SS8 has been committed to the messaging market for nearly two decades. Operating as SS8 Networks today, and previously as Centigram, our company has deployed in excess of 1,800 systems, in over 600 locations with more than 230 customers. Our customers encompass both enterprise and carrier organizations; including some of the world’s largest Tier-1 service providers. These wireline and wireless customers have deployed individual platforms supporting more than 2 million subscribers. Services delivered from these platforms range from plain old voice mail (POVM) to complete unified messaging solutions with integrated, customized,portal components. 

SS8 satisfies customers by delivering a rich bundle of communications products and services, including our centerpiece SC3100 unified communications platform (UCP). These products embrace leading edge technologies and are developed by an experienced and innovative engineering team; capable of delivering carrier-grade voicemail, unified messaging, and unified communication solutions. The SC3100 UCP uniquely operates as a stand-alone unified messaging solution that can be immediately deployed in your network today, while also conforming to the standardized requirements of an IMS-compliant infrastructure. As service providers evolve their network architecture, and expand their footprint, subscriber-count and application portfolio, SS8 is the partner that not only understands the demands of your existing business, but can also deliver, shape and find solutions for complex technical challenges and an empowered customer base.

As a TL9000-approved vendor, with NEBS-certified platforms, a 24/7 service organization and extensive professional services experience, SS8 is completely qualified to provide these user-friendly messaging solutions to the worldwide carrier community. Our professional services team is available to help customize your messaging portfolio, leveraging our advanced service creation environment to deliver compelling graphical, touch-tone and speech user interfaces. After all, today’s competitive communications market demands that telephone companies deploy solutions that leverage existing assets, fit into next generation architectures and maintain the flexibility to combat radically new service offerings and providers. With this in mind, we are committed to delivering solutions that combine superior and scalable technology, with a vision to the future and a path to reducing a service provider’s total messaging and unified communications costs.

The SC3100 Unified Communications Platform

The SC3100 unified communications platform provides carriers with a proven solution for delivering plain old voice mail (POVM) concurrently within both a classic TDM/AIN and IP/SIP (IMS and VoIP) environment. Augmenting the POVM solution, the SC3100 UCP is replete with a suite of robust and flexible applications that can deliver an integrated unified communications environment with a fully customizable browser-based interface. User access to, and manipulation of, stored messages and tailored auto-attendant options can now be uniquely personalized and branded by an individual service provider. The SC3100 UCP also provides carriers with a distinct competitive edge, facilitating the rapid introduction of advanced unified communications offerings such as dynamic speech user interfaces, text to speech conversion, videomail, a synchronized network-based address book/calendar, find-me/follow-me services, and cross-network message-waiting notification.

In summary, the SC3100 UCP is built around a modular and scalable architecture that:

The SC3100 UCP readily integrates into an existing TDM or VoIP architecture, using SS7, SMDI, SIP or in-band connectivity. As service providers migrate to a standardized IMS-based (IP multimedia subsystem) architecture, it is vital that the chosen unified communications platform connects at the appropriate architectural reference points. The SC3100 UCP uniquely combines the attributes of a self-contained unified communications platform with the architecture of an IMS-compliant element (or elements).

The Importance of the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)

The SC3100 Unified Communications Platform (UCP) was designed specifically to deliver revenue-generating services within a converged, multi-protocol, communications environment. Our design guidelines assume that robust, ubiquitous consumer access, along with the ability to reuse expensive core service delivery elements, are vital to the successful deployment of any enhanced service offering. In addition, SS8 Networks recognize that many disparate access networks (packet switched, circuit switched, legacy, NGN) and end devices would benefit from the adoption of a SIP-centric unified messaging platform within the IP Multimedia Subsystem. Perhaps even more important, is the direct backward compatibility of this component with the advanced intelligent network (AIN) elements and interfaces prolific in today’s wireline and wireless infrastructures.

This design philosophy has allowed SS8 Networks to present service providers with an integrated media and messaging platform — the SC3100 UCP — which can be logically and physically broken down into 5 discrete elements:

Three of these elements may be directly mapped to network elements and reference points that are detailed within the baseline technical specifications for the 3GPP, 3GPP2 and ETSI IP Multimedia Subsystem.

SS8 Networks also provides customizable elements for the presentation tier [of the IMS model]. Provided as blocks of Java code within our I-Suite software developer’s kit (SDK), these Java ‘beans’ can be instantiated within any standard web or application server, such as those commonly found within the IMS services/applications layer. The presentation tier can then simplify the development of branded, personalized, web-based unified communications interfaces that will help differentiate a carrier’s service offering.

A IMS Transitional Network Element

It is obvious that the worldwide carrier community is committed to developing an IMS-based next generation architecture. Successful deployment will result in a network that simplifies the creation and provisioning of revenue-generating services by a real order of magnitude. However, given current network installations, and established operator and engineering expertise, it is crucial that the unified messaging platform fit equally well into not only the proposed IMS dimension, but also a service provider’s existing business practice. The SC3100 UCP is uniquely equipped to satisfy that need.

Capable of delivering today’s, crucial, revenue-generating services, concurrently within both SS7/TDM AIN and SIP/IP IMS infrastructures, the SC3100 Unified Communications Platform is a leading transitional network element (TNE) for service providers migrating their messaging applications to a next-generation network architecture.

Service and Support

SS8 Networks’ service organization is trained to deliver a wide range of professional services that include site surveys, installation and commissioning, field and remote maintenance, product training, and the creation of bespoke customer applications. Our support organization is available to work closely with every individual customer, and other equipment vendors, to ensure that our solutions function as required in your network. As would be expected, SS8 often goes the extra mile to solve interoperability issues that may arise when complete service solutions are developed at our customers’ sites. With nearly 20 years of experience in selling and supporting messaging platforms, we have engaged in virtually all aspects of critical-network installations, maintenance, and in-service upgrades. Our 24x7 Technical Assistance Centre, is available to provide our customers with the highest level of global technical support, implementation, and field service. In addition, SS8 will dedicate a full time program manger to completely manage the customer relationship through to successful product deployment and service initiation.

Summary

SS8 Networks has been a long term industry supplier of messaging solutions to carriers of telecommunication services. We have developed an impressive customer list, complete with current US Tier 1 service providers. As the industry has migrated from voicemail services, through to unified messaging, and now unified communications, SS8 has continued to pace this change with the evolution of our core technology and product suite. As a result, our SC3100 unified communications platform represents the industry’s state of the art solution for hybrid VoIP and TDM message storage and application creation. Looking further ahead, SS8 can already demonstrate compliance to the heralded IMS architectures and is perfectly positioned to deliver a consolidated solution for both current and next generation communication networks.

We are proud of the company that we have created and the scalability, reliability and innovative capabilities of our product suite. And as an enterprise that is focused firmly on continued growth with some of the worlds largest service providers, we assure every customer of our courtesy, attention, professionalism and commitment to success at all levels, and at all times.