When we move from quad play to Xplay, “we must tie in all end points to the subscriber,” says Mohan Palat, director of product marketing for digital services at Comverse. The gateway serves as the bridge between the past and the future, Palat explains, and is a critical component of the xPlay experience. Microsoft sees XBOX, Windows, and Skype, Apple sees Apple products, Google sees Google products, and so on. But all of these views are myopic. An overarching mechanism is needed to connect the digital dots, and the best answer is a digital services gateway; if you’re waiting for cross-collaboration or standards to fix this visibility dilemma, you’d better set your alarm clock for never.

The gateway solves several problems. First, by connecting all endpoints to a subscriber, the DSP can actually perform CEM across the entire digital lifestyle, and begin to offer guaranteed QoE and also support for xPlay. Second, this dramatically simplifies the xPlay experience for customers by reducing the complexity of jumping on board. We know consumers are already facing password fatigue and prefer seamless experiences. Third, customer data is exponentially enriched, which has considerable impacts across CEM, business planning, network planning, and even can be used to offset data charges through third-party sponsorship.

Solutions

Ensuring a top-quality customer experience in an xPlay scenario requires a multi-channel approach to customer support. This is where modern developments in customer care, which are already having an impact in telecom today, can be leveraged. 

"Self-service and social CRM mechanisms are most essential in the delivery and servicing of the new age of digital consumers as they utilize over the top light weight (IP) services, says Anurag Vardhan Sinha, Vice President & Head Americas, Infosys. "Most support systems are now open and agile to rapidly onboard new services from new partners of the digital ecosystem. However, we need to keep in mind that new age customer wants every information now and does not distinguish between various channels like online, retail, IVR, mobile application. So a strong cross-channel & social integration along with social analytics and constant voice-of-customer checks are vital to ensure superior customer experience.

Vendors in the telecom space have moved quickly to develop and evolve offerings that help CSPs become DSPs. Well-designed options in the space are available from Oracle, GENBAND, Comptel, Comverse, and CSG’s latest Ascendon offering. If your BSS is not xPlay-ready, consider a solution that can serve the digital buying experience as well--the way the cloud generation buys and consumes services is completely different!

xPlay is the future...are you in the game?

We are now on cloud time, and business as usual doesn’t cut it. In the blink of an eye, for example, web-based services have outmaneuvered legacy providers of transportation (Uber) and hospitality (AirBnB). Consumers came to expect triple play, multi-screen, and converged billing years ago; today, it’s xPlay-- any connected device, anywhere-- and transparent, granular billing at xTime.

“The cost of inaction is very high,” says Mohan Palat, and he’s not exaggerating. Service providers who do not take steps to evolve will be relegated to the poles of the digital services spectrum. This is not to say that there isn’t a business in pure-play infrastructure or data, but for CSPs who wish to become DSPs, change needs to start now.

In the hyper-connected digital lifestyle, communication becomes an enabler, not an end service. In order to consider CEM for xPlay, service providers must transform legacy products into integrated offerings, evolve the BSS and product catalog, embrace a platform approach that includes a digital services gateway, and strike new partnerships with OTT providers and developers to stay at the cutting edge.