Overview

To a great extent, the words application and product are synonymous. An application does something useful or carries out a useful task, while a product is sold to a customer. An application is not necessarily a product, but a product is always an application. Conversely, a service is always a product, and a service can be an activity or a system feature. An application can be a service, and a service is always an application. In addition, an application can be an internal activity that only impacts the user and no one else; therefore, the application is not a product. The author s view of an application not only acknowledges all of these relationships but also takes a broader view. Applications that are internal to the carrier s operation can, in fact, be sold as a product to subscribers of all kinds, including individual and corporate subscribers.

Applications can be viewed from a variety of perspectives. However, the principal ways to view telecommunications applications are

• Technical
• Market/business

Technical perspectives are internal and external. To a carrier, one example of an internal application is a new network interface that enables the switch to communicate with an operational support system. To a carrier, an external application is a new network interface that enables the switch to communicate with another carrier s switch or with a customer s network. The application is external, because it has a direct and obvious impact on those who are outside the carrier. The application can be hardware or...