TM Forum Community

  • 1.  Where next for OSS/BSS?

    TM Forum Member
    Posted May 23, 2017 13:59

    At TM Forum Live! last week there were differing opinions from a panel including Erik Hoving, Phil Jordan, Jean-Marie Cuplin, and Ulf Ewaldsson about the future of operational and business support systems (OSS/BSS). 

    Hoving and Ewaldsson both agreed that OSS and BSS don't belong together in the digital market.  Hoving noted that the future is about customer centricity, experience, and quality.  Ewaldsson believes legacy services are holding everyone up – and eventually more service providers will have to shut down legacy services.

    Jordan stated that he is certain about some of the characteristics needed – "data to personalize, providing customers with information in real time, and allowing them to use their data… A lot of transformation is about providing a customer experience fit for a digital world." Jordan believes while we can't wait to figure out exactly what we want – we can start by working on characteristics of systems.

    Culpin's view point was very straightforward.  He stated, as customers "I want to have everything I need when I want it, how I want it, just like my customers, to drive any service and content."  We need to provide an unmatched digital experience.

    What do you think is next for OSS/BSS? Share your opinions below.


    Read more and watch the panel here.



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    Melanie DiGeorge
    Community Manager
    TM Forum
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  • 2.  RE: Where next for OSS/BSS?

    Posted May 24, 2017 00:54
    There is a lot of hype about SDN, NFV, CORD and other data center technologies that may someday influence service providers.  What's lost on many is that these technologies, born in the data center, were a necessity once virtualization enabled the Cloud.  As soon as virtual environments could span clusters of servers, and applications running in virtual machines could be moved, there was an absolute need for software defined networks.  But, what about carriers?  Well, they've been creating and automating software defined networks (e.g. VLANs, VPN's, EVCs, MPLS/VPLS tunnels) for years.  What they've failed to do is standardize, except in the MSO's who's Cable Labs DOCSIS standards enabled an unfair advantage enabling customers to rapidly acquire communications services.  

    The cost of replacing BSS/OSS software, however, can be cost prohibitive.  So, what can carriers do?  They can integrate and automate using Enterprise Service Bus and API platforms to integrate legacy locally deploy software to Cloud services and ultimately end customers to once and for all enable customer self care like so many other industries have done successfully oner the past decade (e.g. travel, hospitality, entertainment and more).  This can provide a bridge to a future of standards as BBF, TMF, MEF and FSAN work to create DOCSIS like standards for the Telcos that enable programmable networks to optimize automation.  This will require investment, but one that's not longer a nice to have, but may indeed be a matter of survival.


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    Phillip Fine
    Calix, Inc.
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Where next for OSS/BSS?

    Posted May 24, 2017 05:57
    Absolutely spot on. I think there are some companies (mine for one) obsessed about transformation to digital operating model for telecoms. Although we focus on a B2B2C approach but we understand the relevance of digital experiences that are customer centric: right now, the way I want and when I want is central to telecom go to market in the digital age.

    Ehtisham
    CEO.
    servup.io



    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Where next for OSS/BSS?

    TM Forum Member
    Posted Jun 21, 2017 23:56
    Edited by System Oct 30, 2018 14:45
    Very interesting points were raised at the TM Forum Live! panel discussion on the future of OSS/BSS, and particularly the challenge hammered home by @Erik Hoving / @Erik Hoving of KPN resonated with ideas I've been toying with for years now. Does the ripening of digital technologies and how their application offer us the best time to rethink the architecture of BSS/OSS especially in addressing the core of revenue management.

    For instance, comparing Telcos to Utility companies in the area of revenue management is there a possibility to transform how Telcos meter, account for and charge/bill usage and services? Afterall utility companies:

    1. Rely on "metering" at the edge, compared to Telcos who have predominantly metered at a central location - the data center. Most customers who pay attention to their local meters can based on publicized rate plans have visibility over their expenditure even before bills are received - adding a layer of confidence to the consumer;
    2. Offer both postpaid bills and invoices to customers and as well prepaid charging for usage/consumption. Has there been a fancy demand by consumers for detail minute-by-minute or data-to-day usage accounting/charge records?
    3. Have had better trust from their consumers over and above Telcos... and could this be because the metering devices where closer to them, so that visibility and control affords consumers a means to feel in control -- I think so!
    4. Charging / billing production processes are less cumbersome once "metered data" for usage/consumption is collected - even in complex scenarios where ToD/ToM, CoS billing strategies are employedetc.
    5. Complaints for charging / billing errors are resolved with less "trauma on operating and back office teams" than with Telcos
    6. Etc.

    Today, technologies like Blockchain, Cloud (NVN/SDN), Mobile (Apps), Analytics and IP  provide a possibility to re-architect BSS/OSS to become more "light weight". I think it is possible with these technologies to break down BSS/OSS functions with NFV/SDN for areas like mediation, provisioning and order management. Like with mediation, metering and accounting of usage/services can be moved towards the edge of the network or even closer to or on the device. This may require rethinking from the device to how the network itself will evolve with NFV/SDN. This means leadership by BSS/OSS domain to re-organize for the future of networks.
    This could mean:

    1. Enabling metering of "usage" and services more closer to the consumer - say as part of the SIM toolkit for any device and or home network, or through use of virtualized functions and device application policy management.
    2. A new era of distributed charging and billing profile and services management using Blockchain
    3. Leveraging extending Telco cloud to include the end-user device itself as part of a connected platfom, where policy, control, services etc. can still be centrally managed and orchestrated to meet application, services and business needs on the fly. 
    4. Employing better capture of insights into customer usage and behavior, granular analytics on a "platform" and opening opening up opportunity for new better monetizeable business models. 

    What are your thoughts?

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    Emmanuel Amamoo-Otchere
    VP, Industry Development
    Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Where next for OSS/BSS?

    Posted Jun 29, 2017 11:44
    All,

    We have actually had a number of Communication Service providers working on a vision for the OSS and BSS of the future. The first workshop focused more on OSS than BSS and we published a summary of that work here. We have another workshop coming up in a few weeks and I would be interested to hear feedback form members of this community, what are the big things that will have to change to really move us to the OSS and BSS of the future?

    Barry

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    Barry Graham
    TM Forum
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Where next for OSS/BSS?

    Posted Jun 30, 2017 11:05

    CSPs have much to gain from moving BSS to the cloud since they can augment revenue by selling it 'as-a-Service' while, at the same time, optimizing costs and profit margins (more about this here).

    The key really could be to not reinvent the wheel to support OSS/BSS. Any OSS/BSS project is always a big undertaking so using the same assets and just making them more efficient can be way to drive these projects forward. There's some intriguing insight in the article below if you're interested:

    BSS/OSS: Exploiting benefits of configuration and scale


    Interestingly, two companies jointly developed a shared architectural vision on how to design and build a future OSS providing a new industry framework that:

    • Replaces the traditional silos between different OSS processes with a unified architecture for all complimentary models
    • Supports digital operations transformation and enables agility
    • Uses Orchestration and closed-loop autonomic principles for Fulfilment and Assurance
    We've actually got a webinar on it here if you wanted to know more on the ins and outs of it.

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    Arti Mehta
    Editor, InformTM Forum
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    Original Message