Transcript Content

Enabling flexible charging for 3G services
Identifying Market Trends
Convergent Rating&Billing
Impact Analysis
Andreas Krebs (O2 Germany) IIR Mobile Billing Systems 2004
Budapest, September 2004
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Content
1. Key 1: Executive Summary
2. Key 2: Market Trend and Charging Architectures!
3. Key 3: Impacted Systems and Processes!
4. Key 4: Approach - Just an example!
5. Key 5: Resume and Lesson Learned!
Now we have an interesting discussion again about convergence and 3G
charging. That I have seen already five to six years ago by addressing the
same weaknesses as of today. We have simply believed in the key suppliers
and the normal trend of technology involving.
This presentation doesn’t invent the wheel/mobile phone - but gives you
an excellent overview about it and shows your capabilities and options
for blending your future charging/billing architecture.
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Executive Summary
Mobile operators are suffering from the enormous
number of integrating new charging and provisioning
requirements.
Vendors indicating to mobile operators that their
solutions/platforms can fully address the operators
need of flexible charging.
Reality is that no one vendor solutions can address
the highly complex charging requirements of the
present day operator.
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Key Message (1/2)
•
Mobile operators are suffering from the enormous number of integrating new
charging and provisioning requirements/services.
•
Vendors indicating to mobile operators that their solutions/platforms can fully
address the operators need of flexible charging.
•
Unfortunately, statements like this are pretty much wishful thinking.
•
Reality is that no one vendor solutions can address the highly complex
charging requirements of the present day operator.
•
In the Charging and Billing market we see four different types of suppliers, each
representing a specific school of thought and industrial background, addressing
all these weaknesses.
•
There approaches are largely complementary rather than competing.
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Key Message (2/2)
•
A careful blending of component solutions from the four approaches will
provide the most suitable path.
•
Different types of operators will benefit from different combinations of solution
sets reflecting their approached to launching new data services.
•
Integrating these components is the main challenge.
•
Convergence, real-time processing and open systems interfaces are the key
focus areas.
•
A careful blending of component solutions from the four approaches will
provide the most suitable path.
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Market Trends & Charging Models
Four different types of suppliers are well know in
competing on the rating, charging and billing arena.
All of those addressing today’s mobile operator
weaknesses!
To what certain extend the offered solutions are
different?
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Different Type of Enablers are driving the future
Charging Architecture Discussion - (Matrix)
Need to SWCoreReplacements
(end of life)
Better Care &
Self-Care
Need to NWCoreReplacements
(end of life)
Current Number
of Customer
Base - Targeting
Base
Current
Time to Market
Marketing “Near
Real-Time”Requirements
True
Convergence/
“Real Time”
Need for Cost
Savings
(OPEX/CAPEX)
Current EBITDA
Balance between
Prepaid versus
Postpaid
Customer Base
“New Products”
(Promotions,Bun
dels, Packages
Portal Strategy
Covering
Business Areas
Current Figures
Innovation/
Investment
Balance between
Data and Voice
Revenue
New Business
Models
Strategy on
Customer
Service
Organisational
Structure and
Maturity
Service/Product
Delivery
Satisfaction
Supplier
Satisfaction
Figure: Matrix of the different drivers for adopting new charging models in a mobile operator - not to be completed [Source: o2
Germany]
Requirement
Enabler
Structural
Enablers
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Four different Types of Supplier in the Rating, Charging
and Billing Arena - (Matrix)
Core Network and
IN Equipment
Manufactures
• Different industrial background (Years in operating
business, Software- or Hardware-Oriented, “Layered”
Solutions versus “Out-of-the-Box”-Solutions, different
IT Suppliers including
Mediation and
License Models, Years in Business Critical
Billing solution vendors
Environments, Standard Driver - PARLAY, SIMPAY,
JAIN, 3GP and many others)
• Different solutions or platform based solutions (all in
one approach to strategic partnerships)
Suppliers of IP network
and platforms
Content Management
and Mobile Commerce
Providers
• Different types of Core-Business (Routing-Technology,
Switching-Technology, Content-Management, BillingTechnology)
• Different Market Shares (Partner Strategy, Alliances,
Spin-off’s, Owners)
• Different activity types within the Mobile Operator
(Core Network, Billing, Consulting, Integrator)
Figure: Matrix of the four Suppliers in the Billing area
[Source: o2 Germany]
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Different Type of Enablers are driving the future
Charging Architecture Discussion
•
Creating a converged view of customers, services and usage
•
Monitoring usage and interacting in real-time or near real-time with end users
•
Support for diverse and rapidly changing pricing and business models
•
Providing a standard way of separating operator charging from 3rd party charging for content and
applications
•
Traditional cost-based charging versus value-based approach
•
Extending the “statefull” IN model already used in circuit switched networks to the core network
using industry standards such as CAMEL Ph3, RADIUS, DIAMETER
•
Pre/Post Paid Convergence
•
various standards driven by different parties, alliances (SIMPAY, PARLAY, JAIN, 3GP, IPDR,
Teleforum, ....)
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IT Vendors Charging Model Approach
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IP Vendor Charging Architecture Approach
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Network and IN Equipment Vendor Charging Architecture
Approach
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Content and m-commerce Vendor Charging Architecture
Approach
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Impacted Systems and Processes
Well we have learned a lot about the different
approaches and the the differing thinking of the
vendors underneath.
But Billing and Charging is only a small piece in a
bigger picture!
How do we get that integrated and to what certain
extend we have to consider other areas and what
are the key challenges?
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The Restructuring/Introduction of new Charging Models
is considering many different places
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Single Marketing View
3
Single Customer Care
and Self Care
2
Pre Postpaid Convergence can mean many
different things from a single integration of
the CRM solution with the prepaid platform to
a full management of a single rating engine
with unified tariffs and pricing models for the
Prepaid and the Postpaid Customer Segment..
Unified Services and
Tariffs
My hypothesis:
Integrated Balance
Management
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No one in word will be implementing this in
the full approach.
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Common Platform and
Technology
Integrated Payments
and Recharge
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Cost and marketing thoughts are going to
drive the game furthermore?
Discussion!
Figure: Different flavours of Convergence
[Source: Schlumberger/Sema Group - White Paper on Convergence
2003]
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Charging, Rating and Billing - How they interrelate?
Prepaid
PostPaid
Payment Management Key Consideration
• Multiple Payment Sources
Online Charging
Offline Charging
• Security and Audit
• Authentication and financial institution interfaces
Near Real-time
Charging/Billing
• Revenue Assurance
• Multiple Payment Mechanisms
• Company Accounting Mechanism
Online Charging
Charging process where charging
information can affect in real-time, the
service rendered and therefore
directly interacts with the session
/service control.
Offline Charging
Charging process where charging
information does not affect in real
time, the service rendered.
Near Real-Time Charging/Billing
Charging process where charging information does not affect in real-time, the
service rendered but charging information is passed to rating & billing shortly
after ‚use of service‘. Requires ‚online charging‘ capability combined
with ‚hot billing‘.
• Payment / spending rules based on Product type
and customer’s ability to pay / preferences
• Funds reservation and use for specific
transactions (e-wallet)
• Payment Receipts
• Customer Trust
• Roaming-Partner-Agreements
• Service-Provider-/ Partner-Agreements ...........
• Customer can change between PostPaid/Prepaid in
Realtime
[Source: o2 Germany]
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Legacy Billing Systems Restrict the Ability to Support
Emerging Charging and Revenue Models
Common Legacy Pre-paid and Postpaid Rating and Billing
Architecture
Legacy
Pre-payNetwork
Event
System
Collection
(Service
/ Mediation
Node)
Event
IN Platform
Collection /
Mediation
CDR feed (for
statementing)
Customer
& Tariff
Rating
Database and BillingLegacy Billing
System
Transaction
Database
Customer
& Tariff
Database
Figure: Key Components in the legacy world [Source: o2 Germany
and Internet research]
Key Constraints

Customers are classified by payment type and
provisioned accordingly

Subscriber and tariff information managed in multiple
places

Flexible payments instruments by service type
unachievable

Real-time view of Account Balance across services not
available

Real-time credit risk management restricted to prepaid
customers

Simple tariff models only (usage-based with simple
measures) and often long lead times to introduce new
products and services

Restrictive event and data services

Pricing of simultaneous service usage by customers
and real-time cross-product discounting not possible

Restricted opportunity for cross-sell and up-sell to
drive-up ARPU
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Challenges - Interface for Rating/Charging
Billing-based real-time billing
Billing (batch)
IN-hosted real-time billing
IN-based real-time billing
Billing (batch)
Billing (batch)
Mediation
Rating & balance (real-time)
Rating & balance
Conten
t
IN
Call control
IN
Call control
Rating & balance
Content
IN
Content
Call control
control
control
control
Figure: Different approaches for adopting new charging models in a mobile operator - not to be completed/as of today [Source: o2
Germany]
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Approach - Just an example
Ups, there are many things confusing us. A lot of
interaction appears and needs a carefully ordering and
evaluation.
That is life, you have many options, you can only choose
one, you have to blend the mixture!
Is there a general answer giving the way forward?
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Prescription - the 10 golden steps
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STEP 1: Look at your current situation and use slide 7!
•
STEP 2: Look at the tools/systems/vendors you have. Please use slide 8!
•
STEP 3: Look at the portions of applications of the “new” architectures you have
already in place! (slide 10/11/12 and 13)
•
STEP 4: Look at slide 15 and the level you going to modify or change!
•
STEP 5: Consider the mixture from all of that!
•
STEP 6: Investigate on the Type of Convergence! (slide 16)
•
STEP 7: Please have a closer look again at the right hand side of slide 16!
•
STEP 8: Address slide 17 to your management (Marketing, IS, Network, Procurement,
Member of Board)!
•
STEP 9: Discuss slide 18 in your organisation and please starting your own thinking
and conclusion!
•
STEP 10: From up to here it is your party!
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............
The various charging architectures that are emerging, their strengths and
weaknesses, and that one vendor solutions is fulfilling the prophecy is
unrealistic.
The importance of jointly conducting more detailed studies into these emerging
architectural models as input to major decision making on critical topics such
as Pre-Post Convergence, selection and placement of rating engines, product
catalog etc.
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Resume and Lesson learned!
This isn’t just a billing or IT project at all, it requires a lot
involvement of other parties.
We will see new alliances between the supplier form
different areas!
I can’t really see an industrial driven common approach
for the Mobile Operator.
You have to work hard - it’s like a re-launch of you whole
entire business!
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Questions - louder please!
Thanks to the IIR and for all the
lovely people I have met here in
Budapest in the last couple of
days!
Have an nice way home and take
care!
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Sources
This slide set doesn’t reinvent the wheel. A lot of public material was be used.
Thanks to my colleges in the Architecture Department at o2 Germany and mmo2!
“Emerging Charging Architectures for New Mobile Services” report from Analysys Research
“Billing for Content” report from Ovum
“White Paper on Convergence” Schlumberger/Sema Group
Presentations made by Logan-Orviss et al. at the Pre-Post Convergence meeting hosted by O2
Ireland in Dec 2003
Other Intellact sources e.g. Yankee, Informa, Total Telecom
o2 Internet Research
Results of vital Discussion with many colleges from various departments within o2 Germany
and mmo2 Group
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IIR - Mobile Billing
Systems 2004
Andreas Krebs, O2 Germany
IS Architect
IS PP Architecture
September 2004
[email protected]
land line:
+49 89 2442 1308
mobile line:
+49 179 49 63 643
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