Trends in Communication and Network Technologies

(ECEG 6316)

Paradigm Shift in Telecom service provision

Name: Netsanet Sinor

ID:7944/11

May/2020
 Paradigm Shift in Telecom service provision

Abstract

A paradigm shift is a fundamental change in the basic concepts and experimental practices of a
scientific discipline or a fundamental change in approach or underlying assumptions.
So in telecommunication technologies, the service provision structure is becoming complex,
involving a number of overlapping fields, as well as several service providers within most of
these fields. Customers still want seamless service, even though they want to freely choose services
from any combination of service providers and negotiate over price and service features. To satisfy
these customer demands, service providers will need to undergo a paradigm shift in the way they
think about service provision. The new paradigm, from a technological standpoint, involves an
agent/negotiation function as well as new network architecture integrating the service providers'
networks with customer premises equipment networks in a distributed processing environment. This
paradigm shift also involves a shift in pricing structure to accommodate the widespread advent of
multimedia communications.
As a result of massive benefits to consumers and businesses, the telecommunications industry
is of high interest for economists, governments and for the citizens whom governments aim
to protect from the effects of restricted competition, which is endemic in the industry.

When telecommunications networks were first created, they were generally government- owned
monopolies. They were considered ‘natural monopolies’, like power and water utilities, where
the most cost-effective way of providing for customers was to have one company running
the cable networks and the switches that routed calls. Laying down more than one network
of cables was considered wasteful, although in some countries separate regional companies
did evolve.

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1. Introduction

The world is one of paradigm shifts and telecommunication technologies is driven by consumers of
information and communication tools and services, who have an insatiable desire to instantly gratify
needs for efficient, reliable and precise technologies. The society of today is one whose needs are
reliant on technologies that aim to bring together data from varied sources. Similar to the notion of
sustainable development, technological convergence is an evolving concept. In this sense, one needs
to understand that it calls for the balance of knowledge between opportunities and challenges for the
industry, policy makers and for society at large.

Changes in the telecommunications market are being driven by rapidly advancing technology and
customer demand for increasingly sophisticated services. Successfully coping with the situation will
require a paradigm shift in the way providers look at how they provide services. Currently,
telecommunications services are offered through complicated interworked networks by various
service providers using an array of rapidly evolving technologies

To meet the needs of the new telecommunications business environment, new concepts in service,
operations, management and networks must be established. These concepts cannot be built upon
existing ways of thinking about telecommunications service. Instead, they require a fundame nta l
paradigm shift in thinking toward a full realization that the multimedia era has arrived.

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2. Paradigm shift in Telecom service provision: past and present

Changes in the telecommunications market are being driven by rapidly advancing technology and
customer demand for increasingly sophisticated services. Successfully coping with the situatio n
will require a paradigm shift in the way providers look at how they provide services. Currently,
telecommunications services are offered through complicated interworked networks by various
service providers using an array of rapidly evolving technologies A new mechanism is needed to
ensure that service providers can offer their services in a manner that looks and feels seamless
from the perspective of the customer. Customers may also want to freely choose services and then
negotiate the terms of those services. To meet this demand, a negotiating mechanism for use
between customers and service providers is essential. In the multimedia area, broadband services
will require new pricing policies that enable providers to maximize the use of network resources
and to offer lower prices to end customers. Another essential feature of multimedia services is easy
and economical access to specific information. Faced with a tremendous volume of availab le
information, customers will want to edit this information to make it better serve their needs. An
agent function for information providers becomes a key to meeting this customer demand. To meet
the needs of the new telecommunications business environment, new concepts in service,
operations, management and networks must be established. These concepts cannot be built upon
existing ways of thinking about telecommunications service. Instead, they require a fundamenta l
paradigm shift in thinking toward a full realization that the multimedia era has arrived. This paper
discusses the causes of the paradigm shift, the nature of the new paradigm and the crucial issues
which must be dealt with under the altered circumstances.

Wireless communication networks have become more popular than expected at the time of 1960s
and 1970s when the cellular concept was first developed. According to ITU’s latest status, there
are 76.2 mobile subscriptions for each 100 people which is 4.4 times the number of fixed telephone
lines. On World Statistics Day, October 20, 2010. The International Telecommunication Union
(ITU), the UN Agency for ICT, announced its eagerly awaited mobile estimates for 2010. By the
end of the year there will be 5.3 billion mobile subscriptions. That is equivalent to 76 per cent of
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the world population and is a huge increase from 4.6 billion mobile subscriptions at the end of
2009. Nearly a billion of these are 3G subscriptions, and potentially mobile Web users. The mobile
telephony is becoming more and more ubiquitous. In developed countries, the growth is slowing
down with average penetration rates above 100 per cent. But in developing countries, growth is
still strong and therefore more and more people will be connected to telephones who never had
access to a telephone at all in the past, thus mobile revolution is continuing. The telecom story
continues to grow in India also. As the number of users are increasing so there is need to invent
new technologies to fulfil the requirement of users.
3. The driving factors of paradigm shift in telecom service

I. Revolution in the service provision structure

The liberalization of the telecommunications market and the resulting keen competition among
providers have created a complex service environment where many service providers offer services
through mutually interworked networks. With Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), services are
provided via a simple mechanism. In this service provision structure, a carrier constructs the network
and plays the role of service provider as well. Carriers deploy standardized network architecture and
interfaces based on CCITT (currently ITU-T) standards. Network elements are produced in
compliance with these standards. As a result, POTS service provides seamless service to customers
on a global basis.
Recent advances in computer technology have brought significant improvements in Customer
Premises Equipment (CPE). Furthermore, many service providers (SPs) now specialize in the full
utilization of CPE capabilities with services such as Value-Added Network (VAN). The result is that
several service providers now work in combination to meet customer needs.
Under this service provision structure, SPs and vendors tend to deploy their own network
architecture and interfaces in an effort to make them de facto standards. This complicates the service
provision structure and reduces customer choice, since customers may avoid otherwise
desirable services to prevent an interface mismatch.
To avoid inconvenience to customers, customers, SPs and vendors need to cooperate in order to create
a seamless web out of their diverse services (Network Management Forum). A virtual service provider
which integrates several service providers - could be a solution. The activities of standardizing bodies
(ITU-T, ISO, etc.) and various consortia (ATM Forum, Network Management Forum, etc.) are also
expected to help resolve these issues.

II. Improved customer contact

Negotiations between the SP and customer over service conditions will be carried out primarily
through a machine- machine interface (MMI). To realize rapid, accurate and economical
negotiations, the negotiation interface will have to be largely mechanized. The interface for
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customer contact will gradually move away from contact with humans to contact with machines
The operations system function (OSF) diagrammed includes negotiation and operation functions for
reconfiguration, testing and related tasks.

III. Closing the technology gap

While there is an increase in the availability and use of telecommunications technologies and
including the developing world, there is a growing understanding that technological innovation aims
to make the most efficient use of resources. As such, using newer technologies that make use of
convergent engineering can revolutionize the efficiency of use of available technological and natural
resources to create a world that is more sustainable. In this sense, newer devices are likely to be used
as means to connect consumers with know-how to provide e-health, e-education and remote-
communication.

IV. Evolution of customer defined services

The negotiation of service attributes and conditions concerns only a primitive first step. Customers
will want more than the ability to select services from a menu offered by SPs. They will want to
change service parameters themselves, combining aspects of various services in a manner that best
meets their individual needs. The trend toward customized service is currently being studied as UPT
(universal personal telecommunications) by the ITU-T (ITU-T, 1994b).
Network resources will have to be rapidly and flexibly interconnected using sophisticated network
operations and management functions. In order to establish the proper architecture, a
layering concept should be introduced in order to identify the various functional components.
In the new network architecture, both CPE and SP networks can be based on the same concept
and make use of the same software packages. With both CPE and SP networks based on the same
concept, many possibilities arise for communication among layered functions
Customers and SPs can then utilize each other’s functional capabilities. The reference points identified
in each layer in are important for identifying new interfaces based on network functional architecture.

V. Technology Harmonization

With the increase in the kinds of personal devices available to consumers, there is a great risk that
some of these will not be compatible. Indeed, fears industry secrets are a vital concern. However,
given that consumers are likely to move from one kind of personal device to another depending on the
advantages observable at any given time, compatibility between most is essential. This will enable
consumers the widest scope of appreciation for technologies and their consumption of desirable
information

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VI. Enrichment of information provider services

Information providers (IPs) and content providers are expected to play major roles in popularizing
multimedia communications services. Since IPs use SP networks to distribute information to
customers, cooperation between IPs and SPs is very important.
Attractive, useful information for customers is usually expensive to produce. A stable
mechanism for drawing back costs and generating profit is essential for the success of multimed ia
communication services. At the same time, the mechanism should ensure that customers have easy
access to the information, as well as a way to compare various features of information (quality, price,
acquisition procedure, etc.) from different IPs.
Sometimes, customers have only fragmentary data about what they need, and it is important that
they still have a way to access the needed information, if possible. For example, a customer may
know what information they need but not know which IP is best for such information.
Conversely, they may know a good IP but have only the barest notion about the information they
need. To satisfy various types of customer requests, an information agent function will be needed

VII. service offerings based upon customer negotiations

The rapid diversification of customer demand means some customers feel restricted in their choice of
SPs and vendors. Customers may also want to exert more control over service attributes and
conditions. The most important issue is pricing, which is closely related to service attributes such as
traffic characteristics and QOS (Quality of Service).
Due to the price of SP telecommunications, various measures have been implemented within
CPE networks to minimize computer communications costs. If SPs offer lower prices along with
improved CPE-SP linkage, total costs will be reduced. This will greatly stimulate the market for
broadband/high-speed communications. Therefore, in computer-based multimedia networks, new
concepts and functions for communication conditions negotiations are essential. Moreover, these
must be consistent with the network utilization strategy between SPs and customers.
Though lower prices are urgently needed, especially for long distance broadband video
communications, efforts to reduce network cost and improve bandwidth compression technology
may not be enough to achieve the target price. The situation is more promising for VBR (Variable Bit
Rate) video communications and high-speed computer communications. The burst-intensive nature of
traffic for these services will permit network utilization strategies (based on quality variation and
available time selection) that enable lower prices. shows a diagram of the basic service provision
structure with customer negotiations.
Negotiations may have static (pre-assigned) and dynamic (on demand) features. Service attributes
subject to negotiation include time (point and delay), QOS, addressing and pricing. Customers
negotiate with several SPs on these attributes and select their own service conditions and prices based
on what's offered. SPs negotiate with customers to use their network resources at a level near 100%,
obtaining maximum benefit with minimum investment.

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VIII. Innovative infrastructure technologies

As the consumers demand content of different nature and speed, engineers have had to develop routes
that are most supportive of these kinds of data. Routes taken may be terrestrial, satellite, Global System
for Mobile Communications (GSM), undersea cable systems, or Internet communications protocols.
Newer means to deliver information of different nature are likely to emerge as speed and accuracy of
information content increase in demand.

IX. New paradigm for network architecture

Many new service providers have entered into the telecommunications market, leading to a complex
and rapidly changing telecommunications service provision structure. Since customers want their
telecommunications services to work in a seamless fashion, it is necessary to deploy a new network
architecture capable of achieving this. This, in tum, necessitates a paradigm shift in the way service
providing mechanisms are conceptualized.

4. Assessment with privatization of telecom service provision and advantage and

disadvantages of privatization

Privatization is the phenomenon of governments contracting privately owned, for-profit companies

to provide services that were previously provided by the governments themselves. It can happen at
the local, county, state and even federal level. Telecommunications services before the decade of the
1980’s were supplied mainly under monopolistic market structures. The principal justification for this
was that telecommunications services, particularly voice telephony, were believed to be a natural
monopoly. In late 1980’s (except for the US and UK, where the process started even earlier), a
liberalization and reform process took place in the telecommunications sector in many countries across
the globe. The process started in the US with the break-up of the Bell system and this was followed
by the UK, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, amongst others.
There are numerous advantages of privatization as well as many disadvantages of privatizatio n,
and most of it is related to profit. below are some of the advantage and disadvantage.

Advantage

Increased Competition

In the business world, competition is a good thing. Telecommunication service Competition drives
entrepreneurs and service providers to innovate Telecom products and services they offer and work
to make their offerings more appealing to consumers than their competitors'. When the governme nt
is the sole provider of telecom service, there is no impetus to consistently innovate or serve the
consumer – resident under the government's jurisdiction – better than he was being served before.

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Competition pushes telecom service providers to lower their operating costs, which can mean the
savings are passed onto consumers.

Immunity from Political Influence

When a telecom service is privatized, it can become immune to political influence. This is because
instead of having companies and special interest groups vie for favor from the government office in
charge of the service by making strategic campaign contributions and providing vocal support, the
private provider is focused on profit. That doesn't mean there's no chance for corruption, though. In
some ways, privately operated public services have a greater corruption risk than services provided
by the government.

Improved efficiency

The main argument for privatization is that private companies have a profit incentive to cut costs and
be more efficient. If you work for a government run industry managers do not usually share in any
profits. However, a private firm is interested in making a profit, and so it is more likely to cut costs
and be efficient. Since privatization, companies such as BT, and British Airways have shown degrees
of improved efficiency and higher profitability.

Tax Reductions and Job Creation

By providing public telecom services more efficiently and at a lower cost by privatizing them,
governments can lower the taxes they impose on residents. In addition, privatizing telecom service
can create job opportunities for residents in an area, increasing the quality of life for them and
strengthening the local economy.

Disadvantage

 Natural monopoly
A natural monopoly occurs when the most efficient number of firms in an industry is one. For example,
Ethio telecom is the only telecom company in Ethiopia. Therefore, there is no scope for having
competition amongst several private telecom operators.

 A greater opportunity for fraud and corruption to occur.

 Higher costs for consumers.
 Inflexibility due to long-term contracts.
 Profit, rather than residents' needs, as a primary motivator.

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Conclusion

The process of technological convergence offers massive opportunities for the development of new
value-added services. Indeed, it can provide unparalleled conveniences, efficiency and the expansion
of consumer choice. In essence, there is an evident growth in the demand for machines that support
digital technology that allow both traditional and new communication services to be provided over
the same networks, at higher speeds, lower prices, and with more accuracy and efficiency.
Technological convergence is a process that promises to be a catalyst not just for the integration of
the world economy, but also for the sustained living of our world’s people through the better
manipulation of information. What remains a challenge, however, is the proper channeling of the
know-how that novel telecommunication engineering has developed so to provide every corner of the
world with the chance to succeed in a healthy and safe environment.

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Reference

1. Ejiri, M. (1994a) For whom the advancing service/network management. Keynote speech,
NOMS '94 Symposium Record, Vol. 2, pp. 422-433.
2. Paradigm shifts in modern ICT era and future trends, [https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/5978713]
3. Lecture Note on ECEG 6316

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