Myths About Network Intelligence

Today ICIN 2008 started with revealing some myths about network intelligence. Roberto Minerva from Telecom Italia has been working with network intelligence for quite some years and collected eperience from what to avoid when dealing with network intelligence.

The topic itself is very interesting and especially the angle taken by Roberto where he uses the Anti-Pattern pattern. Looking at solutions from the other angle than usually gives you new views to an area and opens up for new thoughts. This is what I experienced during the talk.

Roberto had identified the following Myths:

• Network Transparancy
• Network abstraction hides information. In worst case the hidden information prevents further development of services using other features not exposed by the abstraction framework.
• Solution to Network abstraction is to introduce a flat architecture with a gradually increasing level of abstraction. Thus a service can use the highest abstraction level interface possible still meeting the feature needs. If a more finer grained interface is needed that is available by other interfaces in the flat architecture. You could view this as a stair of abstracted interfaces.
• Open API
• Today Open APIs are focused on call control or messaging type of interfaces
• Look at the importance of data and data representation. Google's main business is profiling and collection of data in order to provide targeted advertisements.
• Network with Quality
• The QoS issue impossible in network of networks
• Look at P2P where the intelligence is in the edge.
• Data Networks and Services it is hard if not impossible to keep the network quality promise (or SLA).
• Cloud computing and WebOS was brought up by Roberto. WebOS could very well be sticky service many operators are looking for.
• The Need for Centralization
• IMS and SDP is traditionally seen as a winning proposition. These are centralized solutions.
• Google and Amazon are reinventing the service platform concept and are exploiting the Client-Server paradigm much beyond what an operator could do.
• Operators can use WebOS and P2P much more to create a decentralized network providing sticky services.

Presence Zone for Contextual Presence Location Information

Presence Zones Enriched Location data with contextual information. 

 

Presented by IBM research in Haifa. They have run a research project trying to enhance presence information by adding context to the location where I am and then set presence status based on that.

 

The concept is based on defined zones with certain attributes. There can be automatic zones and there can be zones set up by a restaurant that pushes out information about menu and offers together with presence info. A zone can be identified using different location technologies like GSM triangulation, cell-id, GPS, Bluetooth, RFID and generic near field communications.

 

In the case of a restaurant owner he puts in a bluetooth device that identifies guests as they enter and leaves and sends that information to the presence server.

 

On top of this enhanced context aware location information there can be applications created that utilize the automatic presence information. The most obvious example would be enabling end-users to create their own mashup between presence and other sources like restaurant guides, astma information, etc.

 

Other applications can be call routing, pre-call presence information, targeted advertisements, offers, quiet zones and what-have-you.

Opening Interfaces - Impacts on Telco Business Models

This morning at ICIN 2008 starts with a panel discussion on opening interfaces and how that impact the business models of the telco operators.

The panel is led by Kristofer Kimbler and consists of Roberto Minerva, Agustin Nunez, and David Pecota.

My key takeaways from the panel disussion:

• Operators are already open, however they want to charge from the beginning limiting adoption. Contract management, charging, payments (between operator and developer) and security are factors in the mind of the operator.
• How to charge? Look at the business model of iPhone applications which enables ease of payment transfers between buyer and vendor.
• Global access to the open APIs is crucial. Here Google and iPhone serves as good examples.
• Open interfaces is happening today through Google Maps for example
• Presence, location, social networks: traditionally the telco has provided this. Today the internet is leading innovation, development and adoption.
• The customer for open interfaces is the developer. Developers are lacy. Make the interfaces easy, global and simple return on investment (payments).
• Customer data and profile information is a unique attribute of the operator.
• IP models on top of existing legacy is the unique heritage of the telco operator. Pure internet players don't have this which simplifies life and provides global access and availability.
• Operators should define themselves as the enabler of the social network, not telephony or access.
• Enterprise applications is an easy market to target today where the end customer is ready to pay and sees a direct value. Discussed Dentists and other healthcare providers. Microsoft providing enterprise services through Exchange server. Going beside the operator avoiding tricky business models. Voice capabilities in the enterprise market
• Business model and common API's today:
• Skype for Salesforce
• Marketsize and availability of enablers and APIs
• Don't fight the internet

I think the panel discussion was interesting and also highlighted the challenges. The telco operators really need to transform themselves in order to catch the opportunity.

Kill your darlings - The death of the Killer Application

We all knew it, the "Killer Application" is dead. What is there to replace it?

During ICIN 2008 a common theme so far is the need for open telco operators providing services for various kinds of mashup. This implies that the search for the next killer application is dead. The open telco should provide services to its customers. It is unclear so far which services the operator should provide and how to charge for the service.

From my point of view the question is wrongly asked. A better question would be "What do your customers need? What would simplify their life?". Opening up the telco only helps if you know what your customers will need to use. The opening of the telco itself is more of a technical exercise than of anything else. It is however important as a foundation for execution of an open telco operator enabling colaboration with external innovation and development. How do you get to know what your customers needs and wants?

One way that I have been experimenting with is to open up labs or trial areas where the operator and customers can collaborate and play with open services. By tracking what becomes popular an operator can focus efforts in that area to provide quality of service, security and the appropriate business model. With a thorough follow-up and evaluation of how services are used a greater understanding of underlying drivers and motivators can be understood. From this point the operator can evaluate which services to open, business models, bundling and alignment to strategy and vision. It is extremely important to be in line with your strategy and vision otherwise customers will be confused and/or there will not be a continuation of the process due to misalignment of strategy.

Another important aspect of opening up telco operators is to provide billing and CRM functionality supporting personalization and business models. Being able to personalize customer offers helps being relevant and meeting the individual customer. Supporting different business models is critical in enabling flexible payments and bundlings of services. Who should pay for the open services and how? Flexibility here enables advertisement and someone-else-is-picking-up-the-bill business models.

In short: The Killer Application is dead, it's time to open up the telco. In order to succeed you need to know your customer and what he wants. Flexible billing supporting business models and payments enables a sound business for all parties.

Why are everyone talking about SDP or Service Delivey Platforms?

During a dinner yesterday I called SDP dead as it is not a generic component. It is rather a philosophy on how to deliver services than a ready steady platform. So from now on it is more correct calling it SDE, Service Delivery Environment, or SDF, Service Delivery Framework, as TM Forum.

Listening to ICIN 2008 Keynote speakers David Pecota, Microsoft, and Augustin Nunez, Open Movilforum, they focus on how to deliver services to customers. David was talking about the converged lifestyle. Users are using telecommunictions in all kinds of possible ways thinkable seamless over telco networks and internet. Delivering services supporting a converged lifestyle means that a service should work across networks and services should be aware of each other. The question is what are users ready to pay for a converged lifestyle?

I think that Augustin was spot on when answering the question with an open telecom transforming from channel to the open sea. Users are not willing to pay for the converged lifestyle itself. However, they will use the open telecom services/enablers to mashup new services. As they are doing this and paying for these mashed-up services they are actually creating the converged lifestyle. So the answer is to expose the different services like IP-TV and let the users create the convergence and inclusion in their lifestyle.

Low cost to fail for which convergence is actually asked for and customer willing to pay for.

ICIN 2008 To the Hilt

After months of preparations writing papers and presentations I'm finally at ICIN 2008 ready to present in one session and one poster. The titles are:

• Agile IMS Service Composition - How to Quicker Respond to New Market Demand
  
• Loyalty Based Customer Interaction - Driving More Revenue From Your Existing Customer Base
  

It is very interesting being at a show where everyone is very skilled and knowledgeable.

Key to the telecom industry is to view itself not as a telecom industry anymore. If it sees itself as telecom it will become a pure datapipe. The key is providing the right services (the multimillion dollar question) using the right architecture (providing foundation for execution of the business vision and strategy) enabling users making an impact (in their lives simplifying social relationships). 

We will see what is said on these and other topics during the conference.