Cisco Service Control Integration Level 3: Advanced Policy Enforcement
The Cisco® Service Control Engine is preconfigured to perform deep packet inspection and to interoperate with the Collection Manager and Subscriber Manager. For more complex rules and the ability to add to and change rules in real time, the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager may be added. Using the Broadband Policy Manager (Figure 1), a service portal may be created that allows service providers to define new policies based on the collected intelligence of per-subscriber packet flows, subscriber identity, and overall network efficiency.
Figure 1. Cisco Broadband Policy Manager
Policies may include blocking of specific URLs for all subscribers or per-subscriber policies based on service plans. This gives service providers the unique ability to coordinate personalized customer experiences instead of simply providing generic or commoditized access services. And, with the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager's ability to communicate with other service control elements, subscriber self-service is possible, giving individuals the opportunity to configure their services and access restrictions on demand.
Please refer to the Cisco Service Control Overview brochure and other service control level brochures for more information. Cisco service control solutions are based on a sequential deployment strategy with network elements and technologies enabling enhanced levels of service control.
Broadband Policy Manager Applications
An array of specialized applications is possible with the addition of the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager, including:
• Application-based tiers of service and access control: Using the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager as part of a service control solution, service providers can account for usage on an individual subscriber level while enforcing different policies on a variety of applications or services. This dynamic, subscriber-centric enforcement model allows for the creation of access and throughput-on-demand services that can improve overall subscriber satisfaction by allowing subscribers to select or gain access to chosen content and resources. Providers can initiate truly customized broadband products and services and enforce service parameters directly correlated to the needs of individual users.
• Self-service portal: With dynamic subscriber, application, and service flow intelligence, subscribers can configure services on demand in a self-service portal. Self-service applications possible with the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager as part of a Cisco Service Control solution in conjunction with specialized value-added services (VAS) systems include parental controls, content filtering, allowance-based subscriptions, bandwidth on demand, and pay-as-you-go subscriptions.
• Content charging: A content-charging solution offers service providers the ability to increase revenue and use infrastructure investments by adding prepaid and postpaid content-based services to mobile service offerings. Broadband providers can create application quotas, and mobile providers can use the content-charging solution to enable real-time charging of traffic according to sophisticated rate plans and control traffic based on advanced prepaid and postpaid billing models. Real-time charging is performed against a subscriber's balance and usage, preventing potential revenue loss.
• Premium service enablement: With the dynamic policy capabilities of the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager and the intelligence gathered with the service control elements, service providers can quickly deploy new services. By integrating new services into existing quality-of-service (QoS) frameworks and communicating with policy servers and network transport elements, service control technology helps enable dynamic, real-time provisioning of network QoS based on application activity, greatly simplifying integration and delivery costs associated with the delivery of multiple new services.
Modular Approach to Cisco Services
Cisco Services lets you choose exactly the assistance you require, whether that means consultation with a subject matter expert (SME); a detailed deployment assessment; full deployment services with design, installation, configuration, and testing; or customized services.
Consultation with a Cisco SME is available in one-week or two-week increments. These engagements can help reduce time to deployment by making available a dedicated expert who works with the in-house installation team to provide guidance and recommendations during the initial install. Service control level 3 engagements include an "Installation and Usage Report Service Package" that details the full lifecycle services for deployment of the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager. The Cisco consultant guides the team through installation, report setup, and day 2 support needs.
Deliverables:
• Installation assistance and recommendations
• Report setup assistance and configuration of reports
Consulting Support and Review Services feature Cisco Services consultants assisting customers in the design, staging, testing, deployment, and acceptance testing phases of all service control projects.
Deliverables include review and comments on:
• Low-level design document
• Site requirements specification
• Network staging plan
• Network implementation plan
• Network ready for use document
Full Deployment Services are available for customers who want to engage Cisco Services for installation of the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager using the Cisco prepare, plan, design, implement, operate, and optimize (PPDIOO) methodology. These phases include project management, design, and implementation consulting and integration services. Under this option, Cisco Services takes ownership for the tasks and deliverables specified under a fixed-price statement of work (SoW).
The Cisco Services team will assess the current network and systems architecture and develop a high-level architecture for the service control solution based on business requirements during the planning phase of the project. After a high-level architecture is agreed upon, the team will prepare an overall project plan. A detailed design document will be developed during the design phase. The implementation plan will cover a lab validation phase of the design, a market trial for a test market, and a production rollout for all markets. The implementation team will transition the implemented system to operations by providing knowledge transfer and "as built" documents to the operations staff. Customers needing operations support can purchase ongoing subscription services for maintaining and operating the system.
Full deployment services for the Cisco Broadband Policy Manager include:
• Deployment of Broadband Policy Manager
• Custom software integration services to integrate a Cisco service control solution with customer self-care portal, billing systems, customer policy manager, and quota manager
• Custom report development
Deliverables for full Cisco Broadband Policy Manager deployment include:
• Customer requirements document
• Site requirements specification
• Project plan
• Project management
• Solution design document
• Implementation plan
• Hardware and software installation
• Configuration
• Acceptance test plan
• Acceptance testing and test report
• Knowledge transfer on implemented system
• Documentation on implemented system
Customization services are also available for Cisco Service Control solutions that may require integration with an external database, customized reporting, high-availability configurations, policy server integration, and other activities.
Using Cisco Expertise
Cisco engineers help service providers rapidly plan, design, test, install, and optimize Cisco Service Control products and technologies while mitigating risks and accelerating time to market for new services. Cisco Services uses best practices and proven methodologies for each phase of the project lifecycle. We utilize tools and test labs and collaborate with partners as necessary to help ensure the stability, availability, transparent integration, and lower cost of ownership of Cisco solutions. Cisco Services has an award-winning global technical assistance center, an extensive network of certified partners, and customer portals. Our customers have access to an extensive collection of certified IP experts with years of experience in all phases of deploying and supporting network infrastructures both large and small.
