Lifecycle Software reports increase in billing customer base
November 30, 2022
Lifecycle Software has announced its billing customer base has grown by over a third (36%) in just eight months whilst also increasing its headcount by almost a quarter (21%) to support the sharp rise in the demand for 5G enabling services, cloud-based platforms and flexible contracts resulting from consumer demands and the impact of the cost of living crisis.
As MVNOs struggle with ongoing economic turbulence and the need to provide faster connectivity in the midst of the 5G roll out, Lifecycle Software’s services have proven a critical lifeline, enabling MVNOs to serve the fast-changing needs of consumers. With MVNOs moving fast to meet the demand for faster connectivity speeds, the roll out of EU roaming charges, and providing flexible billing contracts amid consumer requests for shorter terms, the launch of two new services have proven to be strong drivers of growth.
Responding to the growing need for more strategic and personalised experiences, Lifecycle launched new reporting features for online charging with the Converged Charging System (CCS) Analysis module. It enables telcos to successfully capture and leverage events from their network, including roaming country and device metadata. Operators use this information to trigger campaigns on change of country or handset changes, manage VoLTE, 5G and network updates based on device capabilities, and further segment and engage with the subscriber base. Increased adoption among MVNOs is unsurprising, with agility being a key part of their strategy to streamline billing processes and provide faster connectivity to their customers. Lifecycle provides MVNOs with the tools to adapt fast enough to serve new customer demands, expecting more from their digital experience for less, and enabling them to compete with more prominent players on the market.
Lifecycle also launched another solution, Event Intelligence which monitors network events using artificial intelligence and real-time decisions to deliver strategic and personalised experiences. MVNOs, more than any other group in the telecoms sector, seem uniquely placed to adapt to these new demands, especially if they can streamline operations to bring data costs down across the telecom order to cash process. Both solutions expanded on predictive analytics capabilities and optimised algorithms with Artificial Intelligence to grow the enhanced campaign management functions to drive upsell and retention.
Mo Firouzabadian, CEO of Lifecycle Software, shared that: “Operators are increasingly expecting higher levels of strategic insight, innovation and readily-available flexible features, and are placing less value on customising the software themselves. Self-service has also been a key value shared by customers, which software providers are pivoting to” He adds, “With the demand for shorter-term contracts surging and greater pressure on the network, developing more advanced tools for monitoring customer moments has been made a priority. Our service is focused on enabling telcos to break down billing to help increase self-service, decrease attrition and ultimately improve our customer’s experience across the Lifecycle. We are committed to innovating and knowing our customers’ needs before they do. For example, MNOs see agility as key to embracing the possibilities of 5G and the B2B segment. Making that happen means equipping them with a cloud based, highly flexible platform, particularly as EU roaming charges are steadily being added back by UK operators.”
According to Kelvin Chaffer, Chief Operating Officer at Lifecycle Software, software providers should plan flexible offerings in Q4, including short-term commitments in the face of the cost of living crisis. He adds, “an increased awareness of fraud and security breaches will also be an industry-wide focus due to increasing levels of criminal incidents this year.”
“Looking ahead, there will be higher customer turnover rates as customers look for the best deals for their usage and the number of promotions in addition to cheaper tariffs to improve acquisition and retention, such as vouchers after three months of service,” noted Chaffer.