Operators world over are turning to IN for developing new services at affordable costs.
Intelligent Network (IN) is that intelligent part of a
network which adds value to the basic communication service. Whether we are talking about
high-speed LAN interconnect or multimedia to deliver home entertainment or mobile radio
service for voice and/or data, operators have discovered that basic service is no longer
sufficient. In competitive situations, the operator with more sophisticated services will
have an edge over his competitors.
An IN is a switched network whose service control is
removed from the individual switches and whose service definition is programmable. It aims
at rapid and economical service provisioning and facilitates customer control of network
services.
IN provides service building blocks that enable operators to rapidly develop their own services, independent of switch suppliers. |
With market forces now driving the progress of
network service development, can IN platforms, at last, realize their full potential?
IN Solutions: A Comprehensive Approach
Telecom operators are faced with a level of competition that was unforeseen just a few
years ago. As powerful alliances are formed and new players vie for market share,
competition is emerging on local as well as global scale. Moreover, business customers are
demanding an increased level of service quality. To control telecom costs and provide
better service to their end-users, sophisticated multinational and large corporate
businesses are demanding advanced and cost-effective solutions for their telecom needs. To
meet these competitive challenges, global telecom operators are deploying IN solutions
that will enable them to quickly and cost-effectively develop new services with increased
functionality and service quality.
IN provides global telecom operators with the ability to
move into new markets and provide new high revenue-producing services. These services are
poised for rapid growth. The demand for IN wireline services such as wide area networking
and IN wireless services such as "follow-me" calling is growing rapidly.
The IN approach is a simple concept full of promise and
potential. With IN, telecom operators can move services out of a switch and into a
general-purpose computer. IN provides service building blocks (e.g., new capabilities,
rapid service creation and customization, cost effective service introduction) that enable
operators to rapidly develop their own services, independent of switch suppliers.
As the telecom market-place continues to expand and evolve,
the infrastructure required by operators continues to evolve. In particular, deregulation
in many countries has resulted in operators requiring the capability to offer new and
innovative services with very short lead times in order to become more competitive.
Increasingly telecom network infrastructure providers are utilizing computer platforms to
enable these services. IN-based service development and deployment on computer platforms
has the following advantages over the traditional switch-base approach:
Recent market research (Ovum Ltd 1997) in INs indicates
that the overall market for services such as freephone, premium-rate and Virtual Private
Networks (VPN) will leap from the current $11 billion to $30 billion by 2003. This
represents a significant opportunity for the development of products and solutions
specifically tailored for use within the IN market-place.
The emergence of distributed object technology, and
particularly the CORBA standard, will have a significant impact in all aspects of IN
service development, deployment, and maintenance. Simply stated, CORBA allows applications
to communicate with one another irrespective of location or design originator.
Is technology driving the development of telecom services, or is it business needs that
are spurring it on?
Many operators have opted to exploit the IN–and the
innovative services it can provide–to differentiate their offerings. According to
Schema’s "Exploiting the Opportunities for Intelligent Networks" report,
the market for IN services will triple in size by 2002 to reach an annual value of over
$15 billion.
But who or what is leading these developments in the
market? Are customers demanding new services or are telcos pre-empting market demands and
investing in new technology to gain that elusive competitive edge?
Clearly there is a great incentive for systems suppliers to
invest in their technology to ensure they remain ahead of the market demands. According to
Schema’s report, by 2002 VPN revenues will be worth $6 billion with personal number
services–principally amongst mobile communications users–worth $1.7 billion.
It is evident that technology has largely caught up with
telcos’ demands and, in many cases, overtaken them to drive the market forward onto a
more innovative and creative level. Perhaps it is now time to ask another question. Does
the market truly understand the technology available and what it can deliver? And can this
be communicated to the customers?
For new and established players alike, success in telecom
market is inevitably linked to the portfolio of service offerings. With scores of new
players in local and long-distance markets, competitive advantage requires more than just
service parity. It requires strategic differentiators. With a host of choices before them,
consumers will select the provider with the easiest access to the most diverse set of
productivity, convenience, and security features.
In India, the IN market has not picked up as it should
have. At the moment most companies have started only with SIM card-based pre-paid options
which in turn can be service node-based or a complete IN solution one.
New applications can be added in rapid time frames on the
ISN (Intelligent Services Network) and supported by the switch and workstation through
open interfaces continually being refined for service optimization . Services available on
other adjuncts can be integrated with the ISS and IWS over open protocols. With this
configuration in place , service providers can offer virtually any service they wish to
their own subscribers, and can have the option to resell these services to other providers
as well.
In addition , the ability to bring a live attendant into
the transaction any time ensures the highest level of customer care and comfort in this
new world of services. Because the IWS is integrated in the intelligent environment, call
context is provided for the attendant simultaneous with call arrival, eliminating the
neccesity for the caller to repeat information already provided, and simplifying the task
of the live attendant in serving the call.
WIN Standards
The movement to develop a Wireless Intelligent Networking (WIN) strategy was originally
triggered by wireless network operators under the auspices of the Cellular
Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA). They developed a set of requirements
calling for industry standards that defined new network architecture incorporating the
service flexibility of INs with the mobility aspects of wireless networks.
When the HLR was internal to the MSC, it did not have to
follow the IS-41 standard. But when, as has been happening over the last four or five
years, the HLR is taken out of the MSC/VLR and moved onto the network, then it has to
follow a standard protocol IS-41. As a result, the stand-alone HLR can be viewed as the
initial implementation of IN architecture.
new players in local and long- distance markets, competitive advantage requires more than
just service parity. It requires strategic differentiators.
Many MSCs in wireless networks have already deployed
enhanced services. However, to ensure success in a competitive, multi-network environment,
these services will eventually migrate to an IS-41 implementation. IS-41 lets providers
deploy new features with the same user interface because the standards will dictate that
all vendors provide a compatible product. IS-41 will allow a provider’s customer to
roam or move to a different switch; its implementation will allow for seamless service in
the provider’s entire service area independent of the equipment manufacturer.
Global telecom operators are continuing to deploy IN and
leverage new service applications off existing IN architecture. The reality is that
practical IN solutions are available now and are generating revenue today. There is
significant market demand for more IN-based solutions.
By all means it is the perfect environment for meeting the
emerging demands of today’s competitive market. The synergies of the Intelligent
Services environment components deployed in an integrated fashion provide a smooth
evolution path for current operator services and the perfect environment for the service
introduction today—advanced automation, sophisticated voice-processing capabilities,
ability to communicate with external and internal databases and other intelligent
peripherals, full network integration and full service attendant backing.
The Challenge
IN may be a simple concept, but it’s a complex technology. There are a number of
critical success factors that global telecom operators must master to effectively deploy
IN including: multi-supplier interoperability, feature transparency across wireline and
wireless networks, feature interactions, ease-of-use hurdles, and the need to re-engineer
business and operations processes.