Voice, data, multi-media, Internet, 3rd party applications and custom solutions. Fixed networks, mobile networks, 2G, 3G, 4G. Successfully managing and operating the increasingly complex networks of today is expensive. Managing these operating expenses can make the difference between profitability and decline and Service Providers who take a system-wide approach to this challenge are well rewarded.
Traditional deployments of new services resulted in separate operational and support systems for the new service. As services merge and there is increased pressure on personnel costs, Service Providers need to step back from the daily fray and assess the overall cost and effectiveness of their operational systems. Does it take twice as long to support provisioning and billing of a new service as it does to develop the service? Do administrative personnel enter the same information in multiple systems? Doing a work-flow analysis will often show where extra effort is concentrated. This analysis may also show areas where network security could be compromised, either from end-users or the internal network. These issues can be addressed using the following concepts:
Unified Subscriber Centre – As services become more complex, the amount of information which is kept for each user grows dramatically. At the same time, each new service has requirements for data management that may be very large in themselves. Add to this the requirement to manage authentication and authorization for 3rd Party application partners, and traditional systems quickly fail. All customer information should be stored in a super-reliable, scalable, distributed system.
Network Security – Even with the most robust data network, the weak link is security. As more unknown applications are deployed on smart mobile phones, user's home systems become integrated life-management systems and the traditional "walled-garden" disappears, the opportunity for security vulnerabilities multiplies. The core network will become increasingly costly to support if it does not provide protection from all manner of security threats.
