Sun Microsystems, Inc. today announced the launch of its Open Service Delivery Platform Solutions Program. This partnership initiative will help telecommunications service providers rapidly and cost-effectively deliver new, differentiated revenue-generating consumer and enterprise services utilizing technologies such as IMS and VoIP.
The Program presents a framework of discrete technologies, products and services that can be combined to meet the unique needs of service providers now evolving their service delivery infrastructure to support expanded portfolios of new services. This framework is based on Sun products and technologies such as the carrier-grade Solaris 10 Operating System (OS). Sun is collaborating with an ecosystem of industry leaders, including Network Equipment Providers (NEPs), Systems Integrators (SIs) and Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) to build out the framework. Among the initial partners announced by Sun today to build out this framework are Appium, Drutt, EDS, jNetx, Open Cloud and Terraplay.
“Leveraging Sun’s rich tradition in the telecoms space and our heritage as a champion of open standards, we are able to offer customized solutions that empower service providers to build their next-generation delivery infrastructure and create the network of the future,” said Darrell Jordan-Smith, Vice President, Global Telecommunications, Sun Microsystems.
Component-oriented Approach to Customization
With the advent of IP-based next-generation networks, service providers can now quickly build and deploy new data services for the first time. Ranging from IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) services and Voice Over IP (VoIP) applications to video conferencing, multi-player gaming and ringtone download, these services will be indispensable to increasing average revenue per user (ARPU) and building customer loyalty. The challenge for service providers is that existing infrastructures are typically proprietary and not cost-effective, whereas new data services require scalable, open systems that can easily integrate and manage new applications.
Sun announced its first-generation service delivery platform (SDP) program as early as 2003 to enable service providers to launch new, secured, and innovative services quickly while maintaining control of their own networks. Since then, Sun’s Open Service Delivery Platform (OSDP) Solutions Program has evolved to allow new services to be developed for existing networks, to coordinate services from third-party vendors, and to integrate, package and deliver services to end-user customers.
The new Open SDP Solutions Program will help service providers easily grasp the benefits of SDPs as a launch pad to new services and stronger long-term growth. Guided by a mature component-oriented approach, Sun offers its service provider customers the freedom to pick and choose components from the framework according to their unique needs, releasing them from the burden of purchasing costly and unwieldy new systems and services that are not required.
Framework for Fast, Cost-effective Implementation of Cutting-edge Services
To deliver diverse implementations appropriate to each service provider customer, Sun has created a multi-layer Open SDP architecture that is end-to-end Java and can take advantage of the carrier-grade Solaris operating system. This approach ensures the easy integration of components, whether they come from Sun or from its ecosystem of partners.
Sun’s diverse product portfolio is the key to the power and range of the Open SDP infrastructure. End-user services can be created or consumed using Sun Java Studio software. Sun Content Delivery Server provides content management, digital-rights management, access control, customer management and personalization functions. Java technology-based Java 2 Platform, Micro Edition (J2ME platform), Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE platform) and JAIN specification SLEE (the Java specification for Service Logic Execution Environment (SLEE)) support the creation and execution of services while delivering specific carrier-grade functions, such as transaction security and persistence. Sun Java System Identity Manager looks after user provisioning and the exchange of identity data between applications.
Sun technology also underlies the crucial integration of operations support systems (OSS) and business support systems (BSS) to ensure that service providers properly manage their billing systems as new services are launched evermore rapidly. Sun recently announced a major win (http://www.sun.com/smi/Press/sunflash/2005-05/sunflash.20050518.1.html) to help KT (formerly Korea Telecom), one of the largest service providers in Korea, buildout its OSS/BSS infrastructure network.
Sun partners add strength to every layer of the Open SDP architecture. Several of the first solutions created under the Open SDP Solutions Program will be demonstrated at Supercomm. These include:
*Appium, Drutt, Terraplay – This joint solution demonstrates the depth of converged mobile services available today. It allows users to purchase, download and play multi-player games and then voice conference with the other players. Leveraging the existing mobile network, this scenario combines three revenue streams-m-commerce, online gaming and phone conferencing-into a seamless customer experience.
*jNETx – The jNetX solution demonstrates how Java technology-based services can be used in a convergent carrier-grade network environment to simplify IMS service delivery and deliver portability across 2G/3G mobile, IMS and PSTN networks.
*Open Cloud’s Fault Tolerant 3G IMS Application Server and SCIM Java solutions are being demonstrated at booth 43077.
“Differentiated telecommunications services are set to add sparkle to the daily lives of consumers-and bring enhanced competitiveness, customer loyalty and longevity to service providers able to evolve their current service delivery infrastructure to take advantage of the opportunities ahead,” Jordan-Smith added. “The Open SDP Solutions Program supports Sun’s component-oriented approach to its Open SDP by creating an ecosystem of industry leaders and a clear, open standards-based framework within which collaboration can flourish. The end result is a highly flexible, customizable solution that helps service providers deliver exciting differentiated services faster, more efficiently and more cost-effectively.”
Note: Sun Microsystems and partners will be introducing the Open SDP Solutions Program at a presentation and demonstration on Wednesday, June 8, at 10:00am, 1:00pm and 3:00pm CDT in room 91025. These solutions will also be demoed at the Sun booth 78022 at Supercomm .
