SmarTone Selects Oracle to Transform and Adopt Cloud-Based Charging and Billing System at Scale to Accelerate the Delivery of New Services

Rhea-AI Summary

SmarTone Telecommunications Holdings Limited has chosen Oracle to transform its Business Support Systems (BSS) by upgrading its legacy solutions to bring prepaid charging and postpaid billing onto one unified, cloud native platform. This move will enable SmarTone to efficiently launch and scale differentiated offerings, improve agility, and simplify operations across consumer and enterprise lines of business. SmarTone is a leading telecommunications service provider in Hong Kong and Macau, offering voice, multimedia, mobile broadband, and fixed fiber broadband services for both consumer and corporate markets. The company has been a leading 5G developer in Hong Kong since May 2020 and was recently ranked as the city's top 5G service provider.

Positive

• SmarTone's partnership with Oracle to upgrade its BSS will improve agility and simplify operations, enabling the company to launch and scale differentiated offerings more efficiently.
• SmarTone's leading position in the telecommunications industry in Hong Kong and Macau, as well as its pioneering role in 5G development, positions it as a key player in the market.

Negative

• None.

Market Research Analyst

Upgrading Business Support Systems (BSS) to a cloud-native platform, as SmarTone is doing with Oracle, represents a strategic move in the telecommunications industry. By consolidating prepaid and postpaid services onto a single platform, SmarTone aims to enhance operational efficiency and speed up the introduction of new products. This is critical in an industry characterized by rapid technological changes and evolving customer expectations.

For investors and stakeholders, such transformations can signal a company's commitment to staying competitive and can be indicative of future performance. The ability to quickly launch differentiated offerings could lead to increased market share and customer retention, which in turn could have a positive impact on revenue streams. However, the initial capital outlay for such system upgrades and potential implementation risks could affect short-term financials.

Technology Industry Analyst

The decision by SmarTone to partner with Oracle for its BSS transformation underscores a trend in the telecommunications sector toward cloud-native solutions. The agility provided by such platforms allows telecom operators to respond more swiftly to market dynamics. Importantly, cloud-native systems are designed to be scalable, resilient and easily updated, which can lead to cost savings over time due to reduced maintenance and infrastructure costs.

From the perspective of technological innovation, SmarTone's move aligns with the broader industry's shift towards 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT), where the ability to support a vast number of devices and services efficiently becomes increasingly important. The long-term implications for SmarTone include potential leadership in service innovation and customer experience, which can be a differentiator in the highly competitive telecom market.

Financial Analyst

The collaboration between SmarTone and Oracle is a significant investment into SmarTone's infrastructure that investors should monitor closely. The adoption of Oracle Cloud Scale Charging and Billing could lead to a more streamlined cost structure in the long term, with potential savings on IT and operational expenses. Additionally, the enhanced billing system could improve revenue management and reduce revenue leakage, which is often a challenge in the telecom industry.

While the initial investment may be substantial, the benefits of a unified BSS platform, including improved customer satisfaction and retention, could translate into stronger financial performance. It is essential to watch for SmarTone's subsequent financial reports to assess the impact of this investment on their profit margins and overall financial health.

HONG KONG and AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SmarTone Telecommunications Holdings Limited ("SmarTone") has chosen Oracle to transform its Business Support Systems (BSS). By upgrading its legacy solutions to bring prepaid charging and postpaid billing onto one unified, cloud native platform, Oracle Cloud Scale Charging and Billing will enable SmarTone to efficiently launch and scale differentiated offerings.

"We are constantly innovating to deliver superior service and experiences to our customers," said Stephen Chau, SmarTone's Chief Technology Officer. "Oracle Cloud Scale Charging and Billing's unified, cloud native solution will enable us to improve agility by simplifying operations across consumer and enterprise (B2B) lines of business, accelerating time to market for new offers."

SmarTone, a leading telecommunications service provider with operating subsidiaries in Hong Kong and Macau, offers voice, multimedia, and mobile broadband services, as well as fixed fiber broadband services for both consumer and corporate markets. The pioneer has been a leading 5G developer in Hong Kong with the launch of its territory-wide 5G services since May 2020. It was recently ranked by one report as the city's "Strongest Communications Brand."

Simplified BSS architecture
SmarTone selected Oracle Cloud Scale Charging and Billing to support its existing consumer and business offerings with advanced capabilities such as automated billing, real-time tracking, and customizable invoicing. The Oracle solution is aligned with TM Forum and 3GPP standards and uses an API-first approach to seamlessly integrate with most existing systems such as CRM, payment gateways, self-care, and self-service platforms.

Oracle Cloud Scale Charging and Billing will help SmarTone monetize the greater capacity, low latency, and precise geo-location tracking enabled by 5G and also support future business models such as industry-focused IoT offerings. Support for open APIs will allow such capabilities to be seamlessly integrated into co-created offerings in B2B2x business models.

"5G has enabled endless new service opportunities, but market leaders will be made by their ability to accelerate time to market from conceptualization to monetization," Jason Rutherford, senior vice president and general manager, Oracle Communications, Applications. "SmarTone has been a 5G trailblazer in Hong Kong, and we're honored to support this next phase of their journey delivering innovative, next-generation offerings to the region."

5G era and beyond
With the Oracle solution, SmarTone can efficiently scale to meet its growing customer demand using a private cloud deployment that distributes traffic across two charging sites in active-active mode. This allows business continuity to be maintained if one site were to go down, as the charging grid can be federated across both sites to maintain sessions and associated revenue or data. This has been recently demonstrated in a performance test for 100 million subscribers with multi-site deployment.

Covalensedigital, a member of Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN) and global systems integrator with deep expertise in delivering complex digital transformation projects in the communications sector, is managing the implementation of the solution.

"We are excited to once again collaborate with our close partner Oracle Communications to help SmarTone fast-track its monetization journey across new business models and its brand portfolio," said Covalensedigital CEO Sreenivas Peesapati. "Oracle's fully integrated charging and billing solution harnesses the benefits of a cloud native deployment and will modernize SmarTone's BSS to accelerate time to market for launching evolving 4G and 5G services."

To learn more about Oracle Communications industry solutions, visit: Oracle Communications LinkedIn, or join the conversation at Twitter @OracleComms.

About Oracle Communications
Oracle Communications provides integrated communications and cloud solutions for Service Providers and Enterprises to accelerate their digital transformation journey in a communications-driven world from network evolution to digital business to customer experience. www.oracle.com/communications

About Oracle
Oracle offers integrated suites of applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at oracle.com.

Trademarks
Oracle, Java, MySQL and NetSuite are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. NetSuite was the first cloud company—ushering in the new era of cloud computing.

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SOURCE Oracle

FAQ

What is the significance of SmarTone's partnership with Oracle for its Business Support Systems?

The partnership with Oracle will allow SmarTone to upgrade its legacy solutions to bring prepaid charging and postpaid billing onto one unified, cloud native platform, improving agility and simplifying operations.

What services does SmarTone offer in Hong Kong and Macau?

SmarTone offers voice, multimedia, mobile broadband, and fixed fiber broadband services for both consumer and corporate markets in Hong Kong and Macau.

What is SmarTone's position in the 5G development in Hong Kong?

SmarTone has been a leading 5G developer in Hong Kong since May 2020 and was recently ranked as the city's top 5G service provider.