Communication services have evolved at a much faster pace in the past 10 years in comparison to the initial 30 years. It started with simple SMS and Voice connectivity and now data communication services have started taking over. It all started with some data to consume and now it’s about how much data you can consume. 5G took the game to the next level where the volume of data, quality of service, and connectivity for enterprise converged.
Now the big question is how we are going to monetize the various aspects in a single converged charging stack.
This expansion of service offerings has a huge impact on the underlying platforms. With additional data, services come additional network capacity investments and extra capabilities are needed to be added to the BSS platform.
The operators are needed to modify the way their work especially the billing system to cater for the new types of services while improving the customer experience.
But, as a TSP (Telecom Service Provider) you might be thinking why do you need to transform the billing system when you already have one.
Here’s when you need to pay attention to the fact if your current billing system is fit for the new charging models…
TSPs work with different billing systems like one for mobile services and the other for xDSL services. If we talk about an ideal billing system, then it must be able to charge all the services, regardless of the underlying network technology. To do this, the TSPs need to follow the path of becoming Digital Service Providers (DSPs). The other reason to go for this is heavy competition in the market due to which operators are forced to shorten the time-to-market for new services. Considering all this, operators are now being pushed to transform their billing system into a more convergent one.
As CSPs prepare for enhanced engagement with the digital economy and are on the path of becoming digital service providers themselves, it is even more crucial for them to break down the architectural silos. They need that their solutions are flexible enough to support various business models and also the correlated charging and billing models to drive new revenue opportunities. These solutions must be open to allow CSPs to digitally communicate with clients and customers. Apart from this, business agility is needed in order to bring highly dynamic digital services to the market. And all this should be delivered with greater operational efficiency to support the immense growth in data and devices at lower costs.
Inhibitors for converged charging systems:
Though, CSPs have delayed the adoption of such systems in the past few years for a variety of reasons. Some of them are:
Risk Appetite: Generally organizations aren’t able to maximize the amount of residual risk they can accept. Thus, they stay in the safer zone and hesitate to shift to convergent systems.
Drivers for converged charging systems:
Due to the high impact of digital transformation on the way CSPs approach their systems’ architecture, CSPs are up for unifying their charging systems. The primary drivers behind this shift are:
Conclusion
With time telecom sector has become more customer-centric than ever before. The customer experience is the primary focus and the most effective weapon to win the competition. Though there have been challenges, additional business opportunities are also there that provide new personalized services to the customers. To use such opportunities, the underlying billing system should be capable of enabling new bundles and services while ensuring a shorter time to market.
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