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V O L U M E 2<br />
N U M B E R 2<br />
M A Y 2 0 0 8<br />
A P U B L I C A T I O N O F S Y N I V E R S E T E C H N O L O G I E S<br />
PREDICTING<br />
THE FUTURE<br />
OF MOBILE<br />
By David Pogue<br />
Columnist<br />
New York Times<br />
Asia Pacific<br />
AP team responds<br />
to region’s needs<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet<br />
Award-winning<br />
NRTRDE solution<br />
SOLUTIONS 2008<br />
Time to explore,<br />
exchange, expand
2<br />
Inside SYNERGY<br />
E X E C U T I V E C O R N E R<br />
6 Cover Story<br />
Future of mobile<br />
communications<br />
3 Regional Update<br />
Global news<br />
about <strong>Syniverse</strong><br />
3 Employee Spotlight<br />
Meet Linda Harte<br />
4 <strong>Syniverse</strong> Focus<br />
Asia Pacific team<br />
5 Customer Connection<br />
VimpelCom Group<br />
8 <strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet<br />
Update<br />
Award-winning<br />
NRTRDE solution<br />
11 Customer Service<br />
SOLUTIONS 2008<br />
12 Events Calendar/<br />
Contacts<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> continues its focus on customer service, innovation and integration.<br />
The first half of this year has been extremely busy for <strong>Syniverse</strong>. In addition to working<br />
hard to ensure we continually provide you with high levels of innovation and customer service,<br />
we’ve also had a successful presence at events around the globe, including Mobile World<br />
Congress in Barcelona and CTIA Wireless in Las Vegas. We hosted the <strong>Syniverse</strong> Analyst Day<br />
in New York and two <strong>Syniverse</strong> Users’ Group meetings, one in Nashville and one in Budapest.<br />
Our team has been busy other ways, as well. In March, for example, we announced the<br />
launch of <strong>Syniverse</strong> Financial Settlement Services (FSS), an offering designed to meet CDMA<br />
operator demand for a cost-effective, comprehensive settlement service that streamlines the<br />
payment and receipt of financial positions between roaming<br />
partners. <strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet also has been demanding<br />
a lot of attention, especially since it won the GSM Association’s<br />
Global Mobile Award for “Best Roaming Product or<br />
Solution.” We are honored that our Near Real Time Roaming<br />
Data Exchange (NRTRDE) offering was singled out as<br />
the industry’s best way to combat the growing worldwide<br />
risk of roaming fraud. You can learn more about <strong>Syniverse</strong><br />
DataNet on page 8.<br />
Of course, a major priority this year is the integration<br />
of the wireless data and financial clearing business of<br />
BSG Clearing Solutions (BSG) into <strong>Syniverse</strong>. The nicest<br />
surprise of the acquisition is that there have been no surprises.<br />
The cultures of both organizations are very similar,<br />
each emphasizing customer service and high-quality<br />
performance. This is making for an extremely smooth<br />
transition as the two companies are combined under the<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> name. Best of all, we now offer you a broader<br />
set of solutions than ever before, including a complete<br />
end-to-end GSM data and financial clearing ability.<br />
“We are honored that our<br />
NRTRDE offering was singled<br />
out as the industry’s best way to<br />
combat the growing worldwide<br />
risk of roaming fraud.”<br />
Tony Holcombe<br />
President & CEO<br />
Finally, I want to let you know that we’ve been preparing for SOLUTIONS 2008, our annual<br />
customer conference in Florida, and I think you’ll find that this year’s agenda is one of our best.<br />
I invite you to check out page 11 for details about this most extraordinary event.<br />
I hope you enjoy this issue of Synergy, and I look forward to seeing many of you in June<br />
at SOLUTIONS. J
3<br />
R E G I O N A L U P D A T E<br />
Employee SPOTLIGHT<br />
Asia Pacific (AP)<br />
One way <strong>Syniverse</strong> AP is providing increased customer support is by adding<br />
personnel and offices strategically placed throughout this part of the world.<br />
In India, for example, we recently opened a New Delhi office and increased<br />
the number of staff. In addition, a new sales director has joined our Hong<br />
Kong team. Desmond Ko came to <strong>Syniverse</strong> in March and serves operators<br />
in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and throughout the region. For more news<br />
from the AP team, read the special feature on page 4.<br />
Caribbean & Latin America (CALA)<br />
More robust in-region customer service continues to be a priority in CALA<br />
as we continue to build a regional support team at our headquarters office<br />
in Buenos Aires. We also are adding additional <strong>Syniverse</strong> team members<br />
throughout the region. Based in Chile, Emilia Bolocco is a new sales executive<br />
for South America. Also joining the CALA staff is Leonardo Saucedo as<br />
our business development director. He is based in Uruguay and will focus on<br />
new regional initiatives.<br />
Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA)<br />
The EMEA team continues to widen its geographical footprint. A recent<br />
count shows it has employees working in 11 countries throughout the region.<br />
We had excellent participation at the <strong>Syniverse</strong> Users’ Group EMEA meeting<br />
in Budapest at the end of April. More than 60 participants representing<br />
about 20 countries joined us for the two-day gathering. EMEA also is seeing<br />
great success with <strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet, our NRTRDE offering. See page 8 for<br />
an update about this award-winning solution.<br />
Linda Harte<br />
Senior Account Executive<br />
North America<br />
Specializing in new business<br />
development, Linda<br />
Harte is a Texas-based,<br />
self-proclaimed “new business<br />
hunter” who uses her<br />
broad background in the<br />
telecommunications industry<br />
to seek and develop<br />
opportunities in the North<br />
American market. Synergy<br />
recently spoke to Linda to<br />
learn more about her and<br />
her work.<br />
Synergy: Tell me a little bit<br />
about yourself.<br />
Linda: First and foremost,<br />
I’m a proud parent who<br />
has a daughter and two<br />
granddaughters living in<br />
Boulder, Colorado. I grew<br />
up in a small town in Texas<br />
and earned my bachelor’s<br />
degree in marketing from<br />
the University of Texas.<br />
I’ve worked in the telecom<br />
industry for 30 years and<br />
can honestly say every single<br />
day has been unique.<br />
I’ve been with <strong>Syniverse</strong><br />
for 2-1/2 years.<br />
North America (NA)<br />
Alfred de Cárdenas has joined <strong>Syniverse</strong> as executive vice president for<br />
North America. He brings to <strong>Syniverse</strong> more than 20 years of experience in<br />
the global telecom industry. Jerry Easom, vice president of industry affairs for<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong>, has been named to the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications<br />
Association (CWTA) Board of Directors as its trade representative. Jerry,<br />
who has been a member of the CWTA trade council for about nine years,<br />
will serve a two-year term.<br />
Synergy: What part of your<br />
job are you most proud of?<br />
Linda: I truly enjoy opportunities<br />
to help customers<br />
generate new revenue.<br />
I’m most proud to work<br />
for a company that offers<br />
an outstanding portfolio<br />
of products and solutions<br />
that improve quality,<br />
reduce costs and generate<br />
revenue for our custom-<br />
Cont.on page 11
4<br />
S Y N I V E R S E F O C U S<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> AP keeps up with customer needs in a<br />
fast-growing region<br />
AP TEAM<br />
Asia Pacific<br />
The territory covered by <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s Asia Pacific<br />
(AP) team has two defining characteristics:<br />
a huge geographic footprint and a well-deserved<br />
reputation as one of the fastest-growing regions for<br />
the world’s mobile communications industry. In the<br />
final three months of 2007 alone, AP gained more<br />
than 88 million new subscribers.<br />
“The potential for growth in mobile technology,<br />
especially in China and India, is enormous,”<br />
said Raymond Cheung, <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s executive vice<br />
president and CEO-AP. “We know operators in<br />
these two countries as well as others throughout<br />
the region are expecting large increases in their<br />
mobile traffic. As always, <strong>Syniverse</strong> is prepared to<br />
help them as they grow their businesses.”<br />
One of the steps Raymond has taken is to<br />
expand <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s physical presence across the<br />
region. In India, <strong>Syniverse</strong> opened an office in New<br />
Delhi in late 2007 and has increased the number<br />
of employees who work in that country. In China,<br />
“One of our responsibilities is to be able to react<br />
quickly to our customers’ requirements. A local presence<br />
allows us to be in a position to do this and better<br />
focus on customer needs and customer service,”<br />
Raymond said.<br />
In fact, <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s in-region support staff for<br />
roaming services, such as data clearing, financial clearing,<br />
NRTRDE and signaling services, has increased to<br />
more than 20 people.<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong>’s success in AP really took off with the<br />
acquisitions of Interactive Technology Holdings Limited<br />
(ITHL) in 2006 and the wireless services business<br />
of Billing Services Group (BSG) in 2007.<br />
“Although <strong>Syniverse</strong> has had customers in the<br />
AP region since 1997, these two acquisitions served<br />
as an impetus for <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s rapid growth in this<br />
part of the world,” Raymond said. “In addition to<br />
bringing about 200 highly skilled employees and<br />
in-region development capabilities to <strong>Syniverse</strong>, we<br />
have had great success in bringing <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s full<br />
spectrum of industry-acclaimed solutions to former<br />
“One of our responsibilities is to be able to<br />
react quickly to our customers’ requirements.<br />
A local presence allows us to be in a position<br />
to do this and better focus on customer needs<br />
and customer service.”<br />
Raymond Cheung<br />
Executive VP & CEO-AP<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> expanded what had been a small business<br />
center<br />
in Beijing to<br />
a fully staffed<br />
regional<br />
office, and<br />
the company<br />
continues to<br />
bring on additional<br />
solution consultants and sales personnel to<br />
meet that country’s needs. <strong>Syniverse</strong> also is looking<br />
at other locations in China where it makes sense to<br />
create a permanent presence.<br />
ITHL and BSG customers. At the same time, traditional<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> customers gained easy access to the<br />
ITHL and BSG products obtained by the purchase<br />
of these two groups.”<br />
Among the wide array of offerings available to<br />
AP customers are number portability, mobile broadband,<br />
data and financial clearing, roaming and a<br />
number of value-added solutions.<br />
“<strong>Syniverse</strong> is considered an industry leader in<br />
other areas around the world,” he said. “It is my<br />
intention that this also rings true throughout the<br />
AP region.” J
5<br />
C U S T O M E R C O N N E C T I O N<br />
VimpelCom Group moves to <strong>Syniverse</strong> for reliable,<br />
cost-effective data clearing services<br />
As one of the fastest-growing mobile operators<br />
in Eastern Europe and the first Russian<br />
company to list its shares on the New York Stock<br />
Exchange (NYSE), VimpelCom Group (NYSE:<br />
VIP) has a reputation for providing high-quality<br />
service to its more than 50 million subscribers<br />
across Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan,<br />
Tajikistan, Georgia and Armenia.<br />
In 1992, a small group of scientists and<br />
engineers who had spent their careers developing<br />
advanced technology for radio electronics and<br />
defense equipment formed VimpelCom. A year<br />
later, they launched an AMPS standard mobile<br />
network in Russia operating under the Beeline<br />
brand, a brand that would become one of the most<br />
well known in Russia. Five years later, a full GSM<br />
network was deployed.<br />
Today, VimpelCom has networks in seven<br />
countries and is looking to expand outside of the<br />
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It<br />
recently acquired Golden Telecom, a telecommunications<br />
and Internet service provider with reach<br />
throughout the CIS.<br />
With such an impressive geographic presence<br />
and excellent service reputation to uphold, VimpelCom<br />
did not take its choice of a data clearing<br />
partner lightly.<br />
“As we continue to expand our global footprint<br />
and as we see our customers using more and more<br />
of their services as they travel, we wanted a supplier<br />
who had the ability to handle our entire group of<br />
seven operators,” said Evgeniy Ryabov, head of the<br />
VimpelCom Group’s roaming department. “As we<br />
learned more about <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s<br />
standing in the mobile industry,<br />
its commitment to first-rate<br />
customer service and its track record<br />
for responsiveness, making<br />
the decision to move our data<br />
clearing business to the company<br />
was easy.”<br />
In early 2007, Mobitel, a<br />
St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow<br />
VimpelCom mobile operator in the Republic of Georgia,<br />
was the first group operator to sign a contract for<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong>’s data clearing house services. Later in the<br />
year, VimpelCom determined other operators in its<br />
group (VimpelCom Russia, ArmenTel in Armenia,<br />
Tacom in Tajikistan, Unitel in Uzbekistan, Ukrainian<br />
Radio Systems in Ukraine and KaRTel in Kazakhstan)<br />
also would adopt the <strong>Syniverse</strong> solution to support<br />
international GSM data roaming. Additionally,<br />
VimpelCom Russia chose the award-winning <strong>Syniverse</strong><br />
DataNet to secure its network against roaming fraud<br />
and meet the GSM Association’s new Near Real Time<br />
Roaming Data Exchange (NRTRDE) standard.<br />
“We were looking for a single-source supplier<br />
who would work closely with us and who would<br />
ensure all data records between VimpelCom operators<br />
and their many roaming partners around the globe<br />
would be cleared in a rapid, accurate and cost-effective<br />
manner – all while supporting international standards<br />
and VimpelCom Group business rules,” Evgeniy said.<br />
“We are dedicated to ensuring that our customers<br />
continue to receive the highest quality service, and<br />
I’ve no doubt <strong>Syniverse</strong> will play a significant, integral<br />
role in our endeavors both today and in the future.” J<br />
“We are dedicated<br />
to ensuring that our<br />
customers continue<br />
to receive the highest<br />
quality service.”<br />
Evgeniy Ryabov<br />
Head of Roaming<br />
VimpleCom Group
“What is the future of<br />
cellular communications?”<br />
New York Times
7<br />
A L O O K I N T O T H E F U T U R E<br />
In this article, I will answer the question: “What is the future of cellular communications?”<br />
And here is the answer: Nobody knows. The end.<br />
No, seriously. Anyone who tries to predict the future of technology winds up looking like an idiot.<br />
But from my catbird seat as a tech reviewer, I’m probably in as good a position as anyone to see the<br />
trends from the consumer’s point of view, and I’m willing to make two bets. I may still wind up looking<br />
like an idiot, but at least I stuck my neck out.<br />
My first massive prediction is that the Internet will play a much bigger role in cellphone calls. I’m<br />
not talking about VoIP, although of course that’s an intriguing development (and one that, I’ll bet, keeps<br />
cell executives awake at night).<br />
No, I’m talking about the power that comes from adding the Internet to the call processing.<br />
I’m thinking of voicemail transcription services like SimulScribe ® , CallWave and SpinVox, which<br />
turn your voicemail into typed text that comes to your email box or your cellphone as text messages.<br />
First, this spares consumers the infuriating time drain of listening to the Ambien-dosed airtimeeater<br />
woman who says, “You have. Eleven. New. Messages. You have. Two. Saved messages. To listen to<br />
But from my catbird seat as a<br />
tech reviewer, I’m probably in<br />
as good a position as anyone to<br />
see the trends from the consumer’s<br />
point of view, and I’m willing<br />
to make two bets. I may still<br />
wind up looking like an idiot,<br />
but at least I stuck my neck out.<br />
your messages, press 1. When you are finished,<br />
you may hang up, or press 5 for more options.<br />
I will now read the Manhattan White Pages.”<br />
(Yes, I know this pointless message is a terrific<br />
ARPU generator for carriers. But I’m not a carrier,<br />
so I’m allowed to say how much I hate that<br />
message. And don’t even get me started on the<br />
recording that says, “To page this person, press<br />
5.” Page him!? What is this, 1975?)<br />
The second advantage is you can read<br />
message transcripts in a fraction of the time<br />
you’d spend listening to them. You have random<br />
access to your messages, too; you don’t have to<br />
sit through five chit-chatty messages, unaware that Message 7 is a time-critical bit of urgency from your<br />
boss. You don’t have to take notes as you listen, either. The notes have already been taken for you. Plus,<br />
text is searchable, sortable, copyable, pastable, printable and forwardable. It’s an awesome thing to have<br />
a “find” command for your entire back-catalog of voice messages.<br />
Another great Internet-plus-cellular breakthrough is GrandCentral, a suite of services that Google<br />
bought last year.<br />
The central problem solved by GrandCentral is that so many people have more than one phone<br />
number these days: home, work, mobile, hotel room, vacation home, yacht. And with great complexity<br />
comes great hassle. You have to check multiple answering machines. You miss calls when people try to<br />
David Pogue<br />
Columnist<br />
New York Times<br />
David Pogue, personal<br />
technology columnist<br />
for the New York Times,<br />
was a keynote speaker<br />
at SOLUTIONS 2007,<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong>’s annual<br />
customer conference.<br />
The Emmy award-winning<br />
tech correspondent<br />
for CBS News and<br />
National Public Radio<br />
commentator also is a<br />
bestselling how-to author<br />
with more than 3 million<br />
books in print. Learn<br />
more at davidpogue.com.<br />
reach you on your cell when you’re at home (or the other way around). You send around Cont. on page 10
8<br />
S Y N I V E R S E D A T A N E T U P D A T E<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet named best roaming product by GSMA,<br />
gains momentum as industry-leading roaming fraud solution<br />
October 2008 – a month circled on the calendars<br />
of GSM operators worldwide – marks the GSM<br />
Association’s (GSMA) guideline for member operators<br />
to implement Near Real Time Roaming Data Exchange<br />
(NRTRDE), a new set of fraud detection standards<br />
designed to combat international revenue share fraud.<br />
“The criminals who participate in this type of fraud<br />
have been successful because fraud detection and<br />
resolution are hindered by the length of time it can<br />
take for a visited operator to notify the home operator<br />
of roaming activity,” said Eugene Bergen Henegouwen,<br />
executive vice president of <strong>Syniverse</strong> EMEA. “With<br />
NRTRDE, operators can close the loopholes being<br />
exploited by fraudsters.”<br />
Closing the window on fraud<br />
Currently, call data records (CDRs) that track<br />
subscribers’ roaming activities are exchanged with the<br />
home operator within about 36 hours. NRTRDE standards, however, require the visited network to forward<br />
CDRs to the subscriber’s home operator within four hours of a call’s end. If the visited operator is unable<br />
to get this information to the home operator within the deadline, the visited operator is held liable for any<br />
fraud associated with those calls.<br />
As the October date quickly approaches, <strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet – the company’s award-winning NRTRDE<br />
solution – already is helping operators worldwide to meet the new standard and ensure they have the best<br />
available tool to combat roaming fraud. Named the “Best Roaming Product or Service” at the GSMA’s 13th<br />
annual Global Mobile Awards announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, <strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet provides<br />
more than simple NRTRDE compliance.<br />
Taking fraud protection a step further<br />
Daniel Jarjoura, product manager for DataNet, said the <strong>Syniverse</strong> solution beats the GSMA’s<br />
four-hour time requirement by streamlining the process for exchanging roaming data records between
9<br />
operators and their roaming partners.<br />
“When dealing with roaming fraud, time is money,” Daniel said. “It is our mission to help operators<br />
avoid potential revenue loss by staying one step ahead of fraudsters.”<br />
He said <strong>Syniverse</strong> listened to customer feedback and has developed a number of value-added services<br />
(VAS) that make DataNet an even more robust solution.<br />
The pseudo-rating service, for example, allows DataNet to rate incoming NRTRDE files so that<br />
operators can more quickly estimate potential fraud losses. Another interesting VAS is IMSI splitting.<br />
This service allows a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) to better monitor subscriber traffic and<br />
endorse liability in case of fraud. Additional services include HUR generation for the visitor and home<br />
operators, liability GUI, revenue assurance, and roaming agreement management.<br />
To complete its comprehensive suite of fraud prevention services, <strong>Syniverse</strong> also offers<br />
FraudX ® , a knowledge-based software application that uses artificial intelligence to identify potentially<br />
fraudulent activity.<br />
Contributing to industry standards development<br />
Customers also benefit from <strong>Syniverse</strong>’s leading role in the creation of industry standards. <strong>Syniverse</strong><br />
representatives chair both the GSMA Transferred Account Data Interchange Group (TADIG),<br />
which is responsible for NRTRDE technical specifications, and the NRTRDE Interworking Group<br />
“It is our mission<br />
to help operators<br />
avoid potential<br />
revenue loss<br />
by staying one<br />
step ahead of<br />
fraudsters.”<br />
Daniel Jarjoura<br />
Product Manager<br />
(NRTIG). The company also is a member of the NRTRDE Steering Committee and is the official<br />
author and editor of key NRTRDE technical specifications. In addition, <strong>Syniverse</strong> participates actively<br />
in fraud forums and organizes regional workshops around the world.<br />
Eugene said he credits a combination of industry leadership and in-house expertise for the success<br />
of <strong>Syniverse</strong> DataNet as well as its selection by the GSMA as the best solution for mobile operators<br />
striving to combat the risk of roaming fraud. Already the company has begun implementing the solution<br />
globally with more than 65 GSM operators.<br />
“The clock is now ticking on what is the most important anti-fraud measure for operators in<br />
years,” said Eugene. “As subscriber roaming increases, now is the time for operators to take the offensive<br />
by quickly implementing NRTRDE. Without a doubt, NRTRDE is the most effective way<br />
available to keep ahead of the fraudsters and combat the potential loss of billions in roaming revenue<br />
around the globe.” J
10<br />
Pogue Cont. from page 7 email at work that says, “On Friday from 5 to 8:30, I’ll be on my cell; for the rest of the weekend, call<br />
me at home...”<br />
Instead, GrandCentral issues you a single, new uninumber – and when someone calls it, all your<br />
phones ring. You get the call wherever you are.<br />
More interesting to me, though, is the fact that GrandCentral works by intercepting your call and<br />
routing it through the Internet. Once they’ve got your call, they can process it in all kinds of cool ways.<br />
For example, all messages now land in a single voicemail box, which you can access on the web, if you<br />
like, or even download them as audio files to preserve for posterity.<br />
Furthermore, when you answer a call, GrandCentral’s recording lady tells you the caller’s name,<br />
All of this is<br />
only good news<br />
for consumers<br />
like me, of course,<br />
but by extension,<br />
it’s good news for<br />
carriers.<br />
and then offers you four ways to handle the call: “Press 1 to accept, 2 to send to voicemail, 3 to listen<br />
in on voicemail, or 4 to accept and record the call.” If you press 3, the call goes directly to voicemail<br />
– but you get to listen in. If you feel that the caller deserves your immediate attention, you can press<br />
* to ‘pick up’ and join the call. This subtle feature can save you time, cellular minutes and, in certain<br />
cases of conflict-avoidance, emotional distress. If you hit 4 instead, GrandCentral records your<br />
conversation. You can immortalize the historic calls of your life, or just create a replayable record of<br />
driving directions. GrandCentral also offers ringback music, custom greetings for each caller in your<br />
address book, auto-blocking during certain hours of the day, telemarketer filters and even the ability<br />
to hand off a call in progress to another phone (say, from your home line to your cell phone as you<br />
walk out the door). All for free.<br />
I’m aware some carriers already offer some of these features. But nobody knows about them,<br />
they’re too expensive and their benefits have never been clearly articulated to customers. GrandCentral<br />
shows the success that can come with good, clean design and a sense of fun.<br />
The second great cell revolution won’t exactly make me seem like Nostradamus since everyone is<br />
already painfully aware of the iPhone Effect. I’m not talking about specific iPhone features or design elements,<br />
although those are revolutionary enough. No, I’m referring to the way the iPhone came about<br />
– the way Steve Jobs offered carriers exclusivity in exchange for giving up all design control.<br />
“We’ll make you the exclusive iPhone carrier,” he said (I’m paraphrasing here), ‘”but you won’t even<br />
see the phone until it’s about ready to ship. You’ll get no veto power, no micromanagement, no design<br />
control. You’ll just be lucky to carry our phone.”<br />
Cingular/AT&T agreed (its CEO didn’t even see the phone’s design until two weeks before it was<br />
shown to the public), and the rest is history. That history includes the Great Carrier Epiphany of 2007,<br />
which was a gigantic relaxing of control by cell carriers. First, Google announced an open cellphone<br />
software platform called Android and, incredibly, several major carriers joined its alliance. Then Verizon,<br />
traditionally a conservative company when it came to design control, announced it would welcome<br />
all phone brands and models to its networks.<br />
All of this is only good news for consumers like me, of course, but by extension, it’s good news for<br />
carriers. More than ever, cell phones are where the action is: the growth, the explosion, the excitement.<br />
People don’t talk about their new PCs anymore; they talk about their new phones.<br />
And in the new era of snap-on, Internet-based calling features and an exploding design freedom<br />
for handset hardware and software, the enthusiasm has only just begun. J
11<br />
C U S T O M E R S E R V I C E<br />
Explore possibilities, exchange ideas, expand knowledge<br />
at SOLUTIONS 2008<br />
Linda Cont. from page 3<br />
ers. It really is a win-win<br />
situation!<br />
How do telecommunications professionals<br />
around the globe find time and opportunity<br />
to increase their expertise and share experiences?<br />
For <strong>Syniverse</strong> customers, the answer is as simple<br />
as SOLUTIONS 2008, the premier customer<br />
conference for global mobile operators.<br />
“For more than 20 years, SOLUTIONS has<br />
provided insightful and thought-provoking content<br />
as well as the best possible educational and<br />
networking opportunities,” said Tony Holcombe,<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> president and CEO. “This year the tradition<br />
continues with an exceptional agenda that<br />
offers our customers the opportunity to explore<br />
possibilities, exchange ideas and expand their<br />
knowledge in a completely stress-free, pleasant<br />
business atmosphere.”<br />
Taking place June 16 through 18 at the beautiful<br />
Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club in<br />
St. Petersburg, Florida, SOLUTIONS is designed<br />
for all levels of telecommunications professionals<br />
worldwide, especially those in middle to upper-level<br />
positions, including managers, managing directors,<br />
vice presidents and CEOs.<br />
In addition to having a wide variety<br />
of breakout sessions, roundtable<br />
discussions and interactive activities,<br />
SOLUTIONS also features two<br />
exceptional keynote speakers. Michael<br />
Eisner, former CEO of The Walt<br />
Disney Company, will talk about<br />
innovation. Tom Burgess, founder of<br />
Third Screen Media, will discuss the<br />
future of mobile advertising.<br />
SOLUTIONS also provides a<br />
wide variety of networking opportunities.<br />
In fact, many past attendees have<br />
said one of the most beneficial aspects<br />
of the annual conference is the personal and business<br />
connections made with peers from around the globe.<br />
“We’ve worked extremely hard to ensure we<br />
provide the most worthwhile experience possible,”<br />
Tony said. “I’ve no doubt that the unique combination<br />
of networking and learning opportunities mixed<br />
with a relaxed environment will result in a valuable<br />
opportunity for all of us to work together and learn<br />
from each other.” J<br />
SOLUTIONS is exclusively for <strong>Syniverse</strong> customers and<br />
prospective customers who have signed a nondisclosure agreement<br />
with <strong>Syniverse</strong>. For more information, contact your <strong>Syniverse</strong> sales<br />
representative or visit www.solutions.syniverse.com.<br />
Synergy: What do you<br />
hear from customers about<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong>?<br />
Linda: Customers<br />
frequently tell me our<br />
quality and flexibility enable<br />
them to simplify the<br />
complexity of a fast-paced,<br />
constantly changing<br />
environment. They appreciate<br />
being able to use our<br />
solutions to extend their<br />
own business models and<br />
address new ideas in a rapidly<br />
evolving marketplace.<br />
Synergy: What makes it<br />
special to be a part of the<br />
<strong>Syniverse</strong> team?<br />
Linda: Definitely the people!<br />
We have some of the<br />
best and brightest in the<br />
industry, with many levels<br />
and areas of expertise. I<br />
love showing new customers<br />
the abundance of<br />
knowledge and experience<br />
we have to offer. When we<br />
bring our vast talent and<br />
innovative ideas together<br />
with our customers, everyone<br />
wins.<br />
Synergy: What is your<br />
favorite part of the job?<br />
Linda: I love that there<br />
always are new prospects<br />
and new opportunities to<br />
be found. I enjoy being the<br />
interface to help potential<br />
customers realize ways<br />
to improve their business<br />
and increase revenue. It<br />
always is exciting to work<br />
with those who are on the<br />
industry’s cutting edge and<br />
are using technology to<br />
drive new, intriguing business<br />
models.
S Y N I V E R S E W O R L D W I D E H E A D Q U A R T E R S<br />
See you at the<br />
following events . . .<br />
Fraud Forum #43<br />
May 14-16<br />
Budapest, Hungary<br />
Corporate<br />
Headquarters<br />
8125 Highwoods Palm Way<br />
Tampa, FL, USA 33647-1776<br />
+1 813 637 5000<br />
CDG IRT<br />
May 21-23<br />
Beijing, China<br />
GSMA Mobile Innovation<br />
Marketplace – Americas<br />
June 3-4<br />
Atlanta, Georgia, USA<br />
SOLUTIONS 2008<br />
June 16-18<br />
St. Petersburg, Florida, USA<br />
CDG IRT<br />
September 3-5<br />
Vancouver, Canada<br />
CTIA IT<br />
September 10-12<br />
San Francisco, California, USA<br />
CALA<br />
Headquarters<br />
Thames 91<br />
1st Floor, Office 1<br />
San Isidro<br />
CP: B1609JUA<br />
Buenos Aires<br />
Argentina<br />
+54 11 4765 8687<br />
EMEA<br />
Headquarters<br />
Regus Zen Building<br />
Newtonlaan 115<br />
Utrecht, 3584 BH<br />
The Netherlands<br />
+31 30 210 6511<br />
Asia Pacific<br />
Headquarters<br />
27/F, 248 Queen’s Road East<br />
Wanchai<br />
Hong Kong, China<br />
+852 2893 3776<br />
Simplifying complexity,<br />
delivering possibilities<br />
www.syniverse.com<br />
© 2008 <strong>Syniverse</strong> <strong>Technologies</strong>, Inc. All rights reserved. <strong>Syniverse</strong> and the <strong>Syniverse</strong> logo are service marks and FraudX is a registered trademark of <strong>Syniverse</strong><br />
<strong>Technologies</strong>, Inc. SimulScribe is a registered trademark of SimulScribe LLC. To subscribe to this magazine, email synergy@syniverse.com.