Abstract :
Operational Support Systems have become extremely complex. Nearly all existing and future customer acquisition and retention programs will utilize the functionality offered by the OSS. Additionally, the OSS will be strained, on its own, to simultaneously manage internal information flows and effective data transfers between trading partners (i.e. CLECs and ILECs). Without many standards to govern transactions between trading partners, carriers large and small will be challenged to build cost-effective, scaleable interfaces between disparate OSS. The author looks at these issues