Before Big Data, the saying used to go, “You date productivity software, but you marry your databases.” The world has changed at a general level, however when it comes to backend software used by the carriers, much remains the same.
Back during my Bell head days, I applied to modify the billing system to support a new service. The company had me fill out a form called the Work Authorization Request (WAR), and -- to borrow from that famous song -- that WAR was good for….“absolutely nothing” as IT’s goal was to conform you to live and operate within the existing structures and not expand into new ones. Now imagine the impact of M2M on the carriers’ back-end infrastructure. In some ways, the image that comes to mind is of trying to fit all the SIM cards into some sort “Friends-and-Family” plan on steroids, at which point perhaps the volume discounts can be Tariff 12 service (which is really nothing more than a billing suppression system). Then comes roaming, though, and candidly speaking it is easier for the carriers to hand off to an MVNO then it is to deal with applying the Tariff 12 (volume discounts) -- Friends and Family -- into another carrier’s back-end system. In effect, the carriers are looking for an internal MVNO modification to their existing systems.
All of this serves as an overview of the requirements I discussed with Kfir Dan-Ari, marketing director at Amdocs Network Business Unit regarding the impact of M2M on carrier systems. Being the company that manages and supplies the back-end software and support for hundreds of top tier carriers, Amdocs is uniquely positioned to see the change first-hand. As a result, Amdocs is working to create a 6-layer adjunct suite they are calling “M2M Enablement Suite” (1 is subscription management, 2 is connectivity, 3 - Global Roaming, 4 - Device Management, 5 - Partner Management, 6 - Professional Services), which is in effect a system very much like an MVNO’s, but within the carrier’s own back-end. Thus, if you think about all of this in a requirements sense, the suite demonstrates the state of flux that M2M represents in their partnership business models, with choices that include (a) go on their own, (b) enable a partner, and (c) integrate with other carriers.
My expectation is that like the carriers other services, very few of them will be able to show expertise in all these business models and some will be known as good partners and others as single source providers. Regardless of their reputation, they will all be using the features found in Amdoc’s suite.
My expectation is that as with other carrier services, very few will display expertise in all of these business models, with some regarded as good partners and others as single source providers. Regardless of reputation, though, they will all be using the features found in Amdoc’s M2M Enablement Suite.
Edited by
Stefania Viscusi
