Class 4 softswitch is a core part of the telecom wholesale infrastructure. That’s why it’s important for carriers to choose the right platform that will enable their business growth. Sometimes it’s not so easy to migrate from one software platform to another. That means VoIP wholesale termination providers need to balance their current business needs with long-term growth opportunities.
Below we will determine which factors should you consider when you implement a new class 4 softswitch in 2021, in the year of digital transformation. Some of them are not obvious at first glance, but they will help to arrange hassle-free operations and open opportunities for future business growth.
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Telecom wholesale market trends
Nowadays the telecom market is very dynamic. There are many channels of instantaneous communication, some of which are evolving still. Technology changes rapidly and becomes obsolete quickly. This situation is challenging but at the same time creates new opportunities for telecom businesses. Companies need to be flexible and dynamic. As a result market players tend not to invest too much in the infrastructure. They try to reduce CAPEX and choose monthly subscription SaaS and PaaS solutions, that include all the needed components combined with the technical support and maintenance. Such software gives more flexibility and allows carriers to migrate to up-to-date class 4 softswitch without any problems, typical for legacy systems.
Also, we can see an increase of traffic volumes and a drop of the margin per each minute. Seeing that, a stable, scalable and cost-effective class 4 softswitch is an ideal choice for any provider. How to choose such a platform? There are lots of vendors that offer a wide range of prices, features and it can be tricky to choose the right VoIP carrier solution. There are many important factors that require detailed research from the operator’s side.
Let’s review which components are the most important and how should look a class 4 softswitch in 2021.
Important class 4 softswitch components
First of all, it should perform well its direct functions. It should provide a stable and secure connection between origination and termination points and handle declared volumes of traffic. Secondly, class 4 softswitch should support various routing modes. Lest-cost routing was the most important years ago, but these days there are many other needed routing options. Jurisdictional routing is needed for American traffic, origin-based routing is critical for EU traffic. Quality-based routing, percentage distribution, day and time-based routing and many other options can help carriers to increase their revenue and provide high-quality VoIP services.
Value-added functionality is also important. Anti-fraud and FAS detection systems can save a lot of time and money. Accurate billing and reporting tools automate invoicing and optimize VoIP business processes. Usability plays an important role too. When managers and technical staff don’t spend a lot of time learning the system and doing routine work, they have more time for business development.
Additionally, technical support, regular updates and communication with vendor keep your class 4 softswitch up-to-date and help to avoid many problems
Finally, adding SMS services can create an additional revenue source. Below we’ll review how wholesale messaging helps VoIP carriers to boost their business and increase revenue.
Why to start wholesale messaging?
Implementation of wholesale messaging services is a fantastic opportunity for VoIP carriers. They can get a new revenue source without significant investment. There are various integrated voice and SMS platforms on the market. Furthermore, the logic of the SMS hubbing business is not too different from the voice traffic exchange. As a result, almost half of the VoIP wholesale carriers have already implemented wholesale SMS service.
Taking into account the current market trends, the number of SMS implementations will be growing in the near future. To take advantage of this situation, businesses will increase demand for integrated VoIP and SMS softswitches with reliable wholesale voice and messaging functionalities. The right messaging platform should provide an exceptional level of service, be easy to use and have helpful support. It should include a complete set of modules, including class 4 softswitch, routing, billing, anti-fraud functionality, etc. Moreover, the messaging platform shouldn’t have any implementation barriers and be fully compatible with the current telecom carrier’s infrastructure. Operators should be able to use it as a full-fledged stand-alone platform as well as integrate it with any third-party system like ERP, CRM, etc.
Only in this case, wholesale messaging can become a valuable source of revenue for VoIP carriers.
Updated class 4 softswitch overview
Recently Speedflow, a telecommunication vendor with a global presence, has launched a new version of the MediaCore SBC. This is the company’s first major release in 2021. It contains updates of both voice and SMS platforms.
The improved class 4 softswitch introduces optimized voice routing settings. They became more flexible and convenient. In the origination point settings, voice and SMS providers can not just specify the total limit of calls. They can also add a limit for each destination within the origination point. This option simplifies the work of the system and reduces the number of dial peers. Moreover, the Speedflow team optimized dial-peer management. They added new filtering options. These improvements save the working time of the VoIP engineers and routing managers.
The wholesale messaging platform has even more significant updates. The new version of the MediaCore SMS platform supports the SMS store and forward option. It helps to raise the delivery rate in case recipients are not available at the moment.
Additionally, the updated SMS platform has content screening and modification options. Providers can identify unwanted messages according to specified keyword patterns. The platform can either reject such SMS or deliver them with modified or removed content. The SMS hubbing platform also offers force DLR – optional DLR mode that sends forcible DLR to the customer.
There are other minor SMS routing improvements, like the support of the IP weight for the SMS termination point to ensure better versatility. As a result, the updated version of the MediaCore provides more performance and flexibility than ever before, giving users unprecedented freedom in voice and SMS traffic management.
All these factors make the MediaCore voice and SMS platform an up-to-date class 4 softswitch and a perfect choice who are looking for carrier-grade VoIP and SMS platform in 2021.
