Fact: Cloud Telecom Billing Systems Are the Only Way to Meet 5G and IoT Requirements

Not a long time back, telecom billing was all about charging and rating basic services like SMS and calls. However, with the evolution of technology, we are seeing a rise of new technologies that are pushing the traditional telecom billing systems to the limit. Companies simply cannot rely on what has worked in the past. It is time to innovate and be prepared for newer tech like IoT and 5G. The best way to undertake a task as challenging as telecom billing is by employing cutting-edge telecom billing systems that are based in the cloud.

Cloud-Based Telecom Billing Systems: What to Look For?

Not all cloud-based telecom billing systems are equal. You need to be very thorough and settle on the best billing system to ensure success in your telecom billing and monetization of services. Below are some important features, which you should look for in your next cloud-based telecom billing system.

Ability to work well with present and future services

As the pace of technology evolution increases, it is very much likely that telcos would have to launch newer services at a faster rate. And, emerging technologies like 5G and IoT are much more complex than the technologies launched in the past. Therefore, it is best to partner with a vendor that can offer telecom billing systems that can not only meet the requirements of the present but also the future. Also, the telecom billing solution should be completely scalable vertically to meet the rising demands of new subscribers.

Security of data

An online billing system based in the cloud is always exposed to hackers’ threats. To ensure the security of subscriber data that is stored on the cloud, it is essential to enforce sturdy encryption measures. Also, these encryption measures need to be updated from time-to-time, in order to stay ahead of hackers that are always on the prowl. A single hacking incident can undo the hard work done over many years, which is why; security is extremely crucial in any online telecom billing system.

Backed by APIs for different business use cases

A telecom billing system may serve you well, but it may not be able to meet every new requirement. Let’s say, you don’t have a pre-existing partnership with a shipping vendor but you need one to ship your IoT SIMs. In this case, you may choose to customize the software but it is a costly investment. A better way to deal with such situations is to partner with a telecom services provider that can issue an API that immediately lets you partner with a shipping vendor and also lets you manage the partnership and all the related transactions. As APIs help address particular requirements without taking drastic steps like buying a new software solution, they are far more economically viable in such scenarios.

Convergent billing

Customers of today seek complete transparency in billing. This can only be done if you employ cloud-based solutions that come with a centralized charging system like an OCS. An OCS charges all the services – both event-based and session-based – at the same place. This allows the charges of all the services to be printed on a single invoice, which customers of today actually want.