T-Mobile US (NYSE:TMUS) signed a long-term managed services agreement with Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC), which will supply the operator with its Service Agility package, including unified charging, billing, order management, product catalog and customer relationship management (CRM). The update will cover all branded T-Mobile and MetroPCS customers.
By upgrading its Operating Support Systems (OSS) and business support systems (BSS) software suite, T-Mobile will be able to more quickly create, launch, deliver and manage services, Ericsson said.
Further, the upgrade will provide T-Mobile customers with real-time billing visibility and full control over account service changes. Ericsson said this will streamline the customer experience and slash T-Mobile's overall operating costs.
"Ericsson and T-Mobile have a long-standing relationship and this expansion gives us the agility we need to continue growing our valued customer base," T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray said. "The work now underway with Ericsson will enhance our infrastructure and deliver an even better experience to our customers."
The new OSS/BSS capabilities might be related to T-Mobile's upcoming "Uncarrier 5.0" announcement, slated for June 18. The operator has not shared what that announcement might entail, but previous uncarrier moves have had OSS/BSS components, including the elimination of contracts and buyouts of termination fees to entice customers away from rivals.
T-Mobile has added 6.1 million total customers in the past four quarters since it launched its uncarrier ad campaign, which initially focused on uncoupling the price of a phone from the price of T-Mobile service.
According to Ericsson's website, there are some 2.1 billion subscriptions worldwide served by Ericsson BSS solutions, and 900 OSS solutions are in use. Overall, 1 billion subscribers are managed Ericsson.
For more:
- see this Ericsson release
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