enablement platform in the context of sample verticals

Application Enablement

an SMS alarm to the administrator” but many more complex specifics can also be added here.

Application Enablement in the area of M2M refers to the part of the M2M platform where developers can build the business logic of the applications. The part related to collecting events from various types of devices and high level trigger & action engines is fully covered by the Application Enablement. Thanks to this developers may only focus on business logic. That logic may be, for example, a simple “if the temperature in a monitored device reaches 100 degrees then send

Application Enablement hosted by the operator or available in the cloud from other platform providers (e.g. AXEDA) can be used to create applications for various verticals such as Security or Telematics or can even be provided by the CSP as a service to external developers. For more specialized verticals such as Utilities, Automotive or e.g. mHealth it can be more difficult because the data processed in these verticals is more sensitive (security, reliability) and cloud solu-

IT Systems of M2M Partners

CRM

Vehicle of Logistics Company

M2M Application

Subscriber Database

Verticals

Cloud

Vehicle of Logistics Company

Monitoring

M2M Application

Provisioning

Vehicle of Logistics Company

CRM

Vehicle of Logistics Company

M2M Application

Subscriber Database Monitoring

M2M Application

Device Software Deployment

Sample Existing Systems

Retail Billing System

M2M Platform Billing & Revenue Sharing Provisioning

Order Management

M2M Dashboards

Monitoring

Product Catalog

B2B Gateway Web Services

Partner Billing System

M2M Platform Billing & Revenue Sharing Provisioning

CRM - Partner Management

connectivity

CSP

Sample Existing Systems

Retail Billing System

Interface

Triggers & Actions

Interface

Application Enablement Data collection

Interface

Provisioning

CSP

CRM - Partner Management

Order Management

M2M Dashboards

Monitoring

Product Catalog

B2B Gateway Web Services

Partner Billing System

Application Enablement Service Provisioning

Data collection

Triggers & Actions

Device Software Deployment

Service & Network Inventory Service Provisioning

Intelligent Conectivity Service Monitoring

AAA

Service & Network Inventory

Policy Management

SIM Management

Intelligent Conectivity Service Monitoring

AAA

Policy Management

SIM Management

connectivity

Network connectivity

Network

M2M Devices

Figure 3. Application Enablement – in the cloud or integrated?

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

M2M Devices

Nevertheless, both options will have a significant impact on the entire IT architecture. The Application Enablement platform in the cloud cannot be well integrated with all other systems of the CSP, this can result in less synergy between data stored on the connectivity and application levels. But the most important problem is that in such an approach the cloud Application Enablement platform provider may not respect the telecommunications standards and the network restrictions, e.g. related to signaling or roaming and finally, even just a small number of M2M applications could completely kill a network. Of course, networks can be optimized and prepared for it but in the cloud approach it is more difficult to address key issues related to problems with the network (see 3GPP TR 23.888 document for more information). The integrated approach where the operator carries their own M2M Application Enablement platform and is well integrated with the network and other systems (it cannot be a fully dependent but rather uses gathered information) provides many advantages related to being able to use more information to make vital decisions in M2M applications. Additional capabilities include quality of service monitoring and the possibility to address potential network problems. In this approach, it is also easier to follow ETSI M2M architecture which also brings many other additional advantages, such as: easier creation of applications on devices, gateway and network levels as well as limiting vendor locks thanks to the elimination of proprietary interfaces.

ICT, ...

Professional Services

Cloud offering

Vertical M2M applications

Product Catalog as part of M2M Platform or separated?

M2M connectivity

From the perspective of a CSP, owning an M2M Application Enablement platform brings some benefits, such as: more independence and potentially more control over the entire M2M value chain which results in better revenues. The real money in M2M is in applications and integrations, not in connectivity. However, it may be difficult to convince system integrators and end-to-end solution providers to use the Application Enablement platform offered by a CSP and not use connectivity-independent Application Enablement platforms offered in the cloud by independent providers. Opportunities may lie in providing better quality and security of data offered by a CSP and a more end-to-end approach offered to customers which would be beneficial for all involved.

Single experience

Offerings

Application Enablement – in the cloud or integrated?

Services

tions cannot be used. Large amount of processed data leads to similar findings. In such a case, Application Enablement platforms must be deployed separately on the premises of companies from these specialized verticals if they are required – all software is vertical specific, including the M2M application part. Applications related to mHealth or Automotive are good examples here.

Experience

HOT TOPIC: M2M

Figure 4. M2M connectivity and applications as a part of more comprehensive offering

What about selling it? How CSPs sell services in the business to business (B2B) domain is changing. In many cases it is not simply selling in separate areas anymore. It has been described in another article related to enterprise customers – “Five best practices to improve your offering for enterprise customers”. In other words, it means that some services, considered as typical M2M (related to connectivity and specific M2M applications), can become part of a more comprehensive offer together with an ICT or Telco cloud offer (hosting, ERP applications etc.). From the IT architecture perspective it may create a significant challenge and questions concerning a product catalog. Responding to these challenges can be difficult because some services are delivered typically by other organizational units (e.g. cloud services are usually not part of the M2M department) and the question is how to manage offerings, as well as delivery and billing? Comprehensive bundles should be managed where they are sold, this may mean that bundles may need to be created separately and are duplicated across a few parts of the organization. Another option is when an Enterprise Product Catalog is used by the CSP for all B2B offerings and all such offers are managed there, including M2M. The creation of service bundles with M2M products can be achieved more easily and

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: M2M

The integrated approach where the operator carries their own M2M Application Enablement platform and is well integrated with the network and other systems (it cannot be a fully dependent but rather uses gathered information) provides many advantages related to being able to use more information to make vital decisions in M2M applications.

providing a single experience for customers can be realized more efficiently.

Large amount of data to be processed

Impact on billing

Real-time for connectivity and applications

M2M connectivity services do not have a large impact on billing. Operators should decide if it should be a part of the M2M platform as a billing function dedicated for M2M or if the existing billing system should be used.

Low average revenue per user (ARPU) business, large technical requirements

Real challenges are related to billing on the application level where CSPs want to provide billing capabilities to various verticals as a service. Each vertical is a different industry with many specific billing requirements and can range from the very simple to the very complex non-telecommunication services. Service independent billing services must be flexible and capable of supporting all verticals as part of the M2M offer and this can be quite challenging. There are several considerations related to such billing. Some of them include: Various business models – B2C, B2B, B2B2C, B2B2B2C Connectivity and application-level Multinational – multi-language, multi-country, multi-time-zone

Open

Telematics

Security & Surveillance

Dynamic

...

Automotive

Specialized

Other issues There are many other issues related to M2M which may impact the IT architecture of CSPs and must be considered. One of these involves security. M2M services are very often multinational and is it often required that subscription data must be stored in the subscription country. Also, the security of data transferred from devices to the platform should be addressed, currently, in many cases it is completely ignored. For some verticals (e.g. related to health) data transmitted from devices to where the data is processed must be secure. Big Data is becoming one of the largest topics in the area of M2M and is related to the huge amount of data collected from millions of devices. This data must be collected and make available for entities which must fulfill regulatory requirements for each vertical.

Summary The impact of M2M and Internet of Things on the IT Infrastructure of CSPs is much larger than many enterprise architects assume. It seems that M2M is not only an additional product, but it is an alternative type of communication which can influence the network, signaling, logistics, billing and revenue management, selling and many other processes inside an organization.

Service Agnostic Billing

Utilities

Personalized products for customers

M2M Application Enablement as a Service

M2M Application Enablement Platform M2M Connectivity Platform CSP

The way IT architectures will support M2M processes in the future will change to become a more important part of the organization. However, it is also related to how CSPs will approach their M2M offerings. If a CSP is more focused on connectivity, then large changes to their operation will not be needed and the addition of an M2M Platform and M2M offering should be easily achieved. A comprehensive, end-to-end M2M offering which also consists of applications, devices, and services and is related to cooperation with many partners and other CSPs will require not only large changes in the IT architecture of a company but also changes in the organization in order to be able to manage the new cooperation models.

Figure 5. Billing must be capable of handling connectivity and application level services

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

4 Key Elements of Customer Experience Management for Telecom Operators ustomer experience is currently all the hype for most businesses and the telecom industry, being on top of innovations and buzz as it usually is, has not been left behind. But what does “providing great customer experience” actually mean for a telecoms oper-

ator? Being able to quickly deliver new services? Delivering precisely these services that customers want? Providing great customer service across all touch points? Well, it is actually all of these, and more.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

JAKUB ZAŁUSKI-KAPUSTA

Comarch SA

OSS Consulting Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

In the telecom industry competition is fierce – you can see it on multiple levels, including the devices available in a given provider’s catalog of offers (and their prices), the proposed tariff plans and the delivering of innovative services that stand out from competitors’ offers. Customer loyalty can no longer be taken for granted, as subscribers are currently more inclined to switch provider than they have ever been in the past. Network quality and coverage is no longer a major differentiator, which is why telecom operators have started to compete on the level of customer experience.

Making Your Employees Your Brand’s Ambassadors

Enter Customer Experience Management

This is probably why many service provides have now decided to take back control of these areas and to improve inhouse customer service, by embedding customer awareness and brand culture in their employees. They try to treat their employees as internal customers, ones who need to be satisfied with the service quality and who are able to help showing and communicating this satisfaction to external clients. This change of attitude is achieved by striving to make employees feel proud of being part of their company’s brand and then training them to apply this positive attitude towards customers. The key element is to convert employees into active promoters of the brand and its services and also to generate a ‘can do’ attitude, not limited only to the departments directly involved in customer relations.

Many service providers have recognized the fact that they need to redesign their IT environments in order to pursue a strategy of constantly improving customer experience. But to implement real Customer Experience Management (CEM), a communication service provider (CSP) needs to undergo a comprehensive transformation project. It starts with recognizing which existing processes require improvement. The key elements of such a transformation include involving upper management as well as all other employees of a service provider, gathering customer feedback from various communication channels and measuring customer satisfaction. All these aspects need to be addressed during the transformation and for each one different challenges must be faced.

A couple of years ago service providers often outsourced their call centers and sales channels. From a business perspective it seemed to be the perfect solution, it brought significant cost savings, and seemed to achieve the desired levels of innovation. But in the long run, these customer communication channels have drifted too far away from the customers themselves, and this started to pose the risk of them not associating with the brand as much anymore.

Gathering Feedback from Customer Communication Channels

Involving Upper Management The key success factor for introducing CEM programs is the involvement of all of the stakeholders, both those responsible for The key element is to convert employees into active promoters of the brand and its services and also to generate a ‘can do’ attitude, not limited only to the departments directly involved in customer relations. customer communication channels and those who oversee network-related activities. Typically, telecom operators include overall customer satisfaction as a variable in their management bonus schemes – Net Promoter Scores (NPS), customer churn figures, customer satisfaction surveys or even simple Facebook ‘Likes’ are used to calculate bonuses. But Customer Experience Management cannot end there. It is even more important that the analysis of potential impacts on end customers is included in the roadmaps for all tools and products used by a service provider. Even a simple process, like performing some changes in the network, should be clearly communicated to all customers, in order to ensure a positive experience and their overall satisfaction. And it’s the role of upper management to spread this and other kinds of customer-centric thinking across the whole company, on all organizational levels.

For a very long time now, gathering customer feedback has been the main focus of widely understood customer experience. The highest focus was put on following customer activity in all the available channels. Nowadays, the content of customer communications is far more important than the channels. In order for customers to be satisfied, they need clear and precise communication from their service provider, especially when any changes occur. Nowadays, the content of customer communications is far more important than the channels – in order for customers to be satisfied, they need clear and precise communication from their service providers, especially when any changes occur. As far as the channels are considered, the most important thing is to manage them appropriately. If a customer or even a group of customers complain, a service provider should address these remarks and provide a precise explanation, instead of just blocking the channels. Currently, many telecom operators even go as far as promoting the authors of the complaints if the source of the complaint was caused by problems on the service provider’s side. In this way, telecoms convert these customers into brand promoters.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

compatibility, and determining which RFS Specifications describe technical alternative implementations of CFS Specifications.

TOPIC: Delivering of Experience This service assembly process guarantees efficient service delivery by reusing existing HOT service building blockstrue andQuality avoiding

the misallocation of service components. Moreover, this strategy assures only a minimal impact on existing services that a user wishes to retain.

Customer Focus

SERVICE DELIVERY CRM

SERVICE ASSURANCE CRM

Capture customer needs

Calculate Customer service impact

Identify what technical services are required

Identify impacted technical services

Allocate resources

Identify faulty resources

Customer Facing Services

Resource Facing Services

Resources

Network Focus

Figure 1. Closing theloop: loop: service service delivery & service assurance Figure 6. Closing the delivery & service assurance

Measuring Customer Satisfaction

Telecoms must transform their network management departments into customer-centric and service-centric entiIDEAS IN BRIEF: Conclusions On one hand, this may look like one of the easiest aspects of ties, delivering reliable, real-time information about potential Customer Experience Management, since it does not require service outages. It is a long journey, but it is the only possi Entering Customer NGSF ischanging a new class of OSS systems, which aims time-to-market and truly integration costs associated with the Experience human nature or having high primarily social skills. On to thereduce ble solution for ensuring superb service quality. Imporother hand, complexity networks and IT through landscapes, it is onsystem the consumer (mass)Unlike market, for enterprise introduction of newthe service offers.ofThis is achieved a new tant and as modern architecture. former OSS systems, Management coupled with the high speed of introducing new services customers it is mandatory. Enterprises require fast anda reliwhich exploited architecture using the vertical silos concept, the new format employs a horizontal architecture with focus on transformation makes measuring customer experience quite complicated. able information about potential service disruptions, as their program First of all, it is hard to really identify customer experience, business often depends on this information. A successful apsurveys are just methods for measuring the approximation proach should cover a transformation of standard Network Making all or comparison of it. Operation Centers (NOCs) into Service Operations Centers, employees feel where all network faults are prioritized and solved based on part of the CEM 8 program What can be done from a service provider’s perspective? their service and customer impact. The next step is the inThere are two main areas which can have a huge impact on tegration of all service-relevant Key Performance Indicators customer experience and can be measured and supported (KPIs) from network performance management and passive Effective gathering by operators: service quality and information management. probing systems. In order to facilitate adapting these changcustomer es in the structure of services and customers, it is imporfeedback through Service Quality Management tant to build these systems in a model-driven architecture, various channels where any changes and adaptations in the service models The systems used for Service Quality Management and Cus- and topologies are followed by necessary measurements Servce Quality tomer Experience Management are sophisticated tools, they and aggregations. Management are designed to cover all network statistics with Customer and Customer Facing Service (CFS) quality indicators. There are different Information Management Experience approaches regarding how the systems are deployed, but in Management – all cases the service model is the key element that enables The second aspect of measuring customer experience comes reliable measuring combining service ordering processes with the future mon- from assessing customer activity on online portals and custools itoring of how customers perceive service quality. tomer care channels. This data is important for post-mortem

www.telecoms.comarch.com

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

The key element is to convert employees into active promoters of the brand and its services and also to generate a ‘can do’ attitude, not limited only to the departments directly involved in customer relations.

analysis and the introduction of pro-active measures for the most common problems. Following the golden rule of clear and precise information policy, service providers should communicate the output of the analysis and corrective actions to their customers at all times. Information management is a key element of all customer communications, both during the customer acquisition process and in maintaining good customer experience for existing customers. The principle is clear: customers see and hear everything that is communicated and promised and they want to see it happen. First of all, if during the offering stage certain products are advertised as free of charge or with certain features, those features and tariffs should then be implemented as promised. One of the examples of a negative customer experience observed in telecom offerings concerned information about flat rates and free call time with a certain pool of numbers. Many telecoms used stipulations, on a certain day of the year (New Year’s Day, Christmas Day, etc.) these calls were not free of charge. Such a message was not communicated clearly when the offer was advertised nor in the dealer’s locations, instead, it was hidden in the long ‘Terms and Conditions’ text in the agreements. This approach can only do harm to customer experience. The second aspect of information management is especially valid for enterprise customers, but it is a good idea to also implement it for the consumer market. It consists of grouping information about all activities related to changes and outages in the network. Many customers require immediate

information regarding an existing outage and pro-active information about any planned activities, which may have an impact on the quality of the services they use. In case problems appear, they should be fixed quickly and professionally, and all relevant information should be presented to the customers affected by the process. Responsiveness is a key element here. Many enterprise customers require special handling and almost real-time service notifications (in the matter of minutes). This calls for highly automated tools that can calculate the impact of any fault on the service used by the end customer and automate the delivery of relevant and timely information.

Summary The complexity of the services and high demands from the market make customer experience one of the most important aspects of any service provider’s business. Implementing Customer Experience Management is a complex transformation project, containing organizational and IT changes which should follow customer requirements with regards to the responsiveness, correctness and quality of the provided information and services. The involvement and engagement of both management and employees is required to support good customer experience and brand recognition. Clear, professional and responsive communication with customers is a key element of such a project. And in fact, it should never end. In order to keep it successfully running, service providers need reliable and real-time measuring tools that facilitate quick adaptations related to service changes and the automated gathering and distribution of information.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

Customer Experience-centric Network Planning & Optimization

The Gap Between Network Performance and Customer

ANDRZEJ WĄŻ-AMBROŻEWICZ

Comarch SA

Radio Networks & Managed Services Product Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

The era of voice-centric network planning and optimization is over. Nowadays, operators have to search for innovative services to generate new revenue streams. However, the introduction of such services usually entails increased traffic in the network, and thus requires constant capacity enhancements and quality monitoring. The introduction of new services and the need to continuously deliver high quality content, coupled with the necessity to optimize infrastructure investments to protect margins, requires a better understanding of where and how subscribers consume services that are delivered to them. Today optimization is usually aimed at enhancing technology-specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as call establishment success rates, average throughput or call drop ratio. However, improving these indicators does not necessarily have to directly translate into better customer experience, as the latter may also depend on the type of end user application, terminal or service used. The risk of delivering underperforming servic-

es to the most valuable customers or over-engineering the network is high and can potentially raise costs. This is why components that measure service quality as perceived by the end customer should provide information regarding which network capacity upgrades or optimization efforts are necessary. An insight into all network elements supporting complete end-to-end service delivery path and correlating network KPIs with services’ Key Quality Indicators (KQI) is fundamental to ensure high service quality. Multi-vendor, technology-independent platforms, featuring both network and service modeling functions can help operators manage this complex process.

Complete information – the Key to Ensuring High Service Quality for Customers Looking Through the Eyes of your VIP Customers It is important to understand what services customers use and how specific network parameters influence their perception of those services. Therefore, a feedback mechanism assuring the quality of delivered content should be in place.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

IDEAS IN BRIEF: Complete information as the key to ensuring good service quality CSPs need topdown visibility combined with real-time monitoring Importance of sevice specific KPI requirements What to look for when considering a new planning & optimization platform

It is especially important to have information about qualitysensitive services used by high-value customers in a given geographical area. By having that knowledge, a telecom operator can plan and optimize the network for the consumption of particular services, ensuring the highest satisfaction of the most important customers. This goal can be achieved only with a complete set of data, starting from network configuration data, through to network quality statistics, up to information about customerspecific issues. All this data needs to be readily available to the operator at all times and come with extensive search and filtering options.

All in One, One for All – Correlating Network and Service Quality Ensuring high quality of delivered services requires a shift in the historical silo approach of network and service management tools. Many telecom operators are still running several network management and monitoring platforms, each of them dedicated to a particular technology-vendor combination. But in order to maintain satisfactory levels of customer experience, CSPs need top-down visibility combined with real-time monitoring and reporting of every infrastructure element along the service delivery path. For the highest service quality, the collected events violating quality targets need to be correlated with network counters, allowing mobile service providers to thoroughly understand the relationships between resources, services, customers and the respective performance indicators.

routed to the appropriate destinations. If certain data is missing, substitute information can be obtained using alternative methods, e.g. collecting missing Operation & Maintenance Center (OMC) counters or requesting additional drive tests. A properly structured network optimization effort facilitates cumulating knowledge about problem resolutions that can be used to solve future potential issues. IT systems should therefore store the history of optimization activities and the impact of each action so that it is available for future optimization. The availability of historical data also helps operators to understand the impact of new devices, applications and service plans on the network and offered services.

Customer-centric Planning & Optimization for New Services and Technologies What exactly do end users pay for? The answer is simple – the consumption of services, delivered to an adequate quality. And that’s exactly what a telecom operator should strive to provide. Each service consists of components with associated KPI requirements, i.e. a telecom operator may set an average throughput figure required for the delivery of a certain type of data-over-packet-switched network session. Upon service activation, the relevant KPIs can be checked to ensure the high quality of a given service at the end user’s side.

Learning from the Past, Preparing for the Future Launching a New Service The growth in network traffic has to be coupled with capacity enhancements, otherwise it may result in degradation or lack of service on the customer side. In order to prevent that, telecom operators need to trigger additional capacity delivery in a timely manner. This way they can ensure smooth consumption of services by their customers, leading to constant improvement of their brand’s image. Analyzing trends and tracking down the cause of a network quality degradation case requires historical data concerning network configuration, correlated with quality statistics and measurement files. The same information can be used for forecasting purposes and for avoiding potential future bottlenecks – future issues can be often predicted by studying trends from the past. To gain a deeper understanding of customer experience, service providers need to look at a variety of information sources, including data gathered from end user devices, application servers, network signaling and traffic flow. All of this information should then be correlated, filtered and

During service planning procedures, all required and currently recorded KPIs should be checked. Another thing that a telecom operator needs to check at this stage are the network resource requirements for handling the predicted amount of traffic. This enables operators to determine whether the delivery of a given service with the required quality is technically possible while using the existing network infrastructure. If not, network optimization and/or capacity enhancement should be performed. After a service is commercially launched, it is best to perform additional network optimization, based on performance statistics, user complaints, application layer feedback and probe/sniffer reports. Operators who collect service experience information from the network, end user devices and applications, and combine it with existing customer information to predict potential experience problems are able to proactively solve them before they become visible to the client, and thus are able to gain a significant competitive advantage. Such a proactive approach results in improved

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

customer loyalty and retention – the most effective and sustainable driver of current and future profits.

Launching a New Technology New technologies require new planning / optimization tools and procedures. An optimization process flow can be influenced by all the available data sources, therefore it may change depending on the available information.

Minimizing the amount of technology- and vendor-specific parameters that need to be optimized, and replacing them with generic parameters, makes optimization campaigns far easier. The number of experts who are up-to-date with all the technology- and vendor-specific parameters, names and rangers can be reduced. Instead, a telecom operator can use standard generic parameters while storing specific translation rules in an administrative panel of the configuration management module.

A telecom operator needs to be able to shape optimization processes, according to given network and service models. This is possible with the use of an appropriate network planning and optimization platform.

In order to maintain satisfactory levels of customer experience, CSPs need topdown visibility combined with realtime monitoring and reporting of every infrastructure element along the service delivery path.

Service Planning Network Planning & Optimization

Service Catalog • Requirements • Capacity planning • Quality of Service criteria • Service definition • Service performance statistics

• Network parameterization • Resource upgrades

Test Mobile

Probes/sniffers

Average throughput Call drops BER RSSI

Operators who collect service experience information from the network, end user devices and applications, and combine it with existing customer information to predict potential experience problems are able to proactively solve them before they become visible to the client, and thus are able to gain a significant competitive advantage.

Service composition

BER Packet delay/PDV IP retransmissions

• Counters • Alarms • Complaints

Figure 1. An ecosystem of multi-source information collection for network planning and optimization

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

This article is an abstract of a more detailed white paper available at: https:// www.comarch.com/ telecommunications/resources/ white-papers/contact-formngnp-customer-experience/

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

Implementation of Comarch NG Service Assurance for MTS Russia

he customer’s perception of the service quality becomes the key issue which operators should try to address and assure that the various variables which influence it are prioritized. However, this is only possible by changing their approach to network management. MTS decided to face this challenge with a structured transformation.

The Business Need When MTS decided to start their OSS transformation, their network monitoring was distributed over 8 macro-regions. The network management processes and procedures were established centrally however their implementations had regional specific.. This huge OSS landscape was not complete-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

ly standardized, therefore it was difficult to maintain all the systems and the network. The situation pushed MTS to make some radical changes.

Easier alarm handling through an introduction of an automated root cause analysis, integrated scripts, as well as alarm qualification and correlation rules

The project aimed to optimize network management, in order to lower operational costs and increase network and service quality. MTS knew this required a centralized network management, standardized processes and procedures and a unified OSS landscape. Centralization of the monitoring structure in the Global Network Operation Center (GNOC) was also a necessary and important part of the project.

Creation of a Know-How Database (KHDB), thus assuring fast and simple access to the information

MTS decided to go even one step further and move their network monitoring process into the service layer, in order to fill the gap between the network and the services offered to customers. This would enable MTS to determine, which customers are mostly affected by network problems and establish, which services should be restored first.

The Approach The transformation project encompassed two parts. The first part was establishing the GNOC, and the second part – implementing Comarch’s Next Generation Service Assurance (NGSA), Service Inventory and SLA Monitoring solutions. Both parts were closely connected, and even a single modification in the GNOC concept would cause changes in the NGSA project. Comarch was ready to face those challenges and showed full commitment e.g. in adding new resources to the project and accelerating the schedule of NGSA implementation. The definition of the GNOC concept was based on best practices and the results of joint Comarch-MTS audits performed in the macro-regional NOCs. The joint team also defined a “step-by-step” approach to the handover of the network monitoring from regional NOCs to the centralized GNOC, thus enabling to avoid the network quality degradation After an analysis of various areas of MTS’ network, a “unified umbrella solution” concept was created, based on the following assumptions: Unification and simplification of MTS’ environment, by providing a single, unified GUI, thus facilitating problem solving without having to use any additional systems Reducing the number of alarms presented and handled by the system operators, thanks to automating alarm processing through rules utilized by the built-in correlation engine Unifying the structure of the alarms and their enrichment to full meaning alarms

CUSTOMER:

Native integration of the service and network layers in one solution, allowing to capture various dependencies between both layers

MTS – Mobile

Inclusion of an embedded process engine, thus improving relations between processes and other data such as events, related resources or services

Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (“MTS”) is the leading telecommunications group in Russia and the CIS, offering mobile and fixed voice, broadband, pay TV as well as content and entertainment services in one of the world’s fastest growing regions. Including its subsidiaries, the Group services over 100 million mobile subscribers. The Group has been awarded GSM licenses in Russia, Ukraine, Turkmenistan, Armenia and Belarus, a region that boasts a total population of more than 200 million. Since June 2000, MTS’ Level 3 ADRs have been listed on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol MBT). Additional information about the MTS Group can be found at www.mtsgsm.com.

Why Comarch? A transition from existing legacy, silo-based OSS to an NGOSS environment that MTS decided to make, requires a strong partnership between a client and a vendor, who is able to adapt the solution to the customer’s requirements. Comarch can offer this kind of flexibility, as its solutions are highly configurable and enable a high degree of automation. Comarch’s competitive advantage in the OSS area lies in the fact that its products contain sets of ready-to-use profiles, rules, correlations and views. On the other hand, MTS saw Comarch as a reliable partner, who is not only able to provide high-quality software, but also a comprehensive set of accompanying services, together with specialized know-how and support. MTS valued Comarch’s consulting services in the area of centralizing network operations and the company’s consequent participation in the process of defining the concept of a centralized NOC as well as in the project rollout phase. Comarch successfully implemented its OSS solutions and centralized MTS’ network monitoring. A Global Network Operations Center has been located in Krasnodar. Consequently, all the monitoring tasks where smoothly moved to the GNOC. The transition period proceeded without network quality degradation. The new organizational structure and work approach have been established and orchestrated by the newly defined processes. Comarch NGSA solution is now used as MTS’ main centralized and unified “umbrella solution” for access and core networks almost all around Russia. Network reliability has been improved – system automation has decreased alarms presented to operators by 50%, with further decrease expected after subsequent improvements towards higher automation. The Know Event Database (KEDB) defines event types and actions with a library of predefined

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Telesystems OJSC, Russia

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

NGSA

OSS Console

NIOSS Remedy

OSS Web GUIR

Presentation Layer

Authentication Service

eporting Module

OSS Process Management

Service Inv: - Services

Service Monitoring

RefDB: - Resources

Fault Management

SLA Monitoring

Correlation Engine

System Layer

KHDB Engine

Event Forwarding

Streaming AdaptersT

Motorola OMC-R

Siemens SC

NSN NetAct

ext File AdaptersB

Alcatel OMC-CS

Alcatel OMC-R

Huwei OSS

Mediation Layer

inary File Adapters

Siemens RC

Ericsson OSS

...

Network Layer

Figure 1. Proposed architecture of the Comarch NGSA solution

COMARCH PRODUCTS & SERVICES: Next Generation Service Assurance (NGSA): Comarch Fault Management Comarch Service Monitoring Comarch Process Management Comarch Service Inventory Comarch SLA Monitoring

event enrichment rules. The KEDB supports rules such as delaying, suppressing, trashing, acknowledging, changing severity, setting specific values on the events and even more.

SUMMARY OF NGSA PROJECT RESULTS

MTS shortened problem solving times thanks to the simplification of their system operators’ working environment. The main Operator’s View provides quick access to the desired information, such as most wanted info, Know-How Database, related TT and processes, information about affected objects, root causes etc. From the same view it is also possible to trigger fixing actions, as well as incident and problem processes. Moreover, seamless integration with existing systems feeds the data required for alarm enrichment and incident solving to the NGSA solution.

100 alarms per second gathered on average

Service quality has been improved by moving network monitoring to the service layer. Comarch Service Inventory is responsible for modeling and storing information about service topologies. The solution is also used to set up propagation rules in the monitored services. Each one of them sets a pattern of system behavior, on how to react in situation when one or more children signal alarm appears.

300,000 network elements being monitored

50% reduction in the number of alarms presented to operators 80 concurrent users of the NGSA Console Comarch’s NGSA solution will enable us to better control service and network quality, while also reducing the amount of manual tasks related to network management. As a result, we will not only improve our customer experience, but also cut operational costs related to managing the network and services.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

Extreme OSS ervice Quality and Customer Experience Management systems have continued to gain attention in recent years. Since the why and the how regarding business levels have already been discussed many times, in this article we would like to concentrate on the technical aspects of such systems. For years, Service Quality Management (SQM) and now Customer Experience Management (CEM) systems have been considered as the bleeding edge of the OSS landscape, primarily because of the extreme large volumes of data they can process.

PAWEŁ SABINA

Comarch SA

OSS Solution Manager, Oracle Certified Master, Java EE 5 Enterprise Architect Telecommunications Business Unit

Service Quality Management SQM combines service modelling with service quality monitoring. It gathers network, applications and service statistics, aggregates them and presents them against service models. The system facilitates propagating key performance indicators (KPIs) from resourcefacing towards customer-facing services, applying thresholds and monitoring them with appropriate triggers for instances when action is required following certain violations.

Let’s first define how we understand the role and functions of these systems.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

Customer Experience Management Customer Experience Management directly analyzes the stream of customer transaction records and thus plays an overarching role in telecom service monitoring and SQM, transforming service management by providing an insight into customers’ perceptions of services. CEM systems greatly help when switching from network/resource-centric operations to customer-focused ones.

Extreme data volume In the case of SQM, collected data is already pre-aggregated by probing systems, underlying performance management systems and, to some extent, it can even be aggregated by the SQM system itself. Depending on the size of the network being monitored, data volumes can vary from tens of gigabytes to terabytes per day. Big data volumes of data are usually shielded by underlying performance management systems which provide already pre-processed, pre-aggregated data to SQM modules. CEM systems are a completely different story, however. For CEM, data feeds are passive probes which observe various interfaces in the core of the network. They gather information regarding

Fault Managament Service Monitoring

Monitoring (Stream processing with temporal data)

Reporting

Business Intelligence (Batch analysis)

Big Data store

each and every activity regarding customers, and provide it in the form of call and session records (Extended Data Records xDRs). As you can imagine, data provided from these interfaces can be huge, ranging from a few to tens of terabytes a day!

Extreme data processing Data volumes entail complex processing. Over a minute, millions of elements of customer behaviour-oriented data can be generated by various passive probes scattered over the network. This means that the continuous information stream of tens of terabytes of data per day must be parsed, pre-processed and enriched. However, this is just the first step. Next, raw data needs to be stored, filtered, correlated and aggregated. The outcome are Key Quality Indicators (KQIs) of customers’ experiences. These KQIs are further monitored, if they breach any of the defined thresholds, predefined actions kick in - for example, alarm generation. All this must happen in real time, for all of the inputted data!

Extreme analysis But monitoring KQIs is not all we can do with this information. Raw data (xDRs) can also be used in offline (batch) analysis. Since different departments in a company are interested in different aspects of how the network is perceived by customers, a set of different aggregations, using combinations of various customer parameters (dimensions) in the form of stored or even ad-hoc queries must be run on massive amounts of connected data. For such analysis to provide meaningful results, raw data is typically stored for one week or more, this means that queries must run over a bigger dataset than is collected daily - tens to hundreds of terabytes!

Distributed stream processing and the analysis of Big Data You’ve probably noticed that the title of this chapter consists of a few buzzwords that have become popular in the last few years. Many words have been written describing high level (and highly abstract) ideas regarding how these buzzwords were supposed to effect business processes. We will now, however, give you a real-life example of how market-ready technologies can be used to build a solution for solving the non-trivial problems that CEM systems must deal with.

Mediation

Probing systems

The following picture presents a simplified data flow from probing systems to CEM.

Distributed processing Core network

Figure 1. Simplified dataflow in SQM/CEM

Let’s follow the path, starting with probing systems. Probes can be configured to listen for records of customer activity on various protocols across different points of the network. The system of probes works in the immanently distributed architecture, consisting of multiple independent and non-interconnected el-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

ements. The data stream generated by one probe, is multiplied by the number of probes, and passed to the mediation layer. This obviously generates a huge stream of data which needs to be pre-processed. At this stage, data is transformed to the common data model, reformatted and simple correlations and enrichments take place. To deal with these tasks, the mediation layer must be distributed over several high-performance nodes.

Stream processing Next, pre-processed data is fed to the stream processing engine, where sophisticated data correlations and aggregations are performed in real-time. Let’s stop for a minute and take a closer look at the data that is processed here. The xDRs (and also other kinds of data), contain attributes (also called dimensions) which characterize the customer, the used device, the area where the user currently is, the type of used service, the bearer, call duration, transferred data volumes, timestamps and many more. Nowadays, Service Level Agreements (SLAs) have become more and more complicated, with the need for proactive monitoring of their fulfilment being more important than ever, as breaching them costs real money for companies. In the near future, services and their SLAs will become central points of interest for IP based networks because they will show how customers perceive bought services (at least in terms of technical touch points). In order to fulfil the demand, CEM systems must allow for rapid and flexible KQI definitions, as well as for combining various parameters for different groups of customers. All this must of course be possible, with the huge volumes of data flowing from the mediation layer; and there is only one way to deal with such volumes of data - distributed stream processing. We don’t need to mention the distributed aspect of it here since it has already discussed in previous chapters, but stream processing requires elaboration. It is probably best described as data processing using dynamic queries with well-known SQL ones. Imagine a relational database. To get data from it, we would write an SQL query, which would then be compiled into a process that runs over data stored in tables. Matching records would be extracted and would eventually be returned to the user. To check the number of records in a table every 5 minutes, we would run this query at appropriate intervals, and each time the database would go over the table and count the rows. A completely different approach is taken in dynamic queries. Here, we would first define a query (using, for example, an SQL-like syntax), and then run the data over it. In effect, the query will produce results progressively as the data is fed to the query. The query maintains its internal state and thus is capable of producing answers based only (let’s keep it simple) on newly arrived data. As you can see, this approach is best fitted to processing high volumes of data in real time.

Big Data processing But what happens to the processed data? The problem of storing high volumes still exists, and I repeat, we’re talking

here about terabytes of raw data every day. Fortunately, we are not alone in facing this problem. In fact, it has been a major concern since the early days of the Internet, when the first search machines were brought to the world. No wonder, Google, for the purpose of indexing billions of web sites in its search engine, developed a new style of dealing with big data. First, data is stored in a special highly distributed file system on multiple nodes. To query the data, a so-called ‘map-reduce approach’ was developed, this distributes the query terms over the data nodes. We also have here a paradigm-shift: instead of using a small number of high performance nodes as we’re used to doing in enterprise-class systems, we can use multiple lower-end blades. This is especially important for high-availability systems. Losing high performance machines can have a huge impact on overall performance. On the other hand, losing one or even a couple of blades will not really harm the overall system performance. Just as we know it from well-known enterprise database systems, it is also the case here that we don’t need to bother with data replication and high-availability, since this is what a Big Data system is responsible for.

Knowledge extraction Remember when we mentioned earlier that we process data in real time, using a short-term fast access cache? For the purposes of monitoring this is perfect because the short time window for data stored in the cache is enough. The processed data however, contains much more valuable information which can be reused by various departments in a company, not only those directly related to customer experience. This is why, processed data is also preserved in a Big Data store. A planning department will also be interested in where and at what time certain services are heavily used, what is the required throughput, and what are the predictions for the following months. On the other hand, a customer service representative will be interested in failures that customer experience along with the appropriate statistics. Lastly, marketing departments will want to know what services are used by certain groups of customers (profiles) so better products can be offered in the future. As we can see, an efficient CEM system can become a vital information resource for different business departments. What is needed is a flexible and efficient query engine. Fortunately, such query engines exist on the market and we can even use plain old Structured Query Language (SQL) to extract the data. In this article we have presented the technical aspects of SQM and CEM systems, and all the problems we face when dealing with Big Data. Real time processing and offline (batch) analysis of huge data volumes is only possible by employing dedicated systems for specialized tasks. Since 2008, Comarch has consistently been developing its SQM and CEM systems and has successfully implemented them at some of the largest European mobile network operators.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

IDEAS IN BRIEF: What challenges does Big Data entail for Service Quality Management (SQM) and Customer Experience Management (CEM) systems? How to deal with analyzing and real-time processing of huge data volumes? How can the processed data be used by other systems and company departments?

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

How to Combine CRM and eTOM for Better Customer Experience?

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

perational excellence in customer relationship management helps companies build and sustain positive customer experience. The way I see it, using TM Forum’s set of standards is a good foundation for designing and implementing new levels of operational excellence in service providers’ day to day activities. In particular, the eTom Process Framework can come in handy.

The scale of last year’s economy slowdown has had a negative impact on service providers (SPs) world-wide and especially in Europe (just look here1, here2, or here3) – revenues are dropping, prices are continuing to erode and average revenue per user persists in declining. Of course it’s nothing new for SPs and many of them had already embarked on aggressive cost cutting programs in 2011, or even earlier. However, according to the ETIS TeBIT 2012 Executive Report, which delivers insights concerning European telco IT departments – “the low-hanging fruit is gone”. According to the report, although cost cutting continues to be essential, the huge reductions seen in 2011 and 2012 will not be easily repeated. The thing that can actually move a business forward is decisive IT spending that is focused on creating business value. What does it all have to do with Customer Relationship Management and eTOM? Well, IT spending is typically driven by business needs. What does the business do when things stagnate and go south? It transforms. That’s exactly what’s happening – more and more business-driven IT transformations are initiated by service providers. These programs are not restricted to simply replacing billing systems or CRM applications. They want to see huge cost savings and significant improvements of key performance indicators. The transformations are therefore much broader in scope. In terms of business processes involved, they typically encompass most of the Customer Relationship Management domain in eTOM (also parts of Service Management and Resource Management domains). This is not by accident. A huge potential for improvements remains in this area and these improvements would positively influence customer experience

and help get rid of unnecessary costs. Examples? One of our customers was able to achieve a from 87% to 91% time reduction in their order–to-cash processes for their two flagship broadband products. How can Process Framework (or eTOM) be helpful in such initiatives? In short, with eTOM (and SID, which defines entities managed by eTOM process elements) an IT transformation can be undertaken more effectively. In a transformation project I saw, the Process Framework was also being used to: Define transformation scope in terms of covered business processes and out-of-scope processes

PAWEŁ LAMIK

Comarch SA

CRM Product Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

Describe and classify current “AS-IS” processes Identify gaps and overlaps in existing processes Design target “TO-BE” processes based on hierarchical sets of connected process elements developed over many years based on industry best-practices Drive clear communication between businesses, IT departments and other stakeholders (such as external software vendors and system integrators) Ensure that transformation outputs (like new business processes and new IT architecture) are future-proof Some skeptics may say that using a standardized framework is an overhead. I agree to some extent but the benefits soon outweigh the burden in larger projects. Besides, as my TM Forum trainer would say, eTOM is just a tool and using any business tool must be justified by some real life need where using it saves you effort and money. From my experience, this tool is essential to most CRM transformation projects and it is vital for supporting business value creation.

http://www.telecoms.com/51308/kpn-sees-q3-profit-drop-by-a-third/ http://www.telecoms.com/44669/vodafone-posts-stagnant-profit-for-full-year/ 3 http://www.telecoms.com/44127/telefonica-profit-drops-by-more-than-half/ 1

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

This is a post from the Comarch Telcosphere Blog. To post a comment and read more entries about various communication issues, please visit: www.telcosphere.comarch.com

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

Tier 1 Telecom Operator Automates Service Assurance, thus reducing CAPEX and OPEX with Comarch NGSA

The Goal

The Solution

Improve customer experience by shortening customer impact analysis to seconds, as well as introducing pro-active customer service monitoring (based on a central database of known causes) and Quality of Service (QoS) metrics Reduce the number of network alarms that require manual analysis, correlation and clearing by increasing process automation Unify and simplify interfacing between one Umbrella NG OSS Layer and a multi-vendor, multitechnology Network Infrastructure Decrease CAPEX and OPEX in the area of network management thanks to the standardization and consolidation of quality assurance processes and knowledge

Guarantees high quality of customer services across all network domains Closes the gap between traditional Network Management and Customer Experience Management, providing for a major milestone in the strategy of customer-centric network operations Calculates the impact of alarms on services by providing an insight into customer perception of network faults – the system facilitates a pro-active reaction to service incidents (an operator can take action before a customer issues a complaint), which forms an essential part of a modern approach to customer experience management

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Delivering true Quality of Experience

Provides full control over new service-based performance metrics in the operator’s converged network and IT infrastructure Executes robust network alarm processing with advanced root cause analysis Provides a competitive advantage in the enterprise customer segment by introducing a new topological correlations engine, which can significantly reduce the amount of presented alarms in the converged network Improves Customer Impact Analysis thanks to introducing converged service models with aggregated customer information and generic alarm propagation rules throughout all services Shows a high level of availability & reliability Standardizes interfaces according to TMF Frameworx, which significantly reduces the time and cost of new integrations The newly created Known Event Database (KEDB) defines event types and actions with a library of predefined event rules; KEDB supports rules such as delaying, suppressing, trashing, acknowledging, changing severity, setting specific values on events etc.

The Result Reduce CAPEX (47%) and OPEX (68%), together with over 30% future savings forecasted in integration & customization areas Replace two separate systems for Fault Management and Service Management for all network domains (mobile, fixed, broadband) with one comprehensive system, Comarch NGSA, while providing extra value in terms of system synergy and high-end features A shift from resource-centric Fault Management towards customercentric Service Assurance Increased quality of service for the operator’s customers; improved implementation and management of next generation services

Cost savings, when compared to the previous architecture of separate Fault and Service Management systems – a decrease in OPEX, CAPEX and headcount for complete Service Assurance processes (project and lifecycle) due to increased automation of processes Improved network reliability – system automation reduces the number of alarms by 70%, with further decreases expected after subsequent improvements towards higher automation Shorter problem resolution times thanks to the simplification of the working environment; the main Operator’s View now provides quick access to the desired information, such as: most wanted info, Know-How Database, related TT and processes, information about affected objects, root causes etc.; it is also possible to trigger repair actions, as well as incident and problem processes

THE PROJECT IN NUMBERS: Reduction of CAPEX (47%) and OPEX (68%), together with over 30% future savings forecasted in integration & customization areas 750,000 network elements monitored 40 alarms per second gathered on average

Seamless integration with existing systems feeds data required for alarm enrichment and incident solving to the Comarch NGSA solution

70% reduction in the amount of alarms

Improved service quality by moving network monitoring to the service layer; Service Monitoring enables operators to define propagation rules for events from resources to services and customer layers, thus expanding Fault Management capabilities

250 concurrent users of the NGSA Console

A highly reproducible and flexible solution that can easily be implemented globally and adapted to specific requirements of various OpCos

Why Comarch? Comarch has proven to be a strong and reliable business partner, able to not only provide high quality, COTS software products and professional services, but also adapt to new business requirements when necessary Comarch’s strong OSS portfolio and its own professional services team that has specialized know-how and is well regarded by customers were also important factors in choosing the company for this project The customer is now one of Comarch’s strongest Tier 1 references in Europe in the area of OSS solutions

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

COMARCH PRODUCTS & SERVICES: Next Generation Service Assurance (NGSA): Comarch Fault Management Comarch Service Monitoring Comarch Process Management Comarch Service Quality Monitoring

HOT TOPIC: Connected Entertainment

DLNA already works in millions of home networks – does it work in yours? Interview with Shane Buchanan

igital Living Network Alliance® (DLNA) is a technology that will finally make it possible for all devices, regardless of manufacturer, to wirelessly communicate with each. Thankfully you do not have to be a technology expert to use it, you just need to know that your

devices can do it. Shane Buchanan, Certification Administrator & Technical Operations Support at Digital Living Network Alliance is the first point of contact in all matters related with DLNA certification programs. Here he speaks about DLNA’s objectives, its future and its most recent innovations.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Connected Entertainment

What is DLNA’s mission and how does your work influence the daily life of consumers?

Shane Buchanan: DLNA’s mission is to provide a way for consumers to easily connect their electronic devices, regardless of the manufacturer, and share media, such as photos, music or videos throughout their homes. In other words, we define the requirements for devices so they can automatically discover each other over a home network without needing a separate complicated system. Think of a real life situation: you have some photos saved on your phone and you want to share them with family or friends. Instead of everybody sitting around your phone, it would be far more comfortable to see them on a larger screen. With DLNA you can simply take the photos from your phone and send them directly to a TV without any wires, just over the home network. The only configuration required would be that both devices have to be connected to your home wireless network. Sounds pretty simple, but does it really work? Do people use this technology? SB: Currently on the market, there are over 18 thousand certified DLNA products, including home media servers, Windows PCs, smartphones, tablets, digital cameras, games consoles, wireless printers, routers, TVs, DVD and Blu-Ray players. These are base model devices and they can receive information from millions of technology devices that are in our homes or are carried by people all the time, i.e. mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. What is the recognition of the DLNA Certified® devices? Do you have your own promotional strategy or do you rely on the marketing activities of individual manufactures? SB: We create consumer awareness through our own marketing activities, for example, DLNA is present at certain trade shows, such as, the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES). As an organization we educate people on the consumer level but we also work on the business level. Generally, manufacturers display our logo on their box. When consumers are in a retail store it’s easier for them to identify DLNA Certified® devices. Many logo programs don’t have testing procedures, however, DLNA has and through our certification program we test the interoperability of devices, so consumers can be assured that DLNA Certified® devices are able to connect and work together.

What is the future and the potential capabilities of DLNA technology and how can telecom operators potentially benefit from it to increase the attractiveness of their offers for customers? SB: The future of DLNA is centered on something we call “Premium Video”. Premium Video will allow service providers and cable operators to send content into the home, for example via set-top boxes or IPTVs, and these will be able to easily distribute that media to other DLNA devices in the home. The general idea is that you have a main source in your home as a server that allows you to bring the content in from outside the home. Unlike today, where a set-top box for each TV in the house is used, this new feature would allow manufacturers to build it directly into a television, or a tablet, or a phone, and stream media to these devices. The link between these devices is protected to secure the content which is shared. Service providers should be able to benefit from reducing the costs of deploying several set-top boxes in customer homes and consumers will gain more flexibility and comfort from being able to watch their chosen media on their tablets or notebooks. Media is stored on a central server, and they can stream it on their devices whether they are in the living room or outside on the patio. We are in the process of getting our certification program launched for that feature soon. Many service providers and cable and satellite operators are already developing this feature of DLNA. The truth is that there has been a lot of work done over the years and many service providers are behind DLNA because the development of this technology has actually been driven by device manufacturers. Another big feature that DLNA is working on is Remote User Interface (UI). This will allow people to send their UI to another device that will be able to render it. This technology is not yet ready for certification, but it is definitely gaining popularity among our member companies.

The interview was led by Grzegorz Kafel, Certification Test Systems Specialist, Telecommunications Business Unit, Comarch

Are there any differences in adopting this technology in different regions of the world? America, Asia and Europe for instance, are there any significant differences in the way that these markets adopt your technology? SB: The main difference in the adoption between different regions is just the media formats that are supported – for instance, Japan has different media formats than the US. Europe has some other media formats as well. But the technology itself and the ease of use actually spans across regions, so it’s not locked down by region in any sense.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

SHANE BUCHANAN DLNA

Certification Administrator

Shane Buchanan has been the Certification Administrator at DLNA since November 2010. He is the first point of contact for the DLNA member companies to support them in the process of certification of their products. Shane also takes part in the periodic DLNA’s compliance workshops, called plugfests, which gathers various device manufacturers to test their currently developed products in a DLNA-compliant network against other products and testing tools. Prior to the DLNA Shane gained the experience in the field of testing, working among other for Hewlett-Packard and Intel Corporation.

HOT TOPIC: Connected Entertainment

Message from Tokyo: 2013 – MirrorLinkTM in the consumers’ hands

uring the second week of November 2012, I was in Tokyo to attend the 2012 MirrorLink Summit. Let me share a few thoughts about this event with you.

Having the world’s largest electronics industry and the second largest automotive industry – Japan – was the best place to host the annual MirrorLink Summit. MirrorLink is a unique cross-industry standard designed to seamlessly connect smartphones to automobiles.

PAWEŁ JANAS

Comarch SA

Project Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

This is a post from the Comarch Telcosphere Blog. To post a comment and read more entries about various communication issues, please visit: www.telcosphere.comarch.com

The event was organized by Car Connectivity Consortium (CCC), a group that consist of 78 member companies representing over 70% of the worldwide market share in vehicles and over 60% of the smartphone market share. The official opening was made by Mika Rytkönen, CCC President and Chairman, who highlighted the current situation and the future targets for MirrorLink and CCC. If you go through his presentation you will see Comarch’s name on the Organization diagram as the vendor of the Compliance Testing System for MirrorLink. After the opening keynote speech participants were invited to listen to more speeches and panel discussions or to attend the Live Interactive Demonstrations room to

see MirrorLink compliant devices in action. At Comarch’s stand visitors were given a unique opportunity to see the Compliant Test System (CTS) that was developed by Comarch and is used to test MirrorLink devices in the Device Certification process. Speeches and discussions were mostly concentrated on application development for MirrorLink devices and new APIs that MirrorLink will provide for them. If you can appreciate how many sensors are located in your car, then you will be able to imagine how many possibilities they’ll open to creative application developers. In the evening participant had a chance to rest and to exchange thoughts more informally regarding the event. Rooms crowded with visitors, interesting presentations and scintillating conversations - by any means this Summit was a success. For MirrorLink it was yet another step towards reaching its goal for 2013 – to provide the latest technology to a large number of consumers. While already enjoying a large amount of industry support, a proven track record and having commercial devices on the market, this makes their goal realistic and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the achieve it.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Cloud Computing

Mobile Workforce Management – How to Shift Enterprise Applications into Public Clouds for SMEs

mall and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) generate more than 60% of GDP in all industrialized countries. They employ 2/3 of the available manpower. In times of crises, SMEs try to find new ways of making profit and to improve productivity. They outsource non-core activities, invest in tools which reduce paperwork, they also try e-commerce to increase sales and many others too.

According to “Quick Insight – Cloud Strategies” – a publication from TMF, small businesses are very often the least automated sector what means their potential for automation is high and that their approach to IT is organized (if it exist at all) differently to large organizations. Large enterprises have dedicated staff skilled in IT, operations and standardization, this helps them to keep an eye on how software is deployed, used and developed. According to current research (like “Microsoft SMB Business in the cloud 2012 report”) 60% of SMEs do not have the resources to manage the software they would like to use. The natural way to introduce new software solutions for small and medium enterprises is the service model – which means shifting all related managed services to a service provider. This works for e-mails, company websites or CAD tools but SMEs need more. SMEs are becoming more interested in software which can modernize their core business, but this also means coming to grips

with more advanced software. The question is whether sophisticated applications can be delivered as a service and include all aspects of public clouds? Comarch Field Service Management, following several deployments in large enterprises has been refactored and delivered in a version dedicated for SMEs and cloud services. Let me show you what we did to meet requirements of SMEs and still remain a comprehensive and powerful tool in the field service area. To summarize it shortly - the task was not trivial.

Business needs do not have to be generated, they already exist Cloud applications have existed on the market for a while now. Up to now, Software as a Service (Saas) had been popular in two areas – public services for individual users including services like e-mail, web page hosting etc. (it was also used by enterprises based on the same rules) and in with large companies who have needed large applications to support its core business activities, an example would be a billing system (BaaS). In the second case, the cloud was in fact limited to a private cloud and the difference between cloud hosting and physical hosting on a technical level was not noticeable.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

SZYMON UCZCIWEK

Comarch SA

FSM Product Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

HOT TOPIC: Cloud Computing

Lowered complexity

Figure 1. Proposed architecture of the Comarch NGSA solution

When considering services for SMEs, it is natural that relevant cloud experience must be utilized. The requirements of SMEs have to be addressed with a combined approach – taking lessons learned from past experiences and adding specific business needs. Frankly speaking it looks like SMEs may be the most demanding customers in the cloud environment, but when a market is worth a potential $800 billion (according to Dr. Hossein Eslambolchi in the Quick Insights report “Driving Innovation: Seven Ways to Thrive in the Digital World”) taking this approach will be well worth it in the long run.

The first step is redefining system functions In general, public cloud services follow business model that are based on a scale which means simple services for low prices. But it is not necessarily just a case of providing applications for SMEs. To support SMEs, core business service providers must deliver software which is able to deliver strong value, this will in fact allow for some compromises to be made along the way, but not too many. Ewa Zborowska, a research manager from IDC, in one of her articles about the cloud market, states that the most important things in the case of solutions for SME sector is their simplicity and an ergonomic Graphical User Interface (GUI). Simplicity should not be understood as limited functionality but as a lower complexity of the available functions. So, the main principles for supplying services to SMEs via a cloud application should be defined as follows: Easy to understand Supported by wizards As much as possible is available from one place Ergonomic GUI

In instances of Field Service Management, a good example how functions are redefined for a cloud is the case of work order execution processes and its configuration. In cases of larger enterprises, work order execution processes are pretty advanced, so too are the configuration efforts required to produce that part of the entire system. It is because they have dedicated workflows, transition rules, data validation patterns on different stages and are defined differently considering the types of orders and all process exemptions. It is not something which could be used or configured by users without being trained, or without receiving professional support or analysis. Consequently, it is not applicable for publicly available SaaS products. Comarch Mobile Workforce Management system (cloud dedicated version of Comarch Field Service Management) , to be well fitted into the market, defines preconfigured models for work order processes, or to put it another way: We define a set of the main, predefined statuses regarding work order execution flow which can be used (or not) which are assigned business logic and validation rules. System administrators may add sub-statuses for informative or supporting roles. Additional order types can be added but they must follow predefined workflows There is a set of work order parameters which cannot be changed in the process – all dedicated data is addressed by additional custom fields Configuration of business processes is supported by wizards for defining parameters Users can begin working with a predefined set of configurations (order types which are assigned execution workflows). Another good example of how Field Service Management has been tailored to SaaS is matching different views for dispatchers in one combined view (Figure 1).

Comprehensiveness means all in one To address their reporting or automation goals, large enterprises try to define the end-to-end support of their software applications. They also have divisions which make sure that everything works fine and is integrated properly. I have witnessed some top service providers use hundreds of applications managed by internal IT personnel. According to research (e.g. Microsoft) SMEs do not have entire IT teams and they are likely to use up to 6 cloud services in the next few

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Cloud Computing

User experience Common functions Availability

Customizations

Low price

Simplicity

Configuration

Integrations

Service focused High security standards Preintegrated with other applications from ISV

Administration Dedicated processes TCO

Business focused

Automation

Enterprise Software in SaaS (in most cases private cloud) Standard Public SaaS (i.e. e-mail, web hosting)

Configuration Modularity

Automation

Simplicity Low price Options

Preintegrated with other applications from ISV

Business focused

User experience Availability

Applications for SME available in public cloud

years. Excluding services like e-mail, hosted websites and electronic invoices there is not much space for loads of different applications to support their businesses. To support the core business of small and medium companies, solutions must be delivered in all-in-one packages, this includes supporting all activities which require automation. It is not easy to build applications that can support different businesses comprehensively but service provider must get to know the business of their clients. The same conclusion is visible in the above mentioned report by TMF about cloud strategies. The author states that “… the cloud is by nature a marketdriven initiative, and (…) a good understanding of the markets is key to success”. In the case of mobile workforce management, before we began coding work we analyzed in detail the market sectors the software would be used for. The aim was to also deliver knowledge which is built into the application and at the same time fit the application to the needs of our potential end customers. One of the results of it was that we decided to add a set of modules to the core workforce management system which could address extended requirements. One of them is a field service front office - a simplified module which allows users to register new orders and schedule or reschedule them, check the status of orders and some other additional data. The module is dedicated for customer service and, taking as reference enter-

prise deployments, covers Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and the role of Trouble Ticketing (TT) – the same goes for some Human Resources (HR) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) functions in the system. For SMEs it is more important to have their whole business supported than to have the best-of-bread modules.

Automation is the key The optimal utilization of resources is what small business strategy is all about. The software SMEs use must not only support users but carry out a lot of activities in the background to limit user engagement. Moreover, productivity and the better usage of resources are two of the key things people expect from SaaS. Automation in the case of Mobile Workforce Management is a natural part of delivered functions but in the case of SMEs, automated processes need to be very simply defined and based on a set of options with built-in business assumptions. Example: Comarch decided with Cloud MWM to provide only 3 options to set up processes for automated scheduling. A very sophisticated, multicriteria process of assigning resources

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

Redefinition of Cloud Principles in SME dedicated model

Trainings

Modularity Options

HOT TOPIC: Cloud Computing

IDEAS IN BRIEF: SMEs look for software which supports their core business and is available in the service model Comarch Field Service Management was reengineered from an enterprise application to cloud software to serve Small and Medium Enterprises Simplicity in the case of SaaS applications for SMEs cannot be understood as limited functions but as lowered complexity of available functions SMEs according to their business profile, maturity and development should be given the possibility to extend the options of the software modules they use

to tasks with many constraints is defined by only 3 options (shortest driving time, shortest total execution time, balanced usage of resources). Automation goals in this case are self-explanatory and this is how it should be for every configuration.

Security is important but trust is even more so For many years, security has been one of the most often presented cons in the case of cloud applications. It has also blocked many large enterprises from using cloud services. Large enterprises use sophisticated ways to secure customer and business data and it is why private clouds have become more popular in this sector. Being honest, it is more of a mental block than a technical one but business has its own rules. For smaller businesses, security is of course important but it is not the single most important factor. Maybe it is because the vast majority of SMEs are founded and managed successfully by risk takers .SMEs seem to know how to avoid trouble – they choice trusted service providers. So, only large and recognized branches on the market can successfully deliver their applications to medium and small enterprises. This looks like a golden opportunity then for Communication Service Providers (CSPs) who are always recognized and are a stable branch on local markets.

Employees stop using PCs because they are mobile BYOD for SMEs is not an increasing trend, it is a fact. Individually, SMEs have low budgets for IT and in the future they will not be using dedicated terminals to access the functions they need. The simpler way to access them the better. Web-based applications for back office operations seems to be the standard. It is easy to understand, platform independent and fully capable of supporting any back office user from any enterprise. It is far more complex to serve millions of mobile users. Camille Mendler, Principal Analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media in her cloud market research found that only 80% of cloud service providers somehow address mobile employees. From the other hand, IDC estimates that 34.9% of the workforce is currently mobile (Mobile Workforce Management Population 2009-2013 Forecast; IDC). Medium enterprises see large benefits coming from having access to data for their mobile workforce (according to Microsoft research) and in many cases employees use their own devices. Bring your own Device (BYOD) for small & medium enterprises is not an increasing trend, it is a fact. The security concerns of SMEs are of less importance than infrastructure costs. What does this means for software vendors who address SMEs as the main target of their applications? It means that software installed on mobile devices must be device and platform independent. It also must be easy to install and update without special user involvement. To show how it can be implement-

ed and if any compromises are possible, I will use mobile applications for field technicians as a reference. We prepared an application which works on all devices of certain platforms (iOS, Android, Windows Mobile) but to meet the requirement that it had to also be available in an offline mode we resigned from a web-based app used on mobile devices and we used a model that is more popular for smartphones – an application that can be installed on a mobile device. We used multiplatform technology to minimize our efforts related to the maintenance of the software. This approach of BYOD also suits ideas regarding certain options, which will be mentioned in next paragraph, for example, if a client needs to manage devices more carefully (i.e. security concerns) they can additionally purchase an MDM solution that is available in the cloud.

Composed services suited to SMEs In any pizza restaurant you have predefined pizzas but you can also add toppings or compose your own as you like. This is how it should work in the case of cloud applications for SMEs. The sector, according to IDC in its “IT Buyers Pulse Survey from Cloud” point outs flexibility as being its top priority - 40% of respondents. In simple words (as a reference using Mobile Workforce Management) it means that end customers should be given the possibility to purchase basic services to check if the services they are using provide value for their businesses. And according to business profile, maturity and business development, end customers should have the possibility to extend the options of the software they use. Vendors who make their enterprise solutions available in a cloud are able to split functions into modules and give customers a choice, this is a highly competitive advantage. It is also important if service providers wish to position their software as a business enabler. Providers must also assume that their customers’ businesses will grow and will need additional software support. To put it in a business perspective, end users will pay more for more advanced software but only if they need, and are ready, to use it.

Short conclusion for CSPs According to TMFs Quick Insight: Cloud Strategies – the main target for CSPs in cases of cloud services are SMEs. They have money and are undersaturated when it comes to IT support. Of course, SaaS solutions such as e-mail servers are easy to deliver and allows providers to earn money on cloud market places but they do not build strong relationships with business users. The only approach which shows that CSPs can be business enablers in areas of core activities and to help build strong relationships with business clients while allowing CSPs to sell core telecommunication services is SaaS. Properly prepared cloud applications will become a strong part of CSPs’ offers and will secure their businesses for a long time to come.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Cloud Computing

Is it too late for telecoms to become Cloud service providers?

live in the advanced world of advanced technologies, the Internet and omnipresent services providing useful features available in the Cloud. Every day we use it but even today not everyone fully understands what the popular industry buzzword “Cloud” really means. For some it’s a service that is used by web browsers (i.e email, CRM, backup) and others understand it more as a hosting service where you can upload whatever you want and use it as, and where, you please. If someone did a little homework on this subject they would know the terms Software as a Service (SAAS), Platform as a Service (PAAS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IAAS). But isn’t it really just another new word for what has already been available for quite some time?

ADAM GOWIN

Comarch SA

Product Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

Nowadays, when Google, Amazon, Yahoo, Zuora and other such providers are available on the market, and have been for some years and enjoy strong positions, is it actually worth thinking about competing with them? Once, a professor from a technology university thought about whether he could educate people who would be able to introduce innovative ideas when technology was moving so quickly and it seemed like everything had already been achieved. His conclusion was that innovation does not always have to create something new, but it does have to make something better.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

HOT TOPIC: Cloud Computing

Innovation The question we’d like to raise is:

The North American SaaS market now stands at $9.1 billion, up more than 16 percent from $7.8 billion in 2011

“Are Telco operators able to provide cloud services in a better way?”

In Western Europe, SaaS spending is at $3.2 billion, up from $2.7 billion in 2011

In Comarch we believe they are, because of a few reasons:

In Asia/Pacific regions, excluding Japan, SaaS revenues are $934.1 million, up from $730.9 million

IDEAS IN BRIEF: Utilizing all

Operators already have Customers, so they know them, they know what they are doing (and where) and have other information that can help them provide better services in a better way and to a higher standard. Finally, they are in contact with their customers and can easily find out what they need. Single Sign-On (SSO) - operators which provide Self Care for customers usually have unified login/logout mechanisms for all services. Extending their Self Care service by adding the Market Place module, where customers can order new services (SAAS services) without needing to register again, is quite natural and very convenient for end users – if they log in by SSO and enter the Market Place area they are registered immediately. Customers are now just one click away from using an operator’s new services. Utilizing all services with unified access is very convenient and is pretty much essential from the customer’s point of view nowadays. One invoice – having less invoices is much better, and not just from an ecological point of view. It reduces accounting costs in a company. It also provides a single point of contact in cases when customers require an explanation from their service provider. And yes: protecting the environment is a good reason too. Trust – operators are usually companies that are trusted by their customers. This trust is very important for customers even if operators are not aware of it. Customers may have some concerns concerning sending their data to a cloud, but when it’s with their trusted old telephony provider it makes it easier.

What are the benefits?

In Japan, SaaS brings in $495.2 million, compared to $427 million in 2011. In Latin America, SaaS spending totals $419.7 million, up from $331.1 million. According to Gartner forecasts: By 2015, SaaS will become a $22.1 billion industry and will hit $240 billion by 2020. Gartner also estimates that by the end of 2014 at least 10% of enterprise email seats will be based on a Cloud or an SaaS model and 55% by 2020. These forecasts show that there is money to be made in the SaaS market already and, what is even more important, the potential for growth looks bright.

Isn’t it too late? Typical Cloud service providers have been on the market for some years already and this may lead some to think that it is too late to enter the sector. They already have their platforms ready, have the know-how and have enjoyed a soft start. On the other hand, up until recently customers were not ready for such solutions. Customer awareness and their openness to SaaS models is growing now and it seems that within the next few years customers (especially SME) will be choosing cloud solutions more often than standard options. For operators it means that they must start their projects now before demand for such products skyrockets in the near future and it will be too late for them to catch up.

“After more than a decade of use, the adoption of SaaS continues to grow and evolve regionally within the enterprise application markets. Increasing familiarity with the SaaS model, continued oversight on IT budgets, the growth of Platform as a Service (PaaS) developer communities and interest in cloud computing are now driving adoption forward.” - Sharon Mertz, research director at Gartner. The Gartner report breaks down SaaS spending in 2012 by region, determining that:

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

services with unified access essential from the customer’s point of view Increasing

familiarity with SaaS model

TECHNOLOGICAL CORNER

TETRA – is the risk worth the gamble?

a wise man once said: “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity…” Unfortunately, everything else has its limitations. So, what is the best way to ensure constant connectivity for police forces, fire departments, ambulance services or military personnel when operations time can mean the difference between life and death and cellular networks are not available?

TETRA One of the most popular and leading solutions of digital trunked radio in the public sector is TETRA. Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) is an open standard developed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). The first version was released in 1996 and gave the world a new solution for digital Private Mo-

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

TECHNOLOGICAL CORNER

ties. However, one of the aims of TETRA was to simplify the solution as much as possible. Therefore, a basic model of the TETRA network can be built with just two elements: two mobile stations where Direct Mode Operation (DMO) is installed. Nevertheless, the regular architecture model of the system usually includes: Base Stations, Switching Control Nodes and Network Management Station with gateways.

So (un)popular… Most TETRA networks are implemented for government bodies, such as the police, rescue services and the army. This has made TETRA a popular system and it has become a recognized solution in the public sector. Unfortunately, in the private sector the situation is quite different. In small and medium-sized companies, where the number of employees and the number of system users is not so big, the system is not cost effective. Therefore, trunking is a waste of the frequency spectrum for systems that support a relatively low number of mobile stations. The second problem with TETRA is that it is more expensive than a conventional system that would use the same number of base stations and radio frequency channels. The software solutions required in trunked systems for fast and effective user management require more advanced hardware. Therefore, the costs for companies increase because the system must be updated over time. These two reasons make using TETRA a huge challenge for small companies, they can indeed lead to companies deciding not to implement it. Fortunately, these problems occur rather rarely in large companies and the public sector. The advantages this system provides, such as reliability, fast call setup time, advance prioritization system, DMO, gateway mode and many, many more makes it very popular and the most widely-chosen trunked radio system.

… and unique The large number of functions implemented as standard features makes TETRA a unique system. It significantly increases network possibilities, especially when compared to other trunked radio systems. TETRA boasts many features, including: Reducing infrastructure costs, thanks to using a lower frequency which increases the range of single base stations bile Radio (PMR) and Public Access Mobile Radio (PAMR). TETRA combines advantages such as flexibility, security and fast call setup time. This makes it one of the most powerful solutions of trunked radio communication systems currently available.

High spectral efficiency, as a result of 4 channels in the 25kHz band and a reduction of guard bands Call setup time hovering around 0.25 to 0.5 seconds

As a digital system TETRA is based on GSM and GPRS solutions, which both enjoyed great popularity in the late nine-

Guaranteed performance at speeds of up to 500 km/h

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013

JAKUB STALMIRSKI

Comarch SA

OSS Solution Manager, Telecommunications Business Unit

IDEAS IN BRIEF: TETRA is one of the best solutions in regards to security, speed, flexibility and reliability. These is why TETRA is so widely used in Germany (BDBOS contract), Finland (VIRVE), UK (AIRWAVE) and Sweden (RAKEL). An open multivendor market, thanks to IOP certification guarantees a wide choice of compatible hardware and reduces dependency on a single supplier.

TECHNICAL CORNER TECHNOLOGICAL CORNER

Trunking is a method of providing network access by sharing a limited number of communication channels to a large number of potential users instead of providing all of them with individual access.

Channel encryption A number of mechanisms to ensure connection success in spite of overload issues Fully supported hand-over function DMO – Direct Mode Operation, used to set-up a connection between two mobile stations Point-to-point function – connection between mobiles without the need for a control room One-to-one, one-to-many and many-to-many connections Gateway mode – when a mobile station is in the range of the network, this allows this station to become a relay for another mobile station which is out of rangeMobile solutions for base stations (Mobile TETRA Base Station) Available in two architectures: circuit-switched and IP (software switches)

What next? The initial release of the TETRA standard brought with it huge success and a lot of changes in the radio communications sector. Because of this, work on the standard did

not cease. In 2005, the next version of the standard was released as an extension to the first one and was named TETRA 2. Nowadays, TETRA is still being developed by ETSI and the TETRA Association. That’s why it is highly probable that we will see a third, broadband version of the standard in the near future. The second release of TETRA was built on the basis of the first one. In regards to common services such as information checking, messaging and file transferring speed and spectrum efficiency have been added. Basically, TETRA 2 has four main goals: always on, always there, always safe and always fast. TETRA 2 consists of Tetra Enhanced Data Service (TEDS) and Tetra Advanced Pocket Service (TAPS). The TEDS specification enhances the throughput capabilities of the TETRA packet data service. Additionally, TETRA 2 comes with new modulation schemes, channel coding, various coding rates and new channel bandwidths.

For the end TETRA is able to meet the requirements of even the most demanding users. The system guarantees security, reliability and it is also quite flexible. Implementations of TETRA can be seen all over the world. Starting with public sectors in Germany, UK and Norway, and ending with private institutions such as gold mines in Turkey, Ningbo – China’s biggest harbor or even F1 racing tracks. We can safely say that TETRA is one of the best communications solutions for demanding environments.

Comarch Technology Review 01/2013