Why You Should Become Billing and Charging Evolution Compliant

Keeping up with advancements in telecommunications is important for Operators who want to improve revenue. Originating from operators the Billing and Charging Evolution (BCE) compliance is a significant development introduced by the GSMA. This standard changes how operators manage their billing and charging procedures for 5G SA, NBIoT, and any wholesale data traffic in general. Let us explore its significance and importance so you can become BCE-compliant today!

What Is Charging and Billing in Telecom?

Telecom billing refers to the process of collecting, aggregating, and managing usage data related to telecommunication services. It encompasses various tasks required to generate customer invoices and track revenue for services provided by operators, both to their customers and other operators. 

Telecom billing solutions often involve: 

• Capturing data on various telecom services 
• Applying predefined tariffs 
• Generating invoices for customers 

Telecom operations are intricate by nature and have a large volume of transactions and telecommunication charges. Therefore, these processes must be highly efficient, accurate, and transparent to improve customer experience and manage revenue. 

What Is Billing and Charging Evolution?

Transferred Account Procedures (TAP) is increasingly seen as an antiquated system for handling new mobile transactions due to its inability to adapt to the evolving needs of the telecom industry. Originally designed in 1991, TAP lacks the flexibility and scalability to support emerging technologies such as IoT and 5G. Its complex and rigid structure makes it unsuitable for the dynamic and high-volume nature of modern mobile transactions. Furthermore, the cost of exchanging data through TAP can be burdensome for mobile operators, particularly with the exponential growth of IoT data. While TAP has been instrumental in the past, it is ill-equipped to handle the demands of the new age of mobile transactions. 

GSMA’s new Billing and Charging Evolution (BCE) industry standard is aimed at simplifying and modernizing data exchange, reconciliation, and settlement between operators. It is the only standard for 5G standalone (5G SA) roaming services and mobile IoT. With the rise of mobile IoT devices and 5G, this change in telecom billing becomes even more critical. 

As operators move to fully embrace 5G SA, they need a clearing and settlement technology that is fit for purpose BCE is an evolving standard developed upon request from operators who intend to launch and monetize 5G roaming and data-based services. 

The BCE standard is all about the aggregation of data and wholesale reconciliation, allowing operators to monetize services that are currently unmonetized. Operators don’t need to change the way they do business – BCE just enables a different way to exchange records, that can allow additional streams of revenue. 

Why Is Billing and Charging Evolution Compliance Important?

Billing and Charging Evolution is streamlining wholesale roaming settlement processes for mobile operators. BCE also aims to address current clearing and settlement requirements while anticipating future industry needs.  

With the advent of features such as IoT and M2M services which are being driven by industry verticals like healthcare, smart cities, transportation, and more are changing how operators are thinking about their billing and charging functions.  They are having to think in terms of wholesale and alternative charging models that TAP is unable to give them. 

By utilizing BCE with bilateral agreements, operators can efficiently manage their roaming services by signing the necessary contracts to ensure seamless operations. 

Compliance with the standards for this telecom billing solution is important for multiple reasons: 

• Ensures that companies are updated with the latest industry practices, helping them maintain a competitive edge. 
• Helps create a different way to accurately capture revenue for rendered services. 
• Allows companies to have a streamlined charging, billing, and reconciling usage process. 
• Signifies a commitment to transparency and accuracy in billing, which earns customer trust and satisfaction. 
• Prepares companies for future technological advancements, making them more adaptable to emerging trends. 

The Benefits of Billing and Charging Evolution Compliance

The Billing & Charging Evolution (BCE) offers several key benefits in mobile telecommunications including improved flexibility and control, increased process efficiency, support for new 5G and IoT services, automated reconciliation, reduced costs, and the monetization of IoT services.  

Comprehensive Solution

BCE provides a comprehensive telecom billing solution that helps operators redefine their wholesale roaming approach in terms of how they invoice partners, clear and settle data, and facilitate financial transactions more efficiently 

The Risks of Not Having Billing and Charging Evolution Compliance

Without billing and charging evolution compliance, operators can run into these challenges: 

• Falling behind competitors and being stuck with outdated billing systems that can’t meet modern demands. 
• Inability to manage complex billing scenarios can result in longer processing times and higher operational costs. 
• Increased likelihood of errors in billing and charging processes can lead to disputes with customers and partners. 
• Potential for billing disputes and inaccuracies can lead to decreased customer trust and satisfaction. 
• Higher risk of financial discrepancies and delayed cash flow. 
• Inefficient processes make managing settlements with roaming and interconnecting partners challenging. 

How to Ensure Billing and Charging Evolution Compliance

By following these steps, operators can ensure they are fully compliant with billing and charging evolution standards: 

1. Conduct a thorough review of your existing billing and charging infrastructure. 

2. Stay updated on BCE documents and standards. 

3. Upgrade billing platforms to support BCE standards for complex billing scenarios and real-time processing. 

4. Regularly check systems and processes against BCE standards for continuous compliance. 

Take Your Telecom Billing into the Future

Don’t lag behind competitors or stick to complicated telecom billing solutions. Work with Syniverse and become BCE-compliant today!