Verizon offers a good example of what can happen when network data is leveraged for BI. Several years ago it noticed that a large amount of its mobile traffic was being consumed by subscribers watching streaming video. When it dug deeper it learned that applications from the ESPN cable network were popular and could be monetized. As a result, Verizon and ESPN partnered to offer a premium service package — a successful one, as it turned out. Similarly, Deutsche Telekom and KPN have signed deals in Europe with Spotify, implementing direct-to-carrier billing for the popular music service. 

These are the kinds of solutions that CSPs must pursue, and intelligent insight into use trends of consumption can accelerate monetization and service velocity.

Keeping it all in focus

Visibility predicates knowledge, and the best vantage point for CSPs is delivered by data that comes directly from the network itself. In Pipeline’s March issue, which focused on CEM, we demonstrated how the data pulled by advanced service assurance tools could also be leveraged to prevent problems before they became problems. Those same tools can additionally be used for BI and OI, giving operators valuable insight that informs their strategic planning and new business models and increases profitability. 

In this manner the same data that’s used by a company’s network guys can be contextualized for product management, product marketing and even the CTO’s office. Killing three birds with one stone just makes more sense than buzzwords like “Big Data,” and NetScout’s nGenius solution is the kind of platform that offers multidimensional intelligence at the device, user, and application levels that can be effectively used for the purposes of business and operational intelligence.