International Roaming

INTERNATIONAL
ROAMING

INTERNATIONAL ROAMING
A.

C.
D.
E.
F.

International Roaming

B.

Roaming Agreements
Roaming Agreements Lifecycle
Roaming Management Tasks
Outsourcing
Overview of Roaming Lifecycle
The Roaming Process

A. ROAMING AGREEMENTS

AA.19 : SMS Interworking Agreement

AA.40 : MMS Interworking Agreement

AA.43 : WLAN Roaming Agreement

AA.60 : Interworking Template

AA.70 : MMS Hubbing Agreement

AA.71 : SMS Hubbing Agreement

International Roaming

B. ROAMING AGREEMENTS LIFECYCLE

International Roaming

Make a strategy

Establishing and Negotiate a Roaming Agreement

4

Steps before Launching an Agreement

Monitoring and Maintenance

International Roaming

1. STRATEGY

International Roaming

2. NEGOTIATE

International Roaming

3. TEST & IMPLEMENT

International Roaming

TADIG (TCC)

5.

Set common Launche date

6.

Sign Official Launch Letter (CLL)

7.

Inform the Relevant Departements in your

International Roaming

4.

company

8.

Billing Departement

IT & Engineering Department

Marketing Departement

Allocate resources to launch the roaming

partner (IREG)
9

9.

Usually tasks of the Roaming Coordinator

Update AA.14 and IR21 (IREG) and distribute to
roaming partners
Distribute updates from roaming partners

Check :
That the terms of the agreement are respected
That the TAP records are sent on time (TADIG and
EDCH)
That roaming works by having network tests done
(both IREG teams)
That roaming partners are following the GSMA rules

International Roaming

10.

10

C. ROAMING MANAGEMENT TASKS

1.

Internal Interfaces

International Roaming

11

C. ROAMING MANAGEMENT TASKS

2.

External Interfaces

International Roaming

12

D. OUTSOURCING

International Roaming

13

E. OVERVIEW OF ROAMING LIFECYCLE

International Roaming

14

F. THE ROAMING PROCESS

International Roaming

Involve different departments

Different people with different interests and priorities

Activities depends on one another

The flow can stop if departments are not aligned

This will generate internal conflicts and bottlenecks

15

1. NEGOCIATION

International Roaming

16

Common Bottlenecks
Prioritization
Attractiveness of the Operator
Not quantity but quality Concept
Lots of useless deviations
Time / resources restriction on both sides
Cost of implementing each Roaming Agreement
Fraud Prevention Procedures in place
No structure or strategy to negotiate IOTs

International Roaming

17

How to avoid Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Avoid unnecessary deviations

Calls and face-to-face meetings, not only e-mails
Clear strategy including plan B for each country
Identify and present your companys selling points
Consider other agreements solutions: Hub, NE, etc
Make sure necessary security features are offered
Be flexible on negotiations (IRA and IOTs)
Consider to hire external assistance with the
negotiations outsourcing

18

2. TEST PREPARATION

International Roaming

19

Common Bottelenecks
Lack of priority
Delays in activating SIM cards
Location Update or GPRS attach failure
Signalling implementation delays
Wrong data implementation in VLR or HLR in
HPLMN, also with International carrier
Resource constraints

International Roaming

20

How to avoid Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Have a formal procedure mapped on how to

distribute information and do the configuration
Re-check the RP data as per latest IR21
Have a SLA with Signaling Provider
Have experienced personnel for troubleshooting
Acknowledge reception of SIMs ASAP and ask RP to
activate them

21

3. IREG

International Roaming

22

Common Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Resource constraints
Calls not being completed
Poor voice quality; echo, back ground noise, delay in
transmission
Lack of priority (internal and external)
Different time zones making more difficult to
schedule a date for common tests and troubleshooting

23

How to avoid Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Buy premium termination from a reliable carrier

Your RP shall do the same, bypass result in pour QoS
Employ experienced IREG specialists
Share SLAs and goals with IREG team
Make sure you get the prioritization of your RP
Consider to require external assistance / outsource
Consider to use automatic testing solutions
Have a clear internal process

24

4. TADIG

International Roaming

25

Common Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Resource constraints
Lack of prioritization
Billing system errors
Discrepancies between CDRs and IREG Docs (time,
duration, volume, etc )
Delay in receiving test TAP files (TD) from Roaming
Partner
File rejected

26

How to avoid Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Share SLAs and goals with TADIG team

Make sure IREG testers get the time / duration
directly from the switches and not from their own
watches
Make sure you get the prioritization of your RP
Consider to require external assistance / outsource
Use TTT
Have a clear internal process

27

5. COMMERCIAL LAUNCH DATE

International Roaming

28

Common Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Fail to notify DCH about commercial launch date

Fail to notify internal departments
Delays with commercial launch generated by
unnecessary internal processes
Delay in receiving CLL countersigned
Internal debts not ready for commercial operation

29

How to avoid Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Have clear internal processes

Make sure all the launch activities are done (tariffs,
customer care, billing system, etc )
Try to cut down unnecessary & lengthy approval (red
tape) processes
Have all the necessary info prepared in advance
Accept CLL by fax and email

30

6. ON-GOING ACTIVITIES

International Roaming

31

Common Bottlenecks
Technical issues
Service disruptions / TAP flow failure
Financial issues
Non payments
Lack of resources or lack of knowledge
Slow implementation of agreements
Relationship issues
Work not being done

International Roaming

32

How to avoid Bottlenecks

International Roaming

Implement clear processes and workflow including

owner ship, deadlines, etc
Define Key Processes to be monitored
Share goals with all the teams involved
Have a clear leader
Be aware of Roaming industry trends
Consider to hire external assistance and join a Hub
Have right team, motivated

33

7. WORKING ENVIRONMENTS
The operation of a Roaming service involves
many departments
One department clearly depends on the other to
reach its targets
It is very important to create and maintain a
good working environment for all the debts.
Involved
Relationship problems are common when
priorities are different

International Roaming

34

International Roaming

35

International Roaming

36

THANKS !

International Roaming

37