OSS Skills Glossary for IT Architects, CTO's & Technical Project Managers


	OSS

With competition forcing telecommunication service providers to focus on the customer, the operations support systems (OSS) market has emerged as a crucial and highly dynamic part of the telecom services market. The OSS market currently comprises of two distinct groups: those that specialise in just a few specific applications (such as customer care & billing) and those trying to piece together an end-to-end solution, usually achieved via acquisition (e.g. ADC acquisition of Saville Systems which enabled it to add Saville’s billing and customer care functionality to its own solutions).

The OSS market has traditionally been highly fragmented market with an abundance of proprietary systems that will not work together without costly, complex and time-consuming integration efforts. And with carriers and service providers already moving to IP-based networks, their ability to add and remove services with ease as well as the ability to quickly introduce new OSS applications and components, will be crucial to remaining competitive once VoIP and mobile Internet access are fully realised. In response to these needs, Sun Microsystems and leading telecom and service-ware companies (Ericsson, NEC, Nokia, Nortel and Telecordia Technologies) announced in May 2000 their intention to launch the ‘Next Generation OSS through Java initiative’ which will result in a new, open-industry process to define Java API’s for OSS & BSS systems and will enable carriers and service providers to build seamless OSS systems.

Service providers will need billing strategies to support next-generation technologies thereby creating an unprecedented demand for development and implementation of state-of-the-art billing systems.

ACD	ACD is an acronym for Automatic Call Distributors, a telephony term for a facility that automatically routes incoming calls to the next available or longest idle agent in a line hunt group. Examples of ACD’s include Lucent, Nortel & Aspect.
ADC Singularit.e	ADC’s comprehensive suite of OSS products and consulting services. It includes Saville CBP, a billing solution originally designed by Saville Systems, the convergent billing innovators now owned by ADC.
Amdocs IAF Horizon	Amdocs’ IAF (Internet Administration Framework), formerly Solect Technology Groups’ IAF, is a real-time billing, customer care and service management solution to meet the current needs of next-generation service providers deploying IP telephony offerings including wireless and ASPs. IAF was developed in close co-operation with leading industry partners including Alcatel, Cisco Systems, Ericsson, Netscape, SAIC, Sun Microsystems, PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Telcordia Technologies. Solect now operates as a division of Amdocs following Amdocs’ acquisition of Solect Technology Group Inc. in April 2000.
Amdocs Ensemble	Ensemble is Amdocs’ platform that provides one of the leading customer care, billing and order management solutions for convergent telecom operations. It supports the full-range of fixed-line and mobile services (including local, long distance, data, cable, wireless, Internet & VoIP).
ANI	ANI is an acronym for Automatic Number Identification, a system that enables the identification of the caller.
Aptis ICP	Aptis Software’s billing solution for ICP’s (Integrated Communications Providers).
Atlantech AccessVision	Cisco’s software framework for configuring & monitoring network hardware and which is designed to interact with existing management systems such as legacy OSS & billing software. Cisco acquired the Scotland based Atlantech in May 2000 to provide its service providers with a software framework to manage its family of networking products.
BillPlex	Daleen Technologies’ next-generation, convergent system for customer care and billing; it integrates billing, provisioning and customer care for multiple usage-based services (such as wireless, Internet, cable, local, long distance & utility).
BOSS	BOSS is an acronym for Billing Operating Support Systems.
BSCS	LHS Groups’ BSCS (Business Support & Control System) is one of the world’s most installed client/server solutions for telecommunications customer care and billing.
BSS	BSS (Business Support Systems), which can be incorporated in OSS, are systems that support and manage the information of various telecom functions such as billing, customer care, network management and data warehousing.
CBILL	CBILL’s wireless billing solution for the telecommunications industry.
CIBER	CIBER (cellular inter carrier billing exchange roaming) is a standard that is used by wireless carriers.
CIGP	CIGP (common interconnection gateway platform) is an initiative led by the Telemanagement Forum to develop a technology-independent standard model for the design of OSS interconnection gateways.
CLEC	In the USA, a CLEC (competitive local exchange carrier) is a company that has been allowed by the state utility commission to offer local telephone service in competition with the former local carrier monopolies (or ILEC’s.). CLECs are sometimes referred to as ‘ new entrants’ or ‘ emerging carriers.’ (see ILEC’s)
CSR	CSR is an acronym for Customer Service Representative; CSR’s provide dedicated customer care services to clients, sometimes online as well as telephone. Customer care solutions include productivity tools to increase individual CSR productivity.
CTI	CTI is an acronym for Computer Telephony Integration, the integration of telephone/ACD and software/database systems to provide platforms that facilitate customer service and increasing call center agent productivity. The combination of CRM and SFA applications with CTI is enabling the provision of new customer service applications. Providers of CTI solutions include Apropos and Genisys.
EBPP	EBPP (electronic bill payment and presentation) is on-line capability of processing payments and electronic presentation of billing forms via the Internet.
EDI	EDI (electronic data interchange) is the exchange of information in support of commerce between companies in structured, platform-independent formats defined by standards such as ANSI & ISO. It is one of the predominant technologies currently used for the automated exchange of service orders between CLECs and ILECs.
Geneva	Geneva Technology’s billing and rating system for event based services (including telecommunications, pay TV, IP/ISP and utilities). Geneva 4.0, the latest release of the software, provides pan-national billing.
ICR	ICR is an acronym for Intelligent Incoming Call Routing. By utilising the IVR to collect information from the caller and the host application to determine how to route a given call, ICR represents one of the most powerful combinations of IVR and CRM applications.
ILEC	ILECs (incumbent local exchange carriers) are traditional telecommunications services providers. (see CLECs)
i-Series	i-Series is the name of BlueGill Technologies’ (now CheckFree i-Solutions) billing solutions.
IVR	IVR is an acronym for Interactive Voice Response technology, a technology that allows a telephone based user to enter or access information stored in a remote database. IVR applications add value to CRM applications by providing the means and platform for customer self service and by providing an automated personalised service to the caller. IVR provides a cost effective means of maximising the ROI of a CRM investment. Examples of IVR’s including Lucent & Aspect. VRU (Voice Response Unit) is another term for IVR.
JBill	Intasys’ billing & customer care solution for the convergent telecommunications industry.
Kenan (Arbor/BP)	Kenan System’s (now a wholly owned subsidiary of Lucent Technologies) billing, customer care and rating product.
Kenan Internet Suite	The new integrated set of software products, announced by Lucent Technologies in June 2000, which includes Arbor/BP. It can support a wide range of management and billing needs for diverse service providers operating IP and other communications networks.
MaxBill Customer Care & Billing System	MaxBill’s customer care & billing system for the converging telecomms & utilities industries.
MetaSolv TBS	MetaSolv’s Telecom Business Solution software is an order & provisioning OSS solution enabling the customisation and automation of business processes. It is designed to meet the needs of service providers throughout the telecom industry.
order management	Order management is the tracking of an order during provisioning and is usually a separate function within the OSS.
OSS	OSS (operational support systems) include all systems and services that support the operations of telecommunications service providers including service provisioning & order management, inventory control, billing & customer care and network management. OSS is not considered a network element or part of the network itself.
OSS workflow engine	A workflow engine is generally at the heart of an integrated OSS infrastructure and manages the flow of information from system to system.
Portal Infranet	Portal’s Infranet software is a real-time solution for the management of Internet and emerging next-generation communication services such as GPRS, UMTS & WAP. The solutions it supports include billing & rating, customer care and service pricing & provisioning.
provisioning	Provisioning is the process by which a customer’s requested service is designed, implemented and tracked.
SupplierExpress	NightFire Software’s solution
Syndesis NetProvision	Syndesis’ NetProvision software suite is an off-the-shelf service provisioning OSS solution which enables telecom service providers to deliver customized services to their customers.
Teoss 2000	InConcert’s solution used by the telecommunications companies for seamless OSS integration. By providing a next-generation EBI (Enterprise Business Integration) backbone, it manages the entire provisioning process including order management, billing and customer care rather than simply managing individual network elements.
Telcare	Sigma Systems’ next generation, end-to-end billing & customer care solution.
USOC	USOC (universal service order code) is a standard set of codes that is used to identify specific services or equipment offered on the voice network for the purposes of billing and/or service provisioning.
VRU	VRU is an acronym for Voice Response Unit, also known as IVR (Interactive Voice Response).


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