Networks lead. OSS are an afterthought. Time for a change?

In a recent post, we described how changing conditions in networks (eg topologies, technologies, etc) cause us to reconsider our OSS.

Networks always lead and OSS (or any form of network management including EMS/NMS) is always an afterthought. Often a distant afterthought.

But what if we spun this around? What if OSS initiated change in our networks / services? After all, OSS is the platform that operationalises the network. So instead of attempting to cope with a huge variety of network options (which introduces a massive number of variants and in turn, massive complexity, which we’re always struggling with in our OSS), what if we were to define the ways that networks are operationalised?

Let’s assume we want to lead. What has to happen first?

Network vendors tend to lead currently because they’re offering innovation in their networks, but more importantly on the associated services supported over the network. They’re prepared to take the innovation risk knowing that operators are looking to invest in solutions they can offer to their customers (as products / services) for a profit. The modus operandi is for operators to look to network vendors, not OSS vendors / integrators, to help to generate new revenues. It would take a significant perception shift for operators to break this nexus and seek out OSS vendors before network vendors. For a start, OSS vendors have to create a revenue generation story rather than the current tendency towards a cost-out business case.

ONAP provides an interesting new line of thinking though. As you know, it’s an open-source project that represents multiple large network operators banding together to build an innovative new approach to OSS (even if it is being driven by network change – the network virtualisation paradigm shift in particular). With a white-label, software-defined network as a target, we have a small opening. But to turn this into an opportunity, our OSS need to provide innovation in the services being pushed onto the SDN. That innovation has to be in the form of services/products that are readily monetisable by the operators.

Who’s up for this challenge?

As an aside:
If we did take the lead, would our OSS look vastly different to what’s available today? Would they unequivocally need to use the abstract model to cope with the multitude of scenarios?