Thursday, March 27, 2008
Wireless, wireline and cable network operators all face a common obstacle to providing multimedia services using the new 3G- and 4G-based devices--namely, how to track real-time usage. To gain access to the rich new revenue streams enabled by WiMax and the Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), operators must combine service delivery with billing functions, which traditionally have been run by different parts of their organizations. To the rescue is coming a new breed of transaction-tracking software companies. Openet, for instance, supplies the FusionWorks Framework engine to AT&T for its new-age Smart Limits service. Smart Limits allows subscribers to specify their own unique rules for limiting network usage, such as setting certain hours of the day for text messaging so that teenagers don't abuse the service after hours. Likewise, to provide the real-time video, gaming, social-networking and other "postpaid" services over next-generation 3G and 4G networks requires dynamic policies that let subscribers make up their own rules governing real-time transactions.
Posted by R. Colin Johnson at 11:24 AM