News - VanillaPlus - The global voice of Telecoms IT

Efficient infrastructure means we can provide value and still differentiate on quality, says Plusnet Business chief

Nick Silverwood,
Plusnet Business

Enterprises are seen as a market under-served by communications service providers (CSPs) who could reap greater revenues by providing IT services in addition to connectivity. However, Nick Silverwood, the head of business at Plusnet, the provider of telephony and broadband services to the residential and small business market, says what small business customers really want is reliable, fixed price connections backed by high quality customer service. Moving to cloud or adopting unified communications are a long way from the minds of retailers who have just opened their first shop. They’ll wait until technologies are mature, he tells VanillaPlus managing editor George Malim

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11 June, 2019

Product not network is the experience CSPs are selling, says TCS CMI president

Enterprises no longer see the network in the same light as their air conditioning; something necessary but a cost to be minimised. Instead, the network is now seen as a critical enabler of their business with connectivity vital for new applications, processes, business models and, ultimately, their future success. Communications service providers (CSPs) are therefore targeting the enterprise market with IT services. VanillaPlus managing editor George Malim asks Kamal Bhadada, the president of Communications, Media and Information (CMI) services at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), whether CSPs can succeed here or whether enterprise IT will be the telecoms industry’s next big miss.

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22 May, 2019

Telefónica’s AURA turns artificial intelligence into real, enhanced customer experiences

Huge excitement surrounds the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in the telecoms industry as communications service providers (CSPs) look to operate more effectively and provide richer, automated experiences to customers. The theory’s sound but talk is cheap so it was refreshing for George Malim to speak to Telefónica executives José Ramón Gómez Utrilla and Irene Gómez at Digital Transformation World in Nice, France.

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01 May, 2019

Oz-based Hansen Tech snaps up Sigma to build create-sell-deliver software for telcos, media and high-tech companies

Global provider of catalogue-driven software, Sigma Systems, announced today that it is being acquired by Hansen Technologies for an undisclosed sum. Hansen is a specialist in billing, data management and customer care solutions for the energy, water, pay-TV, and telecommunications industries. (more…)

05 April, 2019

Swisscom on a roll down elastic path to digital transformation

Communications service providers (CSPs) in mature western European markets face intense competition, substantial legacy to manage and maximise and the continuing requirement to bring innovative new services as well as new infrastructure to their customers. However, as George Malim finds in an interview with Sven Friedli, the head of architecture management and technology transformation at Swisscom, these experienced CSPs are neither unarmed nor unaware when it comes to the battle for success in digitally-transformed telecoms.

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15 March, 2019

Application of AI enhances field service management for 5G, IoT and beyond

As communications service providers (CSPs) gear up for 5G and look to support IoT businesses as a new business line of their own, field service engineers will be under more pressure than ever. However, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are being applied to the discipline of field service management to optimise field service performance through a blend of intelligent routing, remote assistance and performance analysis. VanillaPlus managing editor George Malim talks to Paul Whitelam, the senior vice president of global marketing at ClickSoftware, to catch a glimpse of the field service management of the future.

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14 March, 2019

Deliver the personalised experiences today’s customers demand

Customers today have more options than ever about where they spend their money, writes Jonathan Wax, the vice president for EMEA at Nexidia.

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12 March, 2019

DSP chooses Netcracker to aid CSP transformation

Yes, the headline is the right way around.

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20 February, 2019

Use insight to make the user experience better

The customer is king. How many times have we heard that over the years? And yet it’s more true now than ever, writes Francesco Venturini, the global industry senior managing director for communications and media at Accenture. With seemingly limitless choice at their fingertips, customers want more and if you don’t give it to them, they’ll move on to someone that will.

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19 February, 2019

What does mobile app fatigue mean, and can it be stopped?

A by-product of the invention of smartphones, the mobile app ecosystem now encapsulates millions of app developers and billions of smartphone owners who use these apps every day, writes Mark Jackson, the director and industry principal for telecoms & media at Pegasystems. There was a recent period where businesses just had to be seen to have an app to curb potential concerns about alienating younger demographics, but these attitudes are beginning to wane. Up until now, app use has been increasing, but this is set to change. Is 2019 going to be the year that we see a big app shake-up that could be terminal?

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