Business19.01.2010

Ericsson’s new billing platform for MTN Congo

MTN Congo customers will see the fruition of months of strategic planning when the cellular service provider goes live with its Converged Charging and Billing system from Ericsson

MTN Congo will increase operational efficiencies and customer transparency with the implementation of a converged charging and billing platform effective from the end of this year. The solution’s core software and key services, all supplied, implemented and managed by Ericsson – the world’s leading provider of technology and services to telecom operators – will totally transform the billing and information structures of the company.

Lars Lindén, President, Ericsson sub-Saharan Africa, says; “We are exceptionally proud to have enabled MTN Congo to provide their customers with a common charging and billing platform for all its services – as opposed to separate pre-paid and post-paid platforms in the past. The MTN Congo customer will see major benefits from this implementation including increased visibility of their usage; more control of their spend (addressing one of their customer’s greatest needs) and of course, they will now have access to a wider choice of services and products as there is no prejudice between prepaid and post-paid and the limitations of having separate platforms.”

Through this convergent charging and billing solution, the operator is able to offer seamless services across all end-user segments, something that was not possible with previous billing systems. The solution is realised with modules developed by Ericsson and LHS, part of the Ericsson Group, thus providing the best technology and expertise from both the post-paid and pre-paid worlds. With this, Ericsson provides a single revenue management solution for all subscribers and services and includes key features such as discount and promotion handling, real-time rating, segmentation, pricing and promotions.

Not only will this platform give customers access to all products and services available under the broad portfolio, but more importantly, any MTN Congo customer accessing multiple services (such as fixed network type services, ISP or data amongst others), will get just one bill, detailing their usage, instead of individual bills for each service type.

Moreover, MTN Congo customers can customise their payment options, based on personal preference. So one can either prepay or post-pay or have a combination of both, which would be known as a hybrid customer.

Seny Ganemtore, CTIO at MTN Congo says; “Ericsson’s solid position as a provider of revenue management solutions in the local and international market enabled a strategic, well managed implementation, with quick implementation time and low risk, which is currently being rolled out. MTN Congo are exceptionally optimistic that all timeframes will be maintained, and look forward to going live at the end of the year.”

Seny Ganemtore continues; “MTN Congo invested in this technology primarily to increase our customer experience through improved time to market and increased customer intimacy – a key component to our business values. From a business perspective of course, this investment also made sense as it will increase revenue streams, improve cost efficiencies and allow for better credit control.”

Linden concludes; “New ways of working are needed to reflect new pricing models, partnerships, revenue distribution and risk. At the same time users are seeking greater spending control. Ericsson’s Convergent Charging and Billing solution can improve marketing capabilities and cost-effectiveness, all while securing revenue flows. We believe Ericsson’s experience in charging control and billing platforms will significantly benefit MTN Congo with improved quality and superior cost structure, and will certainly offer us the opportunity to build on our strong relationship and develop our collaboration further to deliver future business benefits.”

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