For an MVNO to succeed in the highly competitive telecom market of today, it is essential to bill the customers accurately. At Vcare, we offer a real time rating system that is well-equipped to charge and rate any type of service. Our OCS serves as the single point of charging and allows for convergent billing. It can charge the services according to sessions and events while enforcing credit limits appropriately. It prevents customers from exceeding their allotted quota and also ensures high transparency in the billing process. The OCS is based on the cloud and is a highly secure platform for the billing of prepaid, postpaid, broadband and streaming services.
Launching a MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) is a very complex task involving the investment of many millions of dollars. It is seen by many as superb business opportunity, perhaps the route to making a multi-million dollar fortune. However many people fail along the way; some lose hundreds of millions of dollars of investors’ funds.
The starting point to a successful MVNO is a strong consumer proposition. The proposition must be differentiated and have strong appeal to a selected target group of consumers. Often extensive market research is performed to verify the appeal of the proposition.
Next one needs to understand the end to end economics, how much will the consumers be willing to pay, what is the traffic mix, how much will distribution cost and what will the subscriber acquisition cost be. Finally is there a viable business case?
Once these questions have been answered you are ready to approach mobile operators in order to obtain the most valuable asset for an MVNO, a wholesale airtime agreement. If successful you then start the process of building your MVNO platform, sometimes an MVNE (Mobile Virtual Network Enabler) may be used to give a time to market advantage. Vcare are often quoted as saying that one should not start deploying systems until one is certain of a MVNO agreement.
Launching the MVNO comes as a reward for many months of hard work, however the launch process is often not easy, One can reduce the risk of launching a MVNO by using skilled MVNO consultants.
Smoothen the process of starting your own MVNO with real-time billing solutions. Our billing platform is founded upon an Online Charging System (OCS) that charges all transactions on real-time basis.
The first step involves an intimate understanding of a particular set of clients. Access to detailed client information will help you better tailor services to suit their needs. For example, this can be bundling third-party digital services, tailored pricing and offering specific communication services to create an unparalleled service experience.
Integration
of AI in OSS offers tremendous benefits to an operator. The rightful
integration can help telcos in:
Customer
retention
Customer
behavioral modeling
Fraud detection
Better
customer experience management
The AI should be native to the OSS for providing a central tenet for complete digital transformation. It allows all the information generated by the system to be acted upon in a single step. There would be no silo formation and the decisions will be taken in the light of complete information.
The popularity of MVNOs is consistently on the rise. By 2018
there were more than 1,200 MVNOs all over the world, majority of which
are in Europe. The number of MVNO clients is expected to double from
2018 to 2019. So if you are thinking of starting an MVNO go ahead. The
following are reasons why you should start an MVNO.
How MVNOs Work
MVNOs
work with smaller customer groups compared to traditional mobile
operators. This means their income is limited to specific segments.
However, any company/individual that engages this business has the
advantage of gaining other income sources. It can be a great opportunity when it is aligned with the organization’s core business.
Let’s
look at the example of a branded reseller model. In this case the
legacy network operator offers technical services such as customer
service, billing, network functionality, customer activation and radio
access. The MVNO is left to focus on communication, branding, sales and distribution, and marketing.
The
model will create value proposition and a new face for clients using an
existing network. A full MVNO, on the other hand, handles all functions
apart from radio access. It cannot handle radio access since it does not have a license to do so.
These different models mean that revenue is divided differently. Different models mean there is no definite revenue sharing structure.
Majority can be used interchangeably as long as the MVNO is
operational. This is because the operator may switch from a full MVNO to
a branded reseller and vice versa.
There are Mobile Virtual Network Operators that have a revenue-sharing model that is determined by percentage of earnings.
In this scenario, an operator will share a specific percentage of their
after tax earnings, paid by MVNO clients. As the functions by the MVNO
increases, the percentage of revenue shared increases.
Creating a
wholesale agreement with a legacy operator is another option. In this
case the MVNO can purchase SMS, data and voice minutes on a wholesale
basis, then resells the same to the customers. Some prefer to operate
with a revenue-per-subscriber model. This is where the legacy operator pays the MVNO an agreed upon amount for every subscriber they bring to the network.
Benefits of an MVNO
MVNOs
as subsidiaries of retailers have the ability to enjoy additional
revenue. Earnings are increased when subscribers visit their stores to
top-up their accounts, sign a new deal or have plan questions. Once a
subscriber is in a store, they may make planned-but-postponed or impulsive purchases.
Retail
MVNOs, as a result of knowing their clients better using newly
available subscriber data, can offer products that are more relevant to
their customers. Such MVNOs can offer each subscriber incentives based
on their telecommunication usage and shopping patterns. The result is a higher lead to sales conversions.
Conclusion
Starting an MVNO is a good business
decision. More and more telecommunication subscribers are using MVNOs.
This means there is no limit to the number of subscribers you can get.
If you want to start one, contact Tegloo5 today. They will provide you with the best options and support to kick-start your MVNO business.
The evolution of the O/BSS system is a clear indication of the transformative changes in the telecom industry. The rise in number of technologies and a concurrent increase in the number of users have created a situation where traditional O/BSS model fails miserably. No longer can you rely on OFCS (Offline charging system) or IN for performing postpaid and prepaid billing. Today’s requirements can only be fulfilled by using cutting-edge OSS telecom billing software that employs a centralized charging system for charging and rating all services, and that too in real-time.
Stay Relevant by Employing the Right Telecom Billing Solutions
There are
many telecom billing solutions that cater to the requirements of telcos.
However, when you are in the market for a new online billing software solution, it can be hard to find one that
will work well in the present and the future. To make this selection easy,
below is a list of functionalities that you should tick before investing in a
new software solution:
Application Program Interface (API) – No matter how good your software solution is, there will be times when you want it to do something more. As customization and replacing the software can be a huge financial liability, you might shy away from launching a new service because of your doubts about your service monetization and billing capabilities. In these scenarios, partnering with a vendor that offers APIs for different business use cases can be a blessing. APIs can help you in meeting exigent requirements instantly. For example, if you do not have a particular partnership in place, you can install an API from your vendor to use its pre-existing partnerships.
2. Convergence in Billing – Transparency in billing is possible only if you have convergent telecom billing solutions that use a centralized charging system like an Online Charging System (OCS). An OCS charges all the services at a single location and allows you to prepare a single invoice that reflects all the usage charges for all services. Convergent billing is also beneficial for your customer care department as they are able to access all the records of customers from a single location and resolve queries in a better way.
3. Scalability – Your billing requirements may skyrocket at any given instant. And, if this happens and you are not prepared to scale according to the rising needs, you are likely to incur losses or go out of business. Therefore, you should ensure that your vendor is able to provide multi-tenant and scalable OSS telecom billing software.
4. Reporting and Analytics – Gone are the days when you could use guesswork to create strategies. In today’s highly competitive world, any wrong strategy can put your business in jeopardy. Therefore, you require concrete insights, which can be delivered by an analytics-powered telecom billing solutions. Also, you should partner with a vendor that can provide you complete reporting of all the transactions, so you can analyze your work better. At the least, you need a slave database that is updated by a master database like the one offered by Telgoo5 – a popular telecom billing software.
5. Safety of Data – A telecom operator or a virtual operator that adheres to any type of MVNO model simply cannot afford to lose business-critical subscriber data. Therefore, it makes good sense to invest in a cloud-based telecom billing solution that stores data at different datacenters.
When a customer receives a bill that he did not expect, it is called a bill shock. Too many bill shocks and you, as an operator, risk losing your customers. The situation is particularly grim for MVNO when it comes to bill shock. As they already have a smaller number of subscribers when compared with MNOs, a loss of customers can be back breaking for their business. After analysis, it has been proven that a faltering OCS is mostly the cause of bill shocks.
Transform Your Fortunes with a Better OCS
Your OCS directly dictates how well you are able to monetize your services and bill the subscribers. Therefore, you should always pay special attention to your billing software and especially the OCS. Below are some essential functions that you should look for in your OCS system.
Convergence – The constant increase in the number of services offered by mobile operators has created a need for convergence in billing. Customers simply abhor the prospect of receiving too many bills from the same vendor. An OCS that serves as a single point of charging of all services eliminates the need for creation of different bills. By using a quality online charging system, you can send your customers fully bifurcated bills with complete itemization. This creates more transparency in the billing process and fosters customer trust in your services.
Adherence to 3GPP – Before selecting an OCS and telecom billing software, you should ensure that it adheres to the technical specifications prescribed by 3GPP. Only when your OCS is 3GPP compliant, you can expect real-time charging with no errors in billing. Flawless billing is the key to preventing revenue leakage.
Scalability and flexibility – If your OCS cannot be scaled to meet the future requirements then it is worthless for you. Hence, you should invest in an OCS system that can perform billing and charging for an increasing customer base and expanding catalog of services. Your OCS should be flexible enough to charge present and future technologies for it to be of any real value to your business.
Security of customer information – OCS has an ABMF function that stores vital customer information. This information needs to be protected from hackers. Hence, security of OCS should always be your primary concern before making a purchase. Telgoo5 is a cutting-edge OCS and it is fortified with latest security measures to prevent hack attacks.
Innovative discounts – Discounts play a key role in evoking customer trust in your services. Always select an OCS that helps you quickly launch services and also apply innovative discounts. Discounts can be used for enforcing new business strategies. For example, if one of your services is not utilized by your customers as per your expectations, then you should provide the option of cross-product discounts and offer that service at a reduced price when bundled with any other popular service.
Conclusion
OCS plays a key role in managing the billing and charging functions of a telecom organization. To ensure that all billing tasks are handled efficiently and accurately, you should partner with experienced telecom billing vendors that can offer you a reliable OCS.
The modern-day telecom industry is going through transitions faster than ever before. Addressing the demands of finicky customers, fighting off the competition at every step of the way and countering the threat of OTT platforms is proving too much to handle for even seasoned telecom operators. This is the main reason why they are trying to maximize their outreach in every way possible. As a result of their efforts, new platforms for telecom service delivery have being created in the form of: MNO, MVNO, MVNA, and MVNE.
Why MVNOs Have Become so Popular?
While an MNO
(Mobile Network Operator) builds his operation from the scratch and make
investments in creating network infrastructure, radio frequency spectrum, HLR,
VLR, BSC, MSC, OSS etc., an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) receives
frequency spectrum and network resources at a cheaper rate from MNOs (Mobile Network Operators). This allows it
to sell its telecom services at a lower rate and attract new customers.
An MVNO does
not have its own network but uses a network from a carrier or MNO. An MVNO can
be a full MVNO with its own HLR. Such MVNOs only use an MNO’s radio base
stations for providing 3G, 4G or 5G services. On the other hand, a light MVNO
mainly focuses on relations with
customers along with marketing and billing. It does not have its own HLR.
Whether full
or light, to become MVNO you need
good marketing skills and a unique idea that differentiates you from other
players in the market. You can either specialize in mobile data and become a data MVNO or earn your stripes in
providing voice call services. But whatever you do, make sure that you are
excellent in the niche that you have chosen. Good customer relations and the
ability to attract new customers are essential for any MVNO to succeed.
The Importance of MVNE/MVNA Partnership for Overcoming Challenges
As MVNOs are
considerably smaller than a full-fledged MNO (Mobile Network Operator), they
need support from MVNEs (Mobile Virtual Network Enablers) to get their job
done. A capable MVNE with a comprehensive MVNO
software solution like Telgoo5 can provide the following benefits to an
MVNO:
Better billing – Billing is probably the toughest task for an MVNO to undertake
all by itself. Any mistake or inefficiency in billing tasks can have a major
bearing on MVNO subscribers. But when you partner with an MVNE like Vcare, you
get access to a cutting-edge MVNO
billing software solution. With a convergent billing solution by your side,
you can create itemized bills with details of all types of services used by
your subscribers.
Profitable deals with MNOs – Partnership with a competent MVNE/MVNA can
help you get better-priced deals with an MNO. This will allow you to deliver
the services at a lower rate to your MVNO
subscribers while still making a profit.
Avoid red tape – Running a successful MVNO operation requires you to get into contracts
with different carriers and vendors. By partnering with a competent MVNE like
Vcare (who already has fully-licensed platforms and contracts with vendors),
you are able to bypass the process of signing new deals, thereby saving
considerable time and effort.
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