In the early 1990s, the decommissioning of the private ARPANET enabled the Internet to evolve into a public network, revolutionizing our culture and the way we do business. The explosive growth of the Internet in recent years can be attributed to advances in fixed and mobile broadband. With more than three billion people using the Internet today, it has become an infrastructure system similar to water, gas and electricity. Yet, this is just the beginning.

As our digital and physical worlds continue to converge, ICT and the Internet will drive the transformation of all industries. This digital era will shape and be shaped by changing consumer behaviors, and, to deliver a superior user experience, businesses must undergo digital transformations.

Changing consumer behavior and consumption patterns require carriers to transform their operation systems.

The Digital Native generation, having grown up with the Internet, behaves dramatically different from preceding generations. Their unique consumption patterns and desired user experience can be described as ROADS, an acronym for "Real-time", "On-demand", "All-online", "DIY", and "Social". Changing behaviors extend beyond Digital Natives as they also influence the behavior of their parents and grandparents by teaching them to use digital products and applications.

To provide the experiences that users require, carriers should consider these changes in consumer behavior when developing or revamping their operations. An important element to a successful operations transformation includes how consumers identify, purchase, obtain, and use telecoms products and services, and how they obtain after-sales services.

In addition, carriers should think about today through the lens of tomorrow - formulating their plans for operations transformation based on future-oriented network architecture and services. Specifically, carriers must consider future trends such as software-defined networking (SDN), network functions virtualization (NFV), and digital and cloud services.

The ROADS experience will drive operations transformation and redefine the value and positioning of operation systems.

Designed with the consumer experience in mind, the operation system of the future is no longer a mere support or internal system, nor an online marketing interface –it is a value creation system that connects carriers, customers, and partners, as well as networks, applications, and content.

For consumers, this next-gen operation system is an "e-commerce platform". It enables consumers to purchase telecoms products and services on their terms, with an emphasis on the ROADS experience.

For carriers, this system is a "development platform". It provides products and solutions by integrating a carrier's assets based on enterprise and consumer needs. These assets include networks, IT infrastructure, in-house and third-party applications and software, third-party content, and user data. The system also provides automated and intelligent operations and maintenance (O&M) and management tools for a carrier's internal operating teams. Additionally, it opens up a carrier's network capabilities to partners via application program interfaces (APIs).

For partners, this system is a "channel and customized development platform". Content providers and software developers can use the platform to sell products, while independent software vendors (ISVs) and system integrators can use it to customize development and integrate systems.

This next-gen operation system is not a traditional operation support system (OSS) or business support system (BSS). It will have evolved into a telecoms operation system that enables carriers to customize products and solutions, develop internal O&M and management tools, and open up capabilities to strengthen the industry value-chain. We call this operation system "Telco OS".

Automated, intelligent infrastructure forms the foundation for the mutually beneficial relationship between the transformations of infrastructure and operations.

When we consider a carrier's operation system from the perspective of consumer behavior and user experience, we may discover that, although most problems are operations-related, the root cause is likely poor infrastructure. For example, if a carrier is unable to provide customers with on-demand, real-time online services, it is not due to their operation systems, rather it is due to a lack of automation or intelligence of the infrastructure network. New technologies – such as SDN, NFV, and cloud-based IT infrastructures –form the foundation for automated, intelligent operations. Without automated infrastructure and cloud-based flexible scalability, carriers will find it impossible to deliver the ROADS experience. Infrastructure and operations transformations are mutually beneficial.

The Internet has changed consumer behavior and service experiences. This means carriers need to rethink their operations transformation and reposition their operation systems. To support these initiatives, Huawei will collaborate with telecoms partners and other industry players to thoroughly examine the impact of the Internet, learn from industry-leading practices, explore the road to operations transformation, and adopt open technologies and architecture. Through these efforts, we aim to help carriers build a next-gen operation system that suits changing consumer behavior and delivers a superior user experience. Simply put, we are committed to helping carriers build an operation system that supports service development, business operations, and the building of a healthy industry ecosystem.