TELCOS ARE SEEKING TO REDUCE COSTS, AND ONE WAY THEY CAN DO THIS IS BY SHIFTING TO A DIGITAL BUSINESS SUPPORT SYSTEM SUBSCRIPTION MODEL.
INDUSTRY WATCH
TELCOS ARE SEEKING TO REDUCE COSTS, AND ONE WAY THEY CAN DO THIS IS BY SHIFTING TO A DIGITAL BUSINESS SUPPORT SYSTEM SUBSCRIPTION MODEL.
subscription model which slashes CAPEX. Another consideration for operators in Africa is time to value.
Implementations of monolithic systems can take an inordinately long time, in many cases spanning up to two years, whereas modern digital business support system implementations can be completed within three to six months. It is an entirely different paradigm.
One of the main reasons, besides cost and agility, that telcos are seeking from modern systems is because of the evolving telecommunications landscape. Valueadded services are becoming essential to attract and retain customers.
Craig Palmer, Chief Executive Officer, VAS-X environment, implementations or customisations can take inordinately long which is the exact opposite of being able to take advantage of opportunities quickly to attract, or retain, customers.
As we all know, the world is evolving, and so telcos need to be able to integrate with new technologies and digital services, but legacy platforms make this difficult, never mind the astronomical costs for even minor changes.
Shifting to a modern, digital business support system lifts the anchor holding telcos back. Modern systems come with microservices architecture, cloud-based deployment options, modular implementation capabilities – which is the antithesis of the big, inflexible monolithic legacy systems – and significantly reduce implementation costs. All this adds up to telcos being able to adapt much quicker to market demand and evolving technology.
A cloud-native architecture enables pay-as-you-grow models. Unlike traditional platforms, smaller telcos do not need to purchase exorbitantly expensive systems but can grow into them as they evolve. This is an incredibly attractive capability for telcos operating on tight margins and battling for customers who often have more than one sim card from different operators.
Supporting this, a microservices approach allows the type of modular implementation and upgrades that are attractive to telcos wishing to drive their own competitiveness at a more palatable cost, and at a pace that suits them.
Digital platforms with their API-first design enable ecosystem integration with fintech, content providers and other partners. Telcos are in a unique position where they already have a subscriber base which is purchasing products and services, and so the ability to leverage this to generate additional revenue streams is non-negotiable for telcos of the present and future.
We already understand that the ability to take new products to the market quicker is a competitive advantage. But it is more than that. The built-in analytics and Artificial Intelligence capabilities of digital business support systems enables businesses to make data-driven decisions quickly. This ability to respond quickly to emerging trends is what sets apart a digitally savvy business from those still grappling with their digital transformation strategies.
There is little point in talking about the potential of a modern business support system if the business’ s data is not up to scratch because any migration of incomplete, or messy, data will not result in the desired outcome.
Data migration is, in many ways, the make-or-break factor in a successful transition to a modern business support system. Put another way, data integrity underpins the success of any technology.
Telcos seeking to take advantage of the power and agility of modern platforms must work with partners that prioritise data and have a methodical approach to ensuring its integrity. This is because a failure in a data migration can be catastrophic and have implications across various parts of a telco’ s business.
Telcos across the continent are constantly seeking to reduce costs, and one way they can do this is by shifting to a digital business support system
A good partner will lead a comprehensive data retrieval, go through rigorous data cleaning and precise field mapping, and then verify data
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