TM Forum: New Services Will Drive Billing Transformation

Accelerating Adoption of Pervasive, Individualized Services Demands Billing System Metamorphosis

MORRISTOWN, NJ — June 3, 2009 — TM Forum, the world’s premier industry group focused on business effectiveness for the communications and media sectors, today announced details of its latest Business Benchmarking Report: “Winning in a Shrinking World: Significance of the Billing Metamorphosis.” The report concludes that the accelerating demand for pervasive, individualized services can withstand the current economic climate, and that the unique requirements of these service offerings demands a major change in billing systems.

The report offers valuable insights from TM Forum and Stratecast, the telecommunications strategy and analyst firm (a division of Frost and Sullivan), on the impact new converged, multimedia services have on billing systems. The report incorporates analysis of data gathered by TM Forum’s Business Benchmarking Program, which includes more than 130 Service Provider participants from around the world. The report was supported through sponsorship by Amdocs (NYSE: DOX).

The market dynamics and business drivers forcing billing system transformation are addressed in the report, which analyzes the market from four perspectives: new services, the changing billing landscape, the market appetite for new services, and the degree of required billing system changes.

The report finds that fundamental industry changes are being driven by new services that operate independently of transport method, end-user device, or location and provide customized services directly to the end user. These pervasive, individualized services typically involve anywhere-anytime interaction with others, consumption of content, access to the Internet, and the use of personal device applications. Delivery of these services requires automated billing processes that operate in near-real-time, as well as billing systems that support converged services through unified billing data.

According to Martin Creaner, president and COO, TM Forum, “The consistent theme emerging from this report is that new flexible, personalized services are here to stay, and that billing systems must change to accommodate them. Service Providers who make these changes ahead of their competition will ultimately emerge as the winners in this tough economic climate.”

“Service Providers have a unique opportunity to provide exciting new services to their current subscribers, giving them the home-field advantage over newcomers from other industries. However, significant transformations must be made to billing systems and processes to take advantage of these major industry shifts,” said Creaner.

Tonia Graham, TM Forum Business Benchmarking program manager added, “Pervasive, individualized services are driving substantial changes to billing systems and processes. These services shift control to the subscriber and place focus on the service, customer experience, real-time billing, and the need for a single view of the customer data record.”

“Winning in a Shrinking World: Significance of the Billing Metamorphosis” is the latest in a series of TM Forum reports, exclusively available to the Forum’s membership of more than 700 member companies, addressing strategic Service Provider issues. TM Forum members can download the report now at http://www.tmforum.org/ResearchPublications/7097/home.html.

This latest report complements the ongoing work of TM Forum’s Revenue Management Initiative, which drives the TM Forum’s extensive billing, revenue, and customer management efforts.

To learn more about this report, or to participate in the Business Benchmarking program, please contact Tonia Graham at tgraham {at} tmforum(.)org or visit www.tmforum.org/benchmarking.

Members of the press interested in obtaining a copy of the report should contact Geoff Devlin, PR director, TM Forum at gdevlin {at} tmforum(.)org.

About TM Forum

With more than 700 member companies in 75 countries, TM Forum is the world’s leading industry association focused on improving business effectiveness for Service Providers and their suppliers. Serving the information, communications and entertainment industries, the Forum provides practical solutions, guidance and leadership to transform the way that digital services are created, delivered and charged. Members include the world’s largest Service Providers, cable and network operators, software suppliers, equipment suppliers and systems integrators.

TM Forum provides a wide range of information and support to help its members reduce the costs and risks associated with creating and delivering profitable services. These include industry research and benchmarks, technology roadmaps, best practice guidebooks, software standards and interfaces, as well as certified training, conferences and publications. The Forum also provides its member community with extensive marketing and networking opportunities, enabling business with new customers and partners.

About TM Forum’s Business Benchmarking Program

“Winning in a Shrinking World: Significance of the Billing Metamorphosis” is the latest in a series of Business Benchmarking Industry Update Reports that address strategic operations within Service Provider organizations. The reports are created by the TM Forum Business Benchmarking Program and available exclusively to TM Forum members.

The TM Forum Business Benchmarking Program is a one-of-a-kind program that provides tools, reports, and analysis that enable Service Providers to compare their business and operational performance to the performance of over 130 Service Providers from 20 countries around the world.

The Business Benchmarking Program manages and delivers metric-based benchmarking studies, surveys on qualitative aspects of performance, and industry update reports. All Service Provider data is contributed anonymously through a secure portal to a secure database.

To learn more about this report or to participate in the Business Benchmarking Program, please contact Tonia Graham at tgraham {at} tmforum(.)org or visit www.tmforum.org/benchmarking.

About TM Forum’s Revenue Management Initiative

The TM Forum’s Revenue Management Initiative provides a forum and on-line community for discussion and contributions concerning all business processes that affect the Service Provider’s contact with the customer and the customer’s service experience.

The Revenue Management Initiative provides valuable billing, revenue, and customer management direction and support as the industry transforms itself from focusing on technology to focusing on services and customers. The Initiative undertakes projects and drives new requirements into the TM Forum’s existing frameworks.

For more information on TM Forum’s Revenue Management Initiative please go to http://www.tmforum.org/RevenueManagement/4323/home.html

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