The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing
Home Routing allows operators to be a single point of contact for originating and terminating services Introduction to SMS Home Routing The delivery of traditional paper mail from overseas is carried out by the home country post office. Inbound voice calls are delivered and controlled by home network infrastructure. Inbound MMS traffic does not go straight to target phones but passes through a home message centre. These arrangements are logical and also commercially sound because they enable the service provider to add value through termination services, such as diversion and aggregation, that customers find useful and which generate further revenue. However, SMS has been treated differently and is therefore the exception in messaging. In the traditional GSM network architecture, messages pass through an SMSC in the customer s home network. The SMSC converts these Mobile Originated messages to the Mobile Terminated form and delivers them directly to the destination devices, whatever network they are on. MO SMSC MT Mobile Originated Mobile Terminated ON-NET SMSCs OTHER NETWORKS OFF-NET A network can therefore add value to the Mobile Originated messages that its customers send by, for example, implementing Intelligent SMS Routing either in or in front of the SMSC to provide direct delivery and hence a higher quality of service. But a network cannot easily add value to the Mobile Terminated messages its customers receive, because many of those messages will go direct to the customers phones from SMSCs in other networks. If a customer is roaming, the Mobile Terminated message will not even pass through the customer s home network. This means, for example, that the operator cannot protect its customers from the increasing incidences of spam, malware and other unwanted messages that originate from other networks. 2 The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing
SMS Home Routing fixes the problem and removes the messaging anomaly. It enhances the message flow by ensuring that Mobile Terminated messages pass through an MT Services Platform in the home network, where protection can be implemented and value can be added. There are a number of reasons why an operator will need to deploy SMS Home Routing in its network; this briefing paper provides further details. Applications that need SMS Home Routing Preventing fraud, spam and malware Mobile phones have evolved from simple dumb terminals into feature-rich smartphones that are often more powerful than desktop computers were only a few years ago. Unfortunately, this increased power has attracted the same sort of malevolent and malicious activities, such as spam, phishing, denial of service and fraud, that infect the IT world. In many cases, the carrier for such threats is SMS, and users, phones and networks are all affected. The damage caused can be beyond that of the apparent direct impact of the attack. SMS fraud has a direct impact on an operator s revenue, incurring costs that cannot be recovered either from customers or other networks. As the level of SMS spam and malware increases, customers begin to lose confidence in using SMS and, if overall SMS usage decreases, this will damage the highly significant and highmargin contribution that SMS makes to an operator s total revenues. When customers are spammed or defrauded, they also lose confidence in their operator and the operator s brand is inevitably damaged. In addition, spammers often use the operator s name as the sender the customer therefore cannot tell whether a promotional or informational message purporting to be from its network operator is genuine or not. Some operators have had to put special notices on their websites to alert customers to such spam. With applications such as m-commerce and mobile money transfer becoming increasingly popular, it is vital that confidence in the integrity of the phone and network is maintained. The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing 3
And whilst the increasing prevalence of smartphones has stimulated further spam and malware attacks, it is not just smartphones and their users that are vulnerable even the simplest devices are susceptible. In many countries, cyber-bullying is causing growing concern, and SMS is often the bearer for unpleasant, distressing and threatening messages from bullies. There have even been cases of children taking their own lives after receiving bullying text messages. The only way for an operator to safeguard its customers, network and brand from fraud, spam, malware and other unwanted messages, is to deploy SMS Home Routing and screen all Mobile Terminated text messages sent to its customers, blocking messages that are fraudulent, malicious, or contain spam. Multi-device services In this increasingly connected world, many people now access their emails not just on their desktop computer, but also whilst on-the-go, using laptops, tablets and mobile phones. Many people also have more than one mobile phone for example, a smartphone for day-today business and a simpler model for sports and social occasions. Some operators offer a Multi-SIM service to individuals, partners and small businesses, but with significant limitations. As with email, people now expect to be able to access all of their messages on whichever devices they like. But there is a problem with SMS in this multi-device world. Without SMS Home Routing, a message can only be delivered to the one device that has the destination phone number to which the message was sent. However, with SMS Home Routing, the MT Services Platform can deliver incoming messages to multiple devices phones, tablets, laptops and PCs according to each customer s preference. The operator can now offer a true Multi-SIM service. Messages can also be delivered to non-sim devices, such as PCs or laptops, via an email account. Furthermore, messages can be stored on-line in the cloud. Businesses will find this useful for archive and compliance purposes; consumers will value the opportunity to keep handset-independent memories that can be accessed from anywhere. 4 The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing
Adding value to SMS with innovative services By seeing all Mobile Terminated SMS messages, it is possible for the operator to add value to those messages, providing a range of services that enhance their customers communications. For example, an operator may choose to launch services that: ~ promote safety by sending automated responses and delaying delivery of messages whilst their customers are driving. ~ provide automated responses when the recipient is busy or otherwise unavailable. ~ enable parents to control the messages that their children receive. ~ are truly innovative such as the Telsis Just Dot Me instant personal noticeboard. SMS Home Routing is an enabler for these and other services which allow the operator to differentiate itself from competitors. Service interoperability As networks evolve to support technologies such as RCS-e, RCS, IMS and LTE, it is essential to have service interoperability, so that users connected via different technologies can still communicate with each other. SMS Home Routing is key to enabling service interoperability between current and next generation messaging technologies. For example, with RCS-e, a customer could use their joyn (www.joynus.com) chat client to send messages to all of their contacts not just those with handsets that support RCS-e. The network will convert outgoing messages to SMS, and SMS Home Routing will enable the MT Services Platform, acting as an IP SMS Gateway (IP-SM-GW), to deliver incoming replies as chat messages. A consistent interface for communicating with all users will provide a better user experience and help fight off the threat of closed Over-The-Top (OTT) messaging applications. OTT SERVICES RSC-e App Store > Search > Pay > Download > Install GET Native in device Register > Address Book Import SET-UP Automatically provisioned Access OTT Application ACCESS Natively Integrated into the OS flow Not Reliable Best-effort Support Privacy Risk USE Reliable Service Customer Support Secure & Private The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing 5
It is essential for operators to provide service continuity as they evolve their networks to LTE. Enhanced quality of service When a mobile phone is switched off or out of coverage, any incoming messages destined for that phone are stored in the SMSCs of the sending networks around the world. When the phone becomes available again, the stored messages should be delivered by those networks but the time taken to do this depends on the network characteristics. In some cases, if the phone is unavailable for a few days, the stored messages may be deleted and lost forever, due to the sending networks particular message expiry policies. Using SMS Home Routing, an operator can take responsibility for incoming messages to its own customers. Messages can be stored in the MT Services Platform and then delivered immediately the customer s phone reconnects to the network. Therefore, the operator can ensure that its customers get the highest quality of service. Kingpin Social Analysis An operator can serve its customers better if it has deep knowledge of their needs and activities. Telsis Kingpin Social Analysis analyses SMS traffic patterns to and from an operator s customers and identifies those customers that are key movers in initiating or extending messaging traffic, particularly within communities. These important customers, who have a significant impact on an operator s overall messaging traffic and revenues, can then be targeted with special promotions or retention strategies. Kingpin Social Analysis can only be performed with access to both sent and received messages, and therefore relies on the availability of SMS Home Routing. Implementing SMS Home Routing In the traditional GSM network, without SMS Home Routing, the sending network queries the HLR of the destination phone to determine the phone s location, and then delivers the message directly to the phone. With SMS Home Routing, the HLR does not itself respond to the where is? (SRI_SM) query; instead, it passes the enquiry to the MT Services Platform which replies to the sending network, giving itself as the destination point. The MT Services Platform then receives the message from the sending network and applies whatever services are activated for the customer for whom the message is intended. The MT Services Platform then delivers the message as appropriate. The 3GPP recommendation, in TS23.040, has been implemented by the leading HLR vendors, either as a configuration option in latest software builds, or as a patch extension to older versions. An alternative approach to Home Routing, rather than activating it in the HLR, is to configure the network to forward where is queries directly to the MT Services Platform. In either case, with SMS Home Routing deployed, it is then merely necessary to install the Telsis MT Services Platform to provide the Mobile Terminated service functionality. This platform operates alongside and independent of existing SMS infrastructure. 6 The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing
It is recommended that Home Routing is turned on for all customers as, in particular, this enables all customers to be safeguarded from fraud, spam and malware. SMS Home Routing, pioneered by Telsis and now ratified by the 3GPP, enables Mobile Terminated messages to be handled by a system in the network that owns the customer. Operators can therefore safeguard their customers and offer them complete and innovative services that meet their needs in the new multi-device world. Unlike traditional SMSC vendors, Telsis is skilled in SMS Routing and delivery of service layer solutions that add value to the network The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing 7
WHY TELSIS? Telsis has delivered service innovations to Tier 1 telecoms network operators for almost a quarter of a century. The company s solutions enable operators to generate more revenue, strengthen their brands, recruit and retain more customers, drive up Net Promoter Scores and increase profitability. Telsis portfolio of services is backed by proven engineering skills, system integration expertise, and a deep understanding of human factors, all of which combine in solutions that enable operators to offer customers exciting and practical services with compelling real-world appeal. Traditional SMSC vendors are typically specialists in handling Mobile Originated messages, their storage and delivery, and in providing interfaces to service providers for host delivery systems. In contrast, Telsis specialises in service innovation and, where necessary, develops the infrastructure to support those services. Thus, Telsis first invented intelligent SMS Routing, which has now been adopted by many network operators as the standard infrastructure for the next stage of SMS traffic and revenue growth, and then pioneered SMS Home Routing, which has now been adopted by 3GPP, to enable the provision of Mobile Terminated services. Because the MT Services Platform has different characteristics and requires different functionality to the traditional SMSC for Mobile Originated messages, it can be implemented alongside and independent of existing SMSC infrastructure. It is our services-based philosophy, and deep understanding of the requirements for handling Mobile Terminated messages, that make Telsis the obvious choice for SMS Home Routing solutions. Copyright 2012 Telsis Limited. No part of this document may be copied or reproduced in any form without the written consent of Telsis Limited. Additionally, this document is not to be passed to or discussed with third parties without the prior written permission of Telsis Limited. The information contained herein is believed to be accurate; however, no responsibility is assumed for inaccuracies. Telsis products are subject to continual development and specifications may change. Users of Telsis products and documentation should exercise their own independent judgement to evaluate the suitability of Telsis products and documentation for their particular application. Telsis does not accept any liability arising from the application or use of the product or this documentation. In particular, where the application involves billing or charging, the user needs to be aware that all Telsis products and services are supplied on terms and conditions that specifically exclude Telsis liability for consequential or indirect loss. Telsis, Ocean and NODAL are registered trademarks of Telsis Holdings Ltd. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective holders. If you have any comments on this document, or would like details of any Telsis products, services or equipment, please contact us. We shall be pleased to hear from you. Errata We believe that this document is accurate, and it has been carefully checked for accuracy. Unfortunately, errors do sometimes occur. Contact: sales@telsis.com www.telsis.com UK t: +44 (0) 1489 76 00 00 f: +44 (0) 1489 76 00 76 Germany t: +49 (0) 6151 827 850 f: +49 (0) 6151 827 8521 Spain t: +34 91 532 72 10 f: +34 91 532 96 40 Australia t: +61 (0) 2 9957 2300 f: +61 (0) 2 9957 2333 8 The Case for SMS Home Routing Executive Briefing