NICE, France--Better usage of network analytics tools would provide a more granular picture of how much data is being used for which services and products, enabling operators to provide more customised and targeted services to end users, according to an Alcatel-Lucent executive.
Operators should move away from their fixation on data volumes and "unsustainable" unlimited data plans, according to Steffen Paulus, director of product marketing for network management, network analytics and policy control at Alcatel-Lucent. He said they should instead make use of more integrated and consumer-facing analytics applications that would help them to avoid a "one size fits all" approach.
Speaking to FierceWireless:Europe at the TM Forum Live conference here, Paulus said Alcatel-Lucent is showing prototype applications to operators that show how they can bring different analytical "silos" together to provide more context, and create an overview of network usage and the impact that different applications have on devices, for example.
This would then translate into new service offerings to end users, such as the ability to add new data allowances, remove malware from individual applications, and even remove applications that drain battery life because of a heavy signalling volume.
"We feel we can help operators better serve their customers," Paulus said.
Paulus noted that there is no single answer to what type of data services should be provided due to regulatory and cultural variations between countries. "Operators cannot be locked into certain use cases," he added. "They have to be able to react quickly" to spot different opportunities, which might include the option to provide shared data or even sponsored data plans.
Paulus said the benefits for subscribers and service providers are clear. Subscribers would have the ability to quickly and efficiently deal with malware on their devices, for example, while operators could sell such services as a value add after a trial period and also reduce the number of calls to their call centres.
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