Monetizing network investment in broadband infrastructure is a top priority for APAC CSPs in 2015. CSPs will deploy new broadband and video technologies, and will share and consolidate infrastructure to improve operational efficiency and profitability. CSPs will also accelerate the push to integrate their many acquisitions into cohesive, converged operations with common operating platforms.
CSPs in developed APAC countries focus on retaining their customers with multi-play, multi-screen, cloud, and enterprise services. Meanwhile, CSPs in emerging APAC markets focus on acquiring new customers and provide more services to their existing customers, with a renewed focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
BSS/OSS systems provide platforms that will enable CSPs to meet end-user service requirements by effectively utilizing their network assets and transforming their operations to effectively deliver their business objectives. CSPs need flexible BSS/OSS systems that allow them to offer personalized, differentiated services to their customers. CSPs need the visibility and control to enable them to automate their operations for network orchestration, optimized service delivery and superior customer experience (see Figure 1).
LTE has stimulated data usage in APAC, and spending on mobile data services has increased. CSPs can now drive revenue growth by bundling other services like multi-screen video and fixed broadband. Tailoring tariffs and service bundles to user groups and ensuring a high-quality user experience has proven an effective method of gaining additional market share. In addition to addressing enhanced consumer broadband demand, CSPs continue to offer more differentiated services for SMEs. Many CSPs will implement policy and prioritization features to support voice, VoLTE, and video, as well as differentiated services.
OTT and NFV
CSPs must respond strategically to both messaging and voice OTT services and minimize further disruption to legacy revenue streams. They will pursue digital economy services in 2015 to create the basis for revenue growth in 2017 and beyond. These digital economy services will be driven by cloud computing, m-commerce, utilities, and m-health services. Major IT vendors will provide data center technology to major CSPs but will also compete against those CSPs with their own globe-spanning data centers.
Virtualization is driving network technology changes. The increased agility and openness of network function virtualization (NFV) and software-defined networking (SDN) will force the industry to focus on policy and security.
The focus on NFV orchestration will shift from proof-of-concept trials to business cases as CSPs identify the most effective approaches at network and service levels. Orchestration and automation for service agility in BSS/OSS will be key elements of business cases. The earliest deployments in APAC will involve hybrid clouds and visualized Evolved Packet Core (EPC) solutions.
Customer experience = key differentiator
Customer, device, and network analytics will merge to provide a total view of the customers, their preferences, and service usage. Customer experience is a key differentiator to acquire and retain customers and to increase usage and ARPU, and service quality is a key contributor to customer experience. CSPs must build customer experience management into their automation investments - including customer care and service management.
As the operators quest to become customer-care driven (i.e. better customer experience) evolves from “inside-out” to “outside-in”, CSPs must include social media as a channel to their current operations. Self-service and omni-channel customer care are essential elements of any CSP’s BSS systems, as these will trigger flow-through service activation systems for simple services. Service design systems will be needed for more complex services.