Verizon veteran has plan to coach 5G to peak performance
Wavelo has launched a software service that promises to refresh the tired OSS/BSS model and give it a new lease of life. The upshot is a more accommodating range of business and operational support options that conjure the best possible performance out of 5G. Its CEO Justin Reilly, a veteran of Verizon, has explained to Mobile Europe how Wavelo aims to cut the BSS and help network operators give their customers value for their money.
Interview Q&A
In effect, Wavelo is like the new manager of a team that has underperforming stars. Its job is to get under the skin of the players in each position, break down their performance and get them all working for each other again. The modern game is more fluent and each position needs to be analysed and redefined, according to the fulsome statistics that are available to modern coaches now. Every team comprises fluent versatile players and a specialist functionaries dedicated who, collectively, can cope with every type of challenge.
Wavelo provides two full-service platforms, ISOS (Internet Service Operating System) for ISPs and MONOS (Mobile Network Operating System) for mobile network operators (MNOs). Additional a la carte services are also offered, which range from subscription and billing management, through network orchestration and provisioning to individual developer tools.
What’s wrong with traditional OSS/BSS?
“Traditional telecom software was developed for a 3G and analogue world; it is rigid and complex, making it extremely difficult for operators to upgrade one singular piece without a complete systems of record overhaul,” said Reilly. Operators need their networks to act more like software, which hinges on flexibility. Faster, modular and scalable solutions allow operators to focus their efforts and resources on the things that matter most in today’s market, namely the customer experience and rapid expansion.
The lack of flexibility in traditional software creates rigid tech silos, meaning that every network or business system improvement, big or small, requires a complete stack overhaul. These full-system upgrades take an enormous amount of time, investment and resources, all of which would be better spent on expediting time to market or improving the end customer experience.
How has Wavelo helped them save time and money?
“Our first customer, DISH Wireless, has been using Wavelo’s MONOS software since early 2021 to optimize value within its Digital Operator Platform,” said Reilly. The introduction of flexible and scalable software has been critical in supporting DISH’s MVNO ecosystem, anchored by Boost Mobile and their 5G rollout across the United States. Ting Internet is also integrating Wavelo’s ISOS software, which will enable faster subscriber growth and footprint expansion.
Why aren’t we getting the benefits from 5G?
Telecom software didn’t keep pace with evolution, said Reilly. Networks and websites developed rapidly and service providers made a priority of the systems and experiences that were closest to the customer. As a result, these systems developed faster than the operational and business support systems (OSS/BSS). But these are the systems of record and they have significant value. If they can be invigorated and enlivened, they could be bear great gifts to today’s networks – especially 5G. “Once OSS/BSS is flexible enough to catch up with the rest of the stack, the end customer experience will be entirely different from the one we have today,” said Reilly.
Wavelo’s software was designed to help operators tackle the last 30% of digital transformation. Neither consumers nor vendor has enjoyed the full power and potential of 5G because there’s been negligible evolution in telecom software. Today operators are delivering revolutionary 5G experiences but they are built from an under-performing infrastructure. “This is why we are only seeing a fraction of the experience that 5G will eventually deliver,” said Reilly, “to fix this, there needs to be a fundamental transformation of OSS/BSS.”