If we were to travel back in time to the 1980s, we would find the landscape of Operational Support Systems (OSS) and Business Support Systems (BSS) was akin to an uncharted wilderness. Concepts like alarm management, performance management, inventory management, and all the others were in their nascent stages, barely developed or perhaps not even conceptualised yet. The possibilities for innovation in this space would now seem staggering, with vast areas awaiting exploration and development.
Evolution of OSS/BSS
In the four decades since, there's been a dramatic transformation. The OSS/BSS fields have matured significantly, and it seems like the foundational designs and principles of these systems have been established for at least ten to twenty years. The core functionalities – managing networks, supporting services, fixing network faults and customer management – have reached a level of sophistication that can make the market feel saturated, fragmented, possibly even dull. This arises from the perception that most of the innovative leaps in the field have already been made. Or the belief that only peripheral advancements or adaptations to broader IT industry trends, like network virtualisation or Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) have been made in recent times.
Not just the OSS/BSS industry, but the telecommunications industry of today as a whole, is often likened to a 'settled wild west' – the major lands have been claimed, the paths trodden, and the frontier spirit diminished. Yet, this view overlooks what has been achieved and the significant challenges and ambitions that still remain unfulfilled in the industry. While we have come far, the journey is only partway done. There are still massive problems to solve and immense opportunities for ground-breaking solutions.
The recent epiphanies stemming from the possibilities of generative AI is just one small glimpse into a future teeming with novel approaches and untapped potential. This technology, among with many others, provides a vision of entirely new designs, methodologies and solutions. It invites us to contemplate what the OSS/BSS landscape could look like in the 2040s, urging us to hop into the same virtual time machine – but this time to journey forward, not back in time – to envisage future possibilities.
If we now stand up on high, looking back from a 2040s vantage point, the 2020s solutions of today will likely be seen not as the finished product or a time of stagnation, but as an exciting frontier of possibilities. A period brimming with opportunities just waiting for problems to be solved and innovations to be made. Today, we stand at a crucial juncture where the decisions and innovations we make can shape the future of OSS/BSS. The same crucial juncture when so much is changing around us, sparking the possibilities of entirely new pathways.
Future of OSS/BSS
If we were to use the time machine to foresee, not just imagine, the OSS/BSS of the 2040s, we are sure to spot systems that are profoundly different from today’s. Could these future systems solve all the problems we currently face? Could they leverage technologies that are in their embryonic stages now. They might be fully integrated, highly automated, and powered by advanced AI, capable of self-learning and adapting in real-time to network demands and customer needs. They might have vastly different user interaction approaches.
Emerging technologies like quantum computing, advanced machine learning, on-person visualisation tools and next-generation network technologies are sure to play pivotal roles in this transformation. We can already see evidence of where these technologies will take us. They could lead to OSS/BSS systems that are not only more efficient but also more predictive and proactive, capable of anticipating issues before they arise and automatically implementing solutions.
Is innovation in OSS/BSS still possible?
Innovation in OSS/BSS is surely not a completed journey but a continuous cycle. While it might seem that all the major leaps have been made and only incremental improvements remain, history shows that every era brings its own set of challenges and opportunities for radical innovation. The key is to maintain a forward-looking perspective, continually seeking out and embracing new technologies and approaches.
What’s crucial now is the vision to see beyond the current limitations and having the courage to bring these visions to life through actions. The industry needs to foster an environment where experimentation and risk-taking are encouraged, where new ideas are not just conceptualised but actively pursued and implemented.
Despite what some may proffer, we're not too late in the game of innovation in OSS/BSS; in fact, we're just getting started. The challenges and opportunities of the future will require fresh perspectives and bold solutions. All it will take is embracing a forward-thinking mindset and projecting where emerging technologies might take us. We can ensure that the OSS/BSS of the future is not just an iteration of what we have today, but a revolutionary leap forward. As we step into this new era, let's harness the spirit of the giants of our industry, the pioneers who first ventured into the uncharted territory of OSS/BSS in the 1980s, 90s, and 00s, drawing inspiration to blaze new trails in this far-from-stagnant landscape.
