Next Generation Networks (NGN) promises a high quality end-user experience. Telecommunications service providers expect the NGN framework to provide them with tools that would ensure customer loyalty. However, the path towards achieving the ideal NGN is fraught with formidable challenges. The most critical challenge confronting operators is optimizing their OSS and BSS platforms, systems, and processes.

The OSS/BSS vendor environment is extremely competitive with close to 400 vendors, mostly specialized in niches and having a strong services arm. Vendor categories include Comprehensive Solution Providing Pure OSS/BSS Vendors, Comprehensive Solution Providing Composite Vendors, Skill-set Extension Solution Providers and Core Strength Concentrators - BSS and OSS. The vendor landscape is characterized by extensive M&A activity.

With research beginning in 2007, the report Next Generation Network OSS/BSS Market and Forecast 2011-2016 provides a comprehensive analysis of drivers and issues related to technical and business aspects of OSS/BSS deployments and developments while forecasting their growth over the next five years.

Important Questions Answered by this Report

•What are the telecom network operator interests in NGN OSS/BSS?
•What are the challenges to OSS and BSS implementation?
•What are the best OSS and BSS approaches for NGN?
•What are the technologies involved in OSS and BSS?
•Who are the leading vendors for NGN OSS/BSS?
•What is the market forecast for OSS and BSS?

Technical Overview of OSS and BSS in NGNs: This section begins with an introduction to OSS and BSS and their roles in the operator environment. It explains the various blocks that go into building of the OSS: Network elements, events, alarms and others. It next explains the BSS building blocks: Billing, rating, mediation, charging, customer care and others. This section is followed by the description of prevalent industry approaches like TMN - FCAPS model that are widely followed by operators. The section then analyzes the technical impact of NGN on OSS and BSS architectures.

Vendor Analysis: Profiles of 35 vendors offering OSS/BSS products and services for next generation networks. This section first explains the basis of vendor selection including vendor classification, innovative contribution, market leadership position and future growth path. Each vendor is then analyzed in the light of its product and solution portfolio, major implementations, differentiating aspects with other vendors and their future plans. The report includes recommendations to vendors including diversification, best practices, market segment, and solution approach.

Quantitative Analysis and Forecast: This section begins with a detailed explanation of the research methodology. Quantitative analysis includes measurable items such as billing systems, network management systems and their sub-classes (mediation, wholesale billing, retail billing, CRM, revenue assurance, resource management, task management, delivery management, synchronization management) along with geographical segmentation, trends and projections. Importantly, the quantitative analysis assesses the impact of various drivers and issues on the above measurable items, thus forming a logical conclusion of the quantitative discussion in the previous sections.

Note: This section represents a comprehensive forecast including Forecast Methodology by Overall OSS and BSS Software Market, Split by OSS and by BSS separately, by geography (NA, EMEA, CALA, and APAC), and by modular break-up including: Network Planning and Engineering (NPE), Fault Management (FM), Performance Management (PM), Provisioning and Service Activation (PSA), Inventory Management (IM), Billing and Customer Care (B&CC), Mediation (MD), and Revenue Assurance (RA). The section also includes OSS/BSS Vendor Rakings Based on Net Profit Margins.

 Audience:

•Network operator managers tasked with making long-term architecture and support system decisions including vendor decisions
•Product management personnel concerned with the impact of OSS and BSS systems on next generation application and services rollout such as IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) and technology and/or application frameworks or platforms
•Managers and Directors tasked with OSS responsibilities and anyone that is involved in OSS/BSS decision making
•Vendors, suppliers, and service providers to network operators interested in their prospects for selling into the carrier marketplace
•Network and Engineering personnel seeking specific information such as leading OSS/BSS Approaches including as OSS/J, OSA/Parlay, MDA, Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). This publication has both business/market information and technical information!

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1          Executive Summary           

2          The relevance of NGN       

2.1       Background  10

2.2       What is NGN10

2.3       Introduction and history      11

2.3.1   Timeline         11

2.4       Comparison of NGN with Public Switched Telephone Network and with Public Switched Data Network         11

2.5       Drivers of NGN         12

2.5.1   Telecom Operator and Vendor Interests  12

2.5.2   Improvement in Access Technologies     13

2.5.3   Reduced Vendor Dependency     14

2.6       Challenges for NGN           14

2.6.1   Large Scale Capital Expenditure  14

2.6.2   Operational Challenges     15

2.6.3   Integration of Multiple Private Networks and Application into the Larger Public Networks           15

2.6.4   Quality of Service (QoS)     16

2.6.5   National Security and Competitive Policies        16

2.7       What is IMS?            17

2.7.1   Background  17

2.7.2   HSS    18

2.7.3   Application and media servers      18

2.7.4   CSCF19

2.7.5   Interconnection protocols   19

2.8       Drivers behind IMS  19

2.8.1   Value-Added Services        19

2.8.2   Transparency in Access     20

2.8.3   Scalability      20

2.8.4   Industry Consortia   20

2.9       Conclusion   21

3          NGN OSS/BSS: Components, IMS Implications and Frameworks    

3.1.1   Network Planning and Engineering        22

3.1.1.1            Market Size   23

3.1.2   Fault Management  23

3.1.2.1            Market Size   23

3.1.3   Performance Management            23

3.1.3.1            Market Size   24

3.1.4   Provisioning and Service Activation        24

3.1.4.1            Market Size   26

3.1.5   Inventory Management       26

3.1.5.1            Market Size   26

3.1.6   Billing and Customer Care            26

3.1.6.1            Market Size   27

3.1.7   Mediation      27

3.1.7.1            Market Size   28

3.1.8   Revenue Assurance           28

3.1.8.1            Market Size   28

3.2       Challenges for OSS and BSS       28

3.3       OSS Challenges      29

3.3.1   Stakeholder Apprehensions          29

3.3.2   Framework to Integrate Customization Demands          30

3.3.3   Smooth Transition from Existing OSS Frameworks      30

3.3.4   Multi-vendor Co-ordination            31

3.4       BSS Challenges      31

3.5       SDP: The Shock Absorber32

3.6       TMForum Solution Frameworx      34

3.6.1   Key NGOSS Terminology  37

3.6.2   TAM    38

3.6.3   Business Process Framework (Formerly eTOM)            38

3.6.4   SID     40

3.6.5   TNA    42

3.6.6   APIs and Interfaces43

3.6.7   NGOSS Compliance Tests            43

3.6.8   The NGOSS Lifecycle         43

3.6.9   Advantages of NGOSS       45

4          Approaches and Technologies    

4.1       Fundamental Concepts      46

4.1.1   Middleware   46

4.1.2   SOA-The Bedrock for SDP and OSS/BSS          47

4.1.3   Service Oriented Application Protocol (SOAP)  49

4.1.4   Web Services (WS)49

4.1.5   Extensible Markup Language (XML)       50

4.2       OSS/BSS Frameworks       50

4.2.1   Telecommunication Management Network (TMN)        51

4.2.2   FCAPS          53

4.3       Messaging Formats55

4.3.1   Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)            55

4.3.2   Common Management Information Protocol (CMIP)    57

4.4       Enterprise Data Organization Approaches         58

4.4.1   Enterprise Application Integration (EAI)  58

4.4.2   Enterprise Service Bus (ESB)       59

4.5       Approaches towards IMS-enabling OSS/BSS   59

4.5.1   OSS/J59

4.5.2   MDA   62

4.5.3   Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL)     64

5          Vendor initiatives    

5.1       Vendor Landscape Observations66

5.2       Vendor Classification         67

5.2.1   Comprehensive Solution Providing Pure OSS/BSS Vendors            67

5.2.2   Comprehensive Solution Providing Composite Vendors        68

5.2.3   Core Strength Concentrators - BSS        68

5.2.4   Core Strength Concentrators - OSS        69

5.3       Vendor Summary     70

5.3.1   Amdocs          71

5.3.2   CBOSS          73

5.3.3   Cerillion         74

5.3.4   Comarch        76

5.3.5   Comptel Corporation           77

5.3.6   Comverse      79

5.3.7   Convergys     80

5.3.8   cVidya Inc     81

5.3.9   Dorado Software      82

5.3.10Elitecore Technologies       83

5.3.11Evolving Systems Inc          84

5.3.12Formula Telecom Solutions           85

5.3.13Hewlett-Packard Company            86

5.3.14HighDeal       87

5.3.15Huawei          88

5.3.16IBM     89

5.3.17InfoVista        90

5.3.18Intec Telecom Systems       92

5.3.19LHS    93

5.3.20LogNet Systems       94

5.3.21Metratech      95

5.3.22MindCTI Ltd  96

5.3.23Mycom           98

5.3.24NetCracker    99

5.3.25Neural Technologies          101

5.3.26OpenCloud   102

5.3.27Oracle            102

5.3.28Redknee        104

5.3.29Subex            105

5.3.30Synchronoss            107

5.3.31Telcordia Technologies Inc            108

5.3.32TTI Telecom  109

5.3.33UshaComm   110

5.3.34Ventraq (Formerly ACE*COMM)   111

5.3.35VPIsystems Inc         112

5.3.36WANDL (Wide Area Network Design Laboratory)         114

5.3.37WebNMS       115

5.3.38Xalted117

5.3.39XINTEC SA   118

5.3.40ZTE     119

6          Quantitative Forecasts and Analysis   

6.1       Forecast Methodology        122

6.2       Overall OSS and BSS Software Market   123

6.2.1   Overall Revenue Split Up  124

6.2.2   OSS Split-Up            125

6.2.3   BSS Split-Up            126

6.3       Geographical and Revenue Component-wise Distribution     127

6.3.1   Overall Geographical Distribution            127

6.3.2   Overall Revenue Component-wise Distribution            128

6.4       Modular Break-Up   129

6.4.1   Network Planning and Engineering (NPE)        130

6.4.2   Fault Management (FM)     133

6.4.3   Performance Management (PM)   135

6.4.4   Provisioning and Service Activation (PSA)        139

6.4.5   Inventory Management (IM)           142

6.4.6   Billing and Customer Care (B&CC)         144

6.4.7   Mediation (MD)         147

6.4.8   Revenue Assurance (RA)  150

6.5       OSS/BSS Vendor Rakings Based on Net Profit Margins         154

6.6       Conclusions156

6.7       Recommendations  156

 LIST OF TABLES 

Table 2 1: Comparison between NGN, PSTN and PSDN        12

Table 5 1: Vendor List         70

LIST OF FIGURES 

Figure 2 1: IMS Components         18

Figure 3 1: OSS and BSS Positions        22

Figure 3 2: Kabira PSA       25

Figure 3 3: Frameworx from TMForum     35

Figure 3 4: NGOSS Schematic     36

Figure 3 5: eTOM     39

Figure 3 6: SID Business Entity Framework       41

Figure 3 7: NGOSS lifecycle management         44

Figure 4 1: Logical Layers of TMN            53

Figure 4 2: NGOSS and OSS/J Synchronization          60

Figure 4 3: TMF/Prosspero61

Figure 6 1: Consolidated OSS/BSS Revenues (In Million USD)        123

Figure 6 2: Consolidated Revenue Functional Split-Up (In Million USD)    124

Figure 6 3: OSS Revenue Split-Up (In Million USD)    125

Figure 6 4: BSS Revenue Split-Up (In Million USD)     126

Figure 6 5: Consolidated Revenue Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)            127

Figure 6 6: Consolidated Revenue Geographical Summary (%)        127

Figure 6 7 Consolidated Revenue Component-wise Split-Up (In Million USD)      129

Figure 6 8: NPE Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)         130

Figure 6 9: NPE Geographical Summary (%)     131

Figure 6 10: NPE Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)132

Figure 6 11: FM Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)         133

Figure 6 12: FM Geographical Summary (%)     134

Figure 6 13: FM Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)   135

Figure 6 14: PM Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)         136

Figure 6 15: PM Geographical Summary (%)     137

Figure 6 16: PM Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)   138

Figure 6 17: PSA Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)       139

Figure 6 18: PSA Geographical Summary (%)   140

Figure 6 19: PSA Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)141

Figure 6 20: IM Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)           142

Figure 6 21: IM Geographical Summary (%)       143

Figure 6 22: IM Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)     144

Figure 6 23: B&CC Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)    145

Figure 6 24: B&CC Geographical Summary (%)            146

Figure 6 25: B&CC Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)          147

Figure 6 26: MD Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)         148

Figure 6 27: MD Geographical Summary (%)     149

Figure 6 28: : MD Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)150

Figure 6 29: RA Geographical Split-Up (In Million USD)         151

Figure 6 30: RA Geographical Summary (%)     152

Figure 6 31: RA Component-wise Split-up (In Million USD)   153

Figure 6 32: Operator Billing Revenue Losses (In Million USD)        154

Figure 6 33: OSS/BSS Vendor Ranking Based On Net Profit Margins (%)  154