This
may appear to be a scene out of "Star Wars" or some other sci-fi
magnum opus: laser beams flashing across high-rise buildings in the metros,
bombarding gigabits of information that were so far considered the exclusive
domain of optical fibers. And, no more worries of disruptions by torrential
rains like those faced with good old microwaves.
Rapid growth in use of the Internet and multimedia services is already
creating congestion in telecom networks worldwide. It has fueled demand for
solutions that offer increased bandwidth, speed and reliability, in particular,
to meet the growing needs of corporates/businesses. While high-speed,
fiber-based infrastructure has solved the problem for long distance networks,
metropolitan or local loop environments continue to face challenges to deliver
the same level of capacity and efficiency as fiber to carry data, voice and
video in "the first mile" (some call it "the last mile").
Although DSL and LMDS have provided some relief, there are still some
limitations, including the bandwidth, associated with them.
Lasers Come to Help
FSO Applications |
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Free Space Optics (FSO)–also called Optical Wireless Communication–is
emerging as the new ‘avatar’ to mitigate the bottlenecks in the local loop
or "the first mile". It uses laser technology, which was originally
developed in the 1960s. It involves transmission of digital signals over the
beams of light through the atmosphere or the "Free Space". The beams
of light are transmitted by highly focused lasers on to sensitive photon
detector receivers located on the other end, within the line of sight (LoS). The
antenna or receivers of these systems are telescopic lenses, acting as
collectors for the photon stream carrying the signal, as well as processors of
the digital stream itself.
Since the early 1980s, lasers have been successfully used by both military
and space agencies. For instance, in 1991, BT Labs began holding trials of low
power, "eye-safe", 155 Mbps and 1 Gbps optical wireless links in
public spaces, within metropolitan areas of the UK.
The
main advantage of these systems–transmitting information using infrared
frequencies–is that these do not require government licences/clearances, and
are therefore cost-effective and ideally suited for fast deployment. Hence,
free-space optical networking technology offers an effective and economically
compelling way to address "the first mile" challenge of connecting to
fiber infrastructure in metropolitan areas. It enables businesses to transmit
and receive data transmission among buildings up to around 4 km apart, at speeds
much faster than conventional media including high-speed leased lines.
These transceiver products are targeting to achieve between 99 percent and
99.9 percent availability in free space over their dynamic range (from 2 to 4
km). They are expected to offer not only superior transmission performance but
also address human eye safety issues, a concern when laser based technology is
being deployed.
The current generation of products support data rates ranging from few Mbps
to 1.25 Gbps using the short wavelength infrared spectral range in the 850 nm as
well as 1550 nm atmospheric window–depending on the vendor. The technology is
also expected to be protocol-transparent in order to transport commonly used
telecommunication, data communication and multimedia protocols.
What is the Problem?
Let us start with stating the obvious. Most of the billing systems were
designed and built two or three decades ago. Much water has flowed under the
telecom bridge since then. Rigid regulations have given way to intense
competition. Telecom networks are jumping onto the IP bandwagon. And then there
is the ubiquitous Internet. With carriers moving into new vistas, offering whole
new breeds of services, these legacy billing systems (centralized and
batch-oriented) are not very easily changed, and as a result have become
expensive to maintain and modify, to adapt to the demands imposed by new
services. In other words, billing is no longer about sending an invoice and
collecting payment.
As the world of IP services continues to expand at a break-neck speed and
service providers look at offering new services for broadband, intelligent
networks, wireless, cable and Internet, it necessitates the need for new
billing systems to collect payment for these new revenue opportunities. This is
exactly where billing systems, hitherto considered unglamorous and simple, don a
new robe: a critical tool for marketing, customer care and revenue assurance.
What’s more, it is the billing and customer care infrastructure, which is
going to be the key differentiator in any service
delivery.
Billing, for long, has been defined as gathering data for customer use,
provisioning features, calculating costs and invoicing for payment. Though these
still remain the essential characteristic traits of a billing system, any
service provider worth its salt would vouch for the fact that billing has
emerged as a core function. Thanks to deregulation and technology, companies now
provide services beyond their core competency. With the demarcation line
blurring between wireless and wireline, service providers in the country are
foraying into multiple market segments, with multiple services. Billing comes to
the fore here as these new business opportunities are more challenging to
support and operate.
Emerging Killer App.
"The bill is today used as a medium to communicate with the customer
from a marketing and customer care point of view. The bill reflects and confirms
tariffing and service related assurances made to the customer at the time of
sale and his lifecycle with us," says Sheila Paul, DGM, IT of BPL Mobile
Communications. Brinda Sekhar, VP, IT and Enhanced Services, with Spice Telecom,
supports this: "Billing is a very powerful means of staying in touch with
the customer. With the current thrust on CRM, billing is a vital relationship
builder." But with many companies going in for CRM suites, the customer
care functionality in a billing system is redundant to some extent, adds Anil
Gajwani, VP, Technology and Information Systems, with Orange.
Here is another testimonial from Shiv Raichand, CTO of Esctotel, "
Though the billing system costs just 3-4 percent of the total capital cost, it
is criticality too high." Still skeptical? Take this from one of the
pioneers in telecom software in India, says, Prakash Deval, billing centers
manager with MBT says, "Billing data holds a wealth of information, which
can be effectively used to position the telcos products and services, and for
optimum utilization of the telcos infrastructure."
Perhaps the most discernible change is that customers are educated now and
are demanding new and innovative services and customized methods of information
processing/communications/trading. "With the advent of Internet-based
technology services offerings, billing systems are now at the forefront of the
strategic service revolution," says Kishore Kali, VP, e-business
infrastructure of Global Tele Systems Ltd.
The same sentiment is echoed by a study carried out by TeleStrategies Inc.,
which says that sophisticated subscribers, complex connectivity and competition
among carriers for fast-moving customers are what make billing a vital marketing
tool. The study points out that within billing systems, rating and discounting
functionality must accommodate the constant demand for new rating plans, product
bundles and promotions. In other words, your billing system offers you brand
loyalty among subscribers. But the caveat here is which billing system is
optimized for your services?
It all boils down to one thing: One single bill for the different services
offered. Points out Sheila Paul, " Most of the billing issues arise due to
billing systems not supporting market requirements and data capturing errors.
The most important consideration for telecom service providers today is the
billing system’s ability to charge for new and varied services through a
single bill."
Other issues that must be addressed when managing the billing system are
scalability, reliability and accuracy, to name a few. And you also need to
understand the gaps in the present billing system to bridge them. These can be
listed as the lack of flexibility and open interface with systems, frequency of
upgrades to support market demands and technological advancements. Sheila Paul
cuts it short thus: current billing systems are not geared towards allowing
flexible charging for data oriented services and for rating of third party
services.
Needless to say, the real ordeal for any billing system lies in the ability
to bill different services (local and long distance phone, Internet, wireless,
cable TV, etc) on a single bill. This clears the ground for convergent billing
or next-generation billing.
What is Convergent Billing?
How do you bill when your calls are free? This is a question which haunts
many of the service providers as voice revenues are southward bound while data
is spiraling heavenwards. The case in question is wireless carriers. With mobile
Internet and commerce emerging as the buzzwords, made possible by technologies
like GPRS, a mobile operator can no longer depend on his legacy billing system
to charge for these new revenue streams. Wireless Internet carriers need to
collect billing data from multiple network elements and third-party platforms.
Assume that a mobile operator takes GPRS service for 15 thousand subscribers.
This would mean that the operator has to spend Rs 78 lakhs on a billing gateway
alone, while the cost of other GPRS equipment works out to Rs 7.32 core. Though
GPRS is yet to take off in India and with operators planning to go in for a flat
fee in the initial period, this may not pose major problems for the existing
billing system. But GPRS demands are to be based on usage basis and not
duration, as is the case now. "Most of the billing vendors do offer
flexibility in terms of rating. But none of these systems have the proven
ability to meet the needs of the new breed of convergent and IP-enabled
services," says Anil Gajwani. The point is buttressed by Brinda Sekhar, who
says that the scalability of the system to handle growing volumes of data and
presentation in various formats are the other major billing issues for a
cellular service provider today. But a word of caution here from Shiv Raichand:
Whether the billing system should be totally changed depends on the operator —
whether the present system is capable of being upgraded to take care of the new
requirements.
Here is another example: Hughes tele.com, the basic service provider for
Maharashtra, is contemplating to roll out a host of new services like broadband,
limited mobility and Internet. "We can’t provide different bills for
different services to our customers. Obviously the challenge here is the
flexibility of the exiting billing systems to factor in these new services. As
of now, we don’t have a system to integrate all service charges into one
single customer invoice and this multi-dimension of new services is what makes
the existing billing system vulnerable," says Navin Bhasin, head of
customer care and revenue assurance with Hughes. There can be no greater
annoyance to the subscriber than getting over billed or billed twice a month and
then have to take out his precious time to visit the service providers office to
sort things out, quips Anandya Chakraborthy, senior consultant with Birla
Technologies. The hard fact is that if a billing system cannot support
next-generation services, then the carriers and content providers either cannot
properly synchronize the retail/wholesale equation or, even worse, simply cannot
offer the product.
"Most of the available billing systems now are typically home grown
legacy systems and lack flexibility, market responsiveness and are not customer
oriented, says Kishore Kali. Another key factor that needs to fall into place
for billing systems to support these new generation services: gathering data. If
it can’t be quantified, it can’t be billed is the rule of the game. This
holds truer with the introduction of IP technology and services, which are now
sending shock waves through the telecom industry. The difficulties IP billing
create center on the inability of telecommunications networks to distinguish
between the type of content being accessed or the application being used. For
example, the billing system may not be able to determine if the content is voice
or data, or is using application service provider supported applications or
e-mail. This is exactly where most of the incumbent billing vendors were caught
off guard.
Where to Look for Billing Solutions?
First, any service provider would need to understand his requirements before
looking out for a vendor. And would do themselves a favor by asking these
questions: which one is optimized for my services? Which one can handle my
business support requirements such as data collection, provisioning, credit
management, taxing, rating and others? Which one is flexible enough to
accommodate my future pricing strategies, service bundles and business models?
Which one integrates with the remainder of my OSS?
Many companies begin with the assumption that a premade system works. This
solution is appropriate for certain environments, but service providers must
find out who the best vendors are for their billing needs. It is vital to
understand how the software works and what it will bring to the business. Always
bear in mind the fact that the bill is the only interaction the subscriber has
with the service provider each month and is a main driver of customer loyalty.
Take a quick look at the expectations from the so-called next generation
billing before crossing the bridge. "The customer should be able to access
bills in any desirable format, with convenient payment options. Also, send
statements for post-paid customers (like we do for a segment of prepaid
customers)," says Brinda Sekhar. It should be an advanced solution to
deliver high levels of flexibility and automation for multi technology and multi
service environment. Also, it should support ad hoc invoicing, multiple billing
cycles, and store and process voice/data traffic. The billing must also be an
on-line, real-time system, sums up Kishore Kali. Another key factor is
mediation, with an interface to multiple network elements; online
filtering/convergence and aggregation of records; and GUI-based mediation
parameters.
Outsourced Vs. In-house Billing Solutions
When any service provider develops a new or updated billing strategy, one of
the most important questions to ask first is whether an outsourced or an
in-house solution is a better fit for the needs of the service provider. There
is not always a straightforward answer to this question, and there are many
things to consider when making this decision. There are differing views on this
crucial question: Is billing a core function? Can a service provider outsource
billing? Many service providers stand unanimous in their view that billing is
best outsourced rather than developed in-house as it is not their
core-competency. "Billing is no doubt a core function, but can be
outsourced only to vendors who have expertise in specific billing systems
deployed by the service provider. Outsourcing in India depends on the level of
guarantee the vendor can give a service provider on maintaining confidentiality,
accuracy, timely billing, the service providers’ definition of his core
capabilities and how he intends to service the customer," remarks Sheila
Paul. According to Brinda Sekhar, outsourcing billing can be a viable option,
although the final presentation and process may still be controlled by the
service provider. This would also encourage billing houses with expertise in
this area to introduce newer technologies and efficiencies gained from multiple
operators. The service provider, says Kali, that requires new or upgraded
billing systems must choose an appropriate role associated with their technical
competence and commission the correct relationship and technology suppliers. In
short, the option can be defined as either buy direct from technology suppliers
and integrators or employ system integrators to build a system and run it for
yourself.
It’s all Possible!
Preparedness. That is the key to survival for any service provider. They must
keep an eye on the future, when billing systems will be required to process much
more than just telecom products and services. Internet, broadband and wireless
markets are still developing. What’s more, newer technologies have not
introduced any complexity, as most additions such as cable or ISP services, have
involved flat or one-time fees. But that doesn’t leave any scope for
complacency. IP technology is wreaking havoc on the telecommunications industry
and complications are bound to arise with IP billing.
Changes in technology undoubtedly have introduced some complexity. But, on
the same breath, have solved other problems. Legacy systems are not necessarily
bad boys, as new protocols bridge the gap between operating systems, databases
and hardware. Thus, billing vendors can ease out of the debate about technology
and return to designing systems to alleviate billing problems.
MT Jeevan