21 October 2003 London -- UK communication service provider THUS plc is to upgrade its Intelligent Network platform with the latest release of Marconi Corp.'s GAIN product.
The upgraded IN platform supports THUS's ability to offer a range of corporate and productivity services, including the ability to allow end customers to manage their own service data via a web interface.
THUS says the GAIN installation will give users of its number translation services greater control over calls routed to their call centres and agents. It allows resellers of indirect access and carrier pre-select services greater control when allocating and activating numbers.
THUS's Technical Director Ian Hamilton said, " Marconi's open-standard IN platform enhances our ability to offer new IN services while simultaneously protecting 'bread and butter' revenue-steams. Its open-standard architecture makes it ideal for real-life multi-vendor environments that exist in operator networks."
IN products enable network operators to run a wide range of applications and are suited to fixed, mobile and next-generation IP infrastructure. The Marconi IN system is a carrier-class, truly scalable and resilient application-platform designed for open-standard interworking with switching equipment produced by a range of vendors, including legacy and next-generation products, such as Marconi's System X and new SoftSwitch.
IN services are created by running applications on an IN platform. Marconi has developed a wide range of applications, marketed as GAIN. These service logic programmes are fully developed and proven building blocks that can be combined to create advanced services.
It is these services that are offered to customers, which in turn provide operators with their revenue streams. Examples of Marconi's GAIN Applications include: Number Translation and Routing; Freephone Local Call and National Rate; Number Portability; Personal Mobility; Universal Personal Telecommunications; and a Navigator function.
"Operators must be able to trust that vendors' technology will guarantee their existing services," said Rod Smith, Marconi's EVP Northern Europe.
"We have developed its full range of next-generation products and services with this point in mind. Our IN platform is a prime example of this, an open-standards investment that can migrate services from legacy equipment onto a converged IP-based broadband network. It operates equally well with narrowband and broadband switches and provides the perfect stepping stone for operators looking to evolve their networks."