Service Orchestration (SO) is the ability to centrally manage multiple services from various aspects, including:

• Introduction of new services – services are far from being plug-n-play and the service environment needs to be well-defined. However, an SO environment simplifies the integration and configuration of new services as well as provide means to combine them in the general service logic and flows
• Service path selection – the dynamic selection, in run-time, of the services (and their order) that need to be invoked on the specific request or event
• Policy Decision Point (PDP) – a centralized application that defines the possible flows and policies. Flows typically consist of conditions, based on various parameters such as the user profile, context, access network, service specific state, operator policy etc., and may invoke actions (send SMS, insert header, invoke service etc.)
• Policy Enforcement Point (PEP) – PEPs are responsible for enforcing the decisions made by the PDP. Some PEPs may be provides as part of the SO solution while other need to be implemented by various services, such as a Messaging Gateway
• Centralized OSS/BSS interfaces – usually, SO is required to integrate with the operator’s OSS/BSS components and provide other services an API to access the consolidated data. This approach reduces the risk and complexity of having all services integrate with these sensitive systems, and decreases time-to-market for each new service

Some operators refer to this functionality as MSP (Multi-Service Procedure) and such solutions vary in scope and focus depending on the specific operator requirements. One example of such a process comes from the Vodafone group that has issued and MSP RFP more than a year ago. We already see several Vodafone OpCos that follow with their own RFP processes including VF Ireland, VF Czech and more.

One of the new requirements already seen in existing MSP or Service Orchestration processes is the need for mobile-fixed convergence. Some operators already require vendors to provide solutions that work on multiple access networks (mobile internet, mobile broadband, DSL, Wifi etc.).

There are several solutions in the market for handling service orchestration but most of them were designed for IT and enterprise environments and not for telecom services. From my experience, most of the out of the box solutions (e.g., BEA, Oracle) were not designed to support the complex and converged environment of today’s networks.

An interesting company that offers such a service orchestration platform is Unipier with its Intelligent Policy Suite (IPS) product and derivatives.

The IPS is a generic flow engine and PDP that provides code-free definitions of service logic (policies, flows). IPS may be invoked upon an incoming event (e.g., SMS sent, HTTP request etc.) to execute the relevant flows for that event and to instruct the PEP what to do next. The IPS can also invoke actions such as data manipulation, invocation of other services and more.

On top of the generic IPS, Unipier have built several tailored solutions, including Advertising, Promotions & Recommendation, Access Control, and User Privacy.

Another interesting company in this context is Flash Networks with its Harmony platform. Flash Network, which started as a data optimization company has taken a strategic decision to become an MSP player. Flash Networks leverages its deep understanding of service path selection and traffic analysis capabilities to provide an environment for the operator’s services.

I expect more operators to follow these steps as their networks become cluttered and complex and as mobile-fixed convergence gain momentum.

Until recently IMS was mainly the province of fixed-line operators but now it is essential to the success of mobile and fixed operators who are losing revenue from traditional sources. Operators look at IMS and similar solutions because they need to start generating more revenue.

According to a research by ABI Research (2008), IMS is expected to provide mobile telephone operators with a forecasted $300 billion in extra revenue over the next five years, and major operators such as Sprint, Verizon and British Telecom (BT) will increasingly deploy IMS across their networks in a quickening tempo starting this year.

France Telecom estimates, that between 5-10 percent of its revenues will be derived from full or partial IMS services by the end of 2008. France Telecom also merged their fixed, mobile and Internet technical teams into one big entity aiming at providing a single service architecture.

IMS is being deployed gradually as an evolutionary, rather than a revolutionary process, however, it is important to understand that IMS dramatically changes the way telephone networks operate with implications on applications and network enablers.

IMS is a disruptive technology that has profound affect over companies providing services and solutions to mobile and fixed-line operators. It changes the way applications interact with the networks by providing a well-defined framework. The changes imposed by IMS require companies to adapt and adopt new technologies but it also creates new opportunities.

Small to medium companies usually tend not to invest sufficient resources in new emerging technologies until they are realize that it affects their direct revenues and threatens their position. For such companies, a gradual evolutionary approach is recommended in order to keep pace with the demand for IMS-compliant solutions.

In order to prepare your company for IMS, the following steps are recommended:

1. Research the impact and influence of IMS over your current products and examine new opportunities created by IMS. If you do not have IMS experts in your organization, it is recommended to hire an external expert that brings knowledge and expertise in IMS technology and in product analysis.
2. Company management should devise a migration plan towards IMS. This should include changes in current products as well as introduction of new products.
3. Develop MRD (Marketing Requirement Document) and PRD (Product Requirement Document) documents
4. Develop at least a high-level SysRD (System Requirements Document) that will be extending when time has come.
5. Educate the organization about IMS to increase awareness and expand knowledge.
6. Prepare marketing and sales materials (Press release, sales toolkit etc.) about the company’s readiness and compliance to IMS.
7. Prepare canned responses to possible IMS questions in your next RFI/RFPs
8. Follow IMS deployments and requirements by reading market researches and by speaking with customers in order to decide the best time for your organization to actually start developing your IMS plans

According to a research by ABI Research, the move to FMC infrastructure is a natural evolution for the mobile network as broadband services, including Voice over IP and other Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) services, begin to be deployed. The research suggests that by 2012, FMC market will expand to 250 million users worldwide.