An Mformation Whitepaper
SERVICE ENABLEMENT USING
MDM TO ENABLE HIGH-VALUE
DATA SERVICES
Service Enablement - Using MDM to
Enable High-Value Data Services
Mobile data contributes significantly to data revenue for mobile operators and service providers. To support this revenue, it is necessary to have delivery and enablement of data services on user devices. A host of new services are becoming available, both built into the latest devices and available as add-on applications and services after devices are shipped. As new services are adopted by a rapidly growing base of increasingly sophisticated users, service enablement ensures the quality of each user's experience. A flexible, integrated mobile device management system not only provides operators and service providers with a platform for data service enablement and on-going support, it can be used to enable, manage and assure adoption of future data services and applications.
Introduction
As the number of new services and applications increases, differentiation between device types grows and device functionality broadens, the difficulty in configuring these devices with service- and application-specific parameters and the latest software increases. Since the customer decides which devices and services to use, it is important to manage each device in the context of that customer and the services they have bought.
Mobile operators and service providers are finding benefits from solutions that provide them with a means to enable various services on mobile devices, including built-in or pre-installed services such as internet access or MMS, and services that can be delivered after the fact, such as a new email service that requires clients to be configured or software to be installed or upgraded on the device. Device management platforms not only enable OTA enablement of native services, but also provide the ability to deliver, install and activate new data services and applications, perform diagnostics on both native and non-native services, and update the
Enabling Pre-Installed Services
The most common services managed by mobile carriers/operators and service providers are those built into or supplied on the devices. For these services (or applications), the first issue is ensuring that when the user turns on and begins using the device, the services are configured correctly for that user, device and operator or service provider. If they are not configured properly to begin with, or if it is too difficult or time consuming for the user to configure a service, the vast majority of people will simply never use the service, affecting operator/service provider ARPU, revenues and service uptake.
In addition, as more services are available on devices, the time and associated cost of assisting users to properly configure their devices is rising rapidly, further eating away at profits from these services. According to business and telecoms industry analyst group Current Analysis, about 70% of all handsets shipping today require configuration after sale, and around one-third of all calls made to customer support are related to handset configuration problems.
OMA DM and other legacy OTA protocol standards (e.g., WAP 2.0, IOTA, OMA CP) enable built-in services to be configured relatively easily over the air. Integrated device management systems employ these protocols to enable consistent, accurate OTA configuration of these services. An operator can set up a simple Web service portal for the users, where they can go and request configuration of their service(s) with a couple of mouse clicks and receive the proper settings over the air in a few instants. Or, if the user calls Customer Care, the CSR can send the correct settings immediately when requested. If a number of devices require configuration, a batch job can be set up to send the appropriate service settings to a group of devices. Or an operator can set up automation rules that such that the appropriate service settings are automatically sent to a device in the event of a specific change in the status of the device or the service on the device. Similar functionality is also available in response to client-initiated requests from the devices.
Enabling Add-on Data Services
As mobile operators look toward launching other advanced services and applications as a means of driving up adoption of smart devices and increasing revenues, they have found that one of the biggest roadblocks to widespread deployment is the difficulty of managing the services on the devices. Not only do different services and applications function differently on different devices, but different groups of users need different settings for those applications for them to function appropriately.
Enterprises are especially reluctant to embark on widespread deployment of new mobile applications without a streamlined delivery and enablement process that provides their employees with a simple, standardized mechanism for enabling the service(s), along with adequate security, post-deployment diagnostics and support, and ongoing management of upgrades to the service.
Operators are finding that using a mobile device management platform as a launch mechanism, and providing device management as part of their service packages, can resolve most of the issues associated with rolling out new data services.
Initial Installation
The first key to launching a new data service is initial installation of the service application. Using a device management platform, the operator — or, if a management portal is provided to the enterprise, the enterprise’s IT organization — can make the service application available to the user for download and installation, or can push it to them proactively over the air, together with appropriate installation instructions (if necessary). The user need only accept the application and follow any provided instructions to install the application on their device. In this way, everyone is assured that the correct version of the correct application is on the device from the start.
Service Settings
One of the more difficult aspects of managing the deployment of a service such as email is the fact that each device type and class of user within a particular enterprise will require different settings. A device management system resolves this through the use of templates. A simple form indicating how the service is to be configured for the particular device type and group of users is set up and kept in the system. The system can also be used to define which applications and versions are authorized for a particular enterprise or group of users.
Once these templates and other management information are set up, an operator or service provider can use them to provision devices with the appropriate settings for the service over the air. Alternatively, operators and service providers can provide a portal for an enterprise customer wherein they can perform this provisioning. Setup of the service on the user’s device involves little more than a few confirmations and acknowledgements, making it painless for them to adopt and use the applications.
Diagnosing Problems/Updating Services
Once a new data service is installed and configured on a device—regardless of whether it is a built-in service or added after deployment, the next problem is ongoing support. A device management system keeps track of all the “correct” software and service settings information, and can be used to query the devices and compare the current information with the database. This enables an operator, service provider or enterprise customer support organization to very quickly pinpoint and resolve any problems with the service.
For example, a user with a problem can call the designated support organization, who query the information on the device, see whether there are any problems with service settings, software versions, or application, and send corrections to the user over the air without requiring them to return to base or physically interact with IT.
For added piece of mind, and especially important to enterprise customers, if a user calls with a lost or stolen device, the customer support organization can use the device management system to lock or wipe the device over the air, preventing any sensitive data on the device from falling into the wrong hands.
Changes to the configuration of data settings can be initiated by the user, an enterprise, or the operator or service provider, as needed. Users can initiate an update or other device management action by triggering an action on the device, or through a self-care Web portal provided by the enterprise or the operator/service provider. For example, if the user signs up for email after the phone has been in use for a time, the operator/service provider or enterprise can provide a simple self-care portal where the user requests that those settings be sent to their device over the air.
In addition, the operator or service provider (or an enterprise customer, via a secure Web portal provided by the operator or service provider) can schedule queries, reconfigurations, firmware updates, software installs and other actions as needed. These actions are initiated through the device management server, which can perform various device management actions on an individual or group of phones. For example, a new version of an email application may need to be sent to a group of devices in a particular company. Or a new set of settings for the built-in MMS service may need to be sent to a specific group of devices.
Conclusion
Mobile operators and service providers are benefiting from device management solutions that not only enable OTA enablement of built-in services, but also provide the ability to deliver, install and activate new data services, perform diagnostics on both built-in and add-on services, and update the firmware, software and services on the device as required.
A flexible, integrated mobile device management system not only provides operators and service providers with a platform for data service enablement and ongoing support, it can be used to enable, manage and assure adoption of future data services, whether they are services built into new phones, or add-on data services for the latest smart device
CONTACT US
If you would like to receive additional information on our company and our innovative mobility management
solutions, please feel free to contact us. Mformation Software Technologies, LLC 581 Main Street, Suite 640
Woodbridge, NJ 07095 Tel: +1 732 692 6200 Fax: +1 732 549 7542 www.mformation.com
