Real-time: changing the billing landscape

Transcription

1 Real-time: changing the billing landscape Intelligent Next Generation Billing Congress Berlin, November 2006 Eirwen Nichols, Principal Analyst Direct line: +44(0)

2 Agenda The charging and billing vision Real-time is central to the vision The supply side is changing Can outsourcing reduce the challenges? 2

3 Ovum is a leading global telecoms, software & IT services advisory and consulting company What makes us different? 3 Our unique expertise where the sectors converge The access that we have to our extensive research base Our global analyst and consulting experts Developed consulting methodologies and models Deep connected relationships with the industry Our independence charter Ovum Consulting Customised advice and management services Ovum Advisory Research deliverables and access to analysts

4 Level The charging 3 and billing vision

5 Billing requirements are expanding from voice to groceries Customers will want to pay for a variety of products and services via their communications network: basic telecoms services - voice and the access mechanism itself telecoms specific services, eg directory service, voic Web-specific services, eg digital picture storage, Content, eg TV, music, maps, news, football scores Real products 5

6 Drivers for telco charging and billing today Customer needs Convenience Reliability Clarity Spending control Freedom of choice Telco needs Flexibility to support many different pricing model, including bundling of services Flexibility to support different business models Minimise fraud and bad debt Keep the customer happy Drive down opex But there is a huge amount of uncertainty 6

7 Uncertainty is coming from many directions Where will I be in the value chain? Will micropayments finally make an impact? Will advertisers not end customers pay in future? What s the impact of regulation?? 7

8 So, there is no single vision of what will be needed There are two extreme scenarios: The telco is at the heart of the charging and payments machine complexity, high cost, high risk but customer ownership The telco is the access provider only simple, low cost operation, flat rate, no customer ownership Telcos have to respond to the needs of their own particular market 8

9 But there is an architectural vision Financials CRM applications etc Top up epayment Voucher management Billing etc Customer and enterprise layers Billing layer Off line Rating Online Real-time rating Real-time balance management Charging layer Voice MMS SMS Video streaming Content downloads etc Service layer GPRS 3G PSTN IP etc Network layer Charging and billing are independent of service and network 9

10 Level Real-time 3 is central to the vision

11 Telcos must be driven by business needs not billing technology Real-time, converged platforms, IMS the most recent technology hypes which have been driving talk in the billing industry. But not spend Telcos need to take a holistic view of their charging and billing requirements both CIO and CTO must be involved in the discussion. Real-time enables: Very short set-up speed Fraud control A telco should invest only where there is a business case for these characteristics So is real-time tomorrow s priority rather than today s? 11

12 Billing is part of the Order to Cash process not a standalone application Sell Provision Measure usage Charge Collect cash First define the business processes and then consider the systems 12

13 New investment in real-time for a mobile operator is triggered by IN replacement Real-time is well understood by mobile operators Replacement is being driven by the age of existing systems and their lack of flexibility The solution is phased consolidation, based on a positive business case Post paid voice Prepaid content/data Postpaid? All services all payment methods Prepaid voice SMS Prepaid? IMS services? 13

14 New investment in real-time for a fixed operator is triggered by broadband content Fixed operators have never needed real-time. Multiple drivers for change today: Offering a better service to customers immediate discounts, up-to-the minute ebilling, budgeting controls etc. Supporting Fixed-Mobile convergence Offering broadband content As a service to wholesale customers Need to replace legacy billing systems which are becoming too expensive to maintain Getting ready for IMS Hence real-time will come but there is little urgency 14

15 Level The supply 3 side is changing

16 The supply side has been split The IT suppliers - meeting the needs telcos to charge and bill postpaid customers for many years. Specialists, many small niche companies Modular software products with extensive customisation Product development from simple voice billing to very flexible rating, partner management, content billing etc The IN suppliers meeting the needs of mobile operators to charge and bill prepaid customers Just another product line for a small number of network equipment providers Focused, standard products have always been real-time and carrier grade IT suppliers have moved into this segment The value added services providers meeting the needs of mobile operators and content owners for service-specific billing. 16

17 Realignment is underway IT and IN capabilities are coming together. For example: Comverse acquisition of CSG Kenan Oracle /Alcatel and Oracle/Siemens partnerships Oracle acquisition of Portal The product suite covering all telco systems (OSS, BSS and enterprise IT) is being born: Amdocs HP Oracle Still too many small ISVs, which will need to be specialists to survive 2006 has been the pivotal year for industry change but it s not the end of the story 17

18 More change to come IN and IT vendors Payments vendors $ $ $ The local telco $ Local and global content distributors Will telcos be bypassed in the billing process? 18

19 Outsourcing - a way of reducing the Level 3 challenges of change?

20 Outsourcing means different things to different people Business process outsourcing (BPO) handing over a whole process or task to a 3 rd party to manage Applications development and maintenance (ADM) handing over responsibility for the development of the IT application But suppliers and customers aren t hidebound by neat definitions Telcos lag other industries in using outsourcing. In telco IT, billing has been the most likely place to find it. Outsourcing of post-paid billing functions has long been established in North America. A bigger role for outsourcing in Europe needs some high profile, positive examples 20

21 Outsourcing has its place but it s a difficult sale Large integrated telco ADM BPO for niche functions ADM for new COTS deployment Legacy processes and systems New processes and systems BPO Small focused service provider 21

22 Summary Telcos need to hold a long term vision in mind but take pragmatic steps forward, based on demonstrable benefits at each stage Both Network Operations and IT need to be involved in the process, and suppliers need to reach out to both sides Telcos should throw away their preconceptions about the suppliers and take a broad look at what s out there Real-time charging and billing is a key part of next generation telco systems but only one driver for change Nobody should expect it to be quick or easy 22

23 Level Thank 3you. Any questions?