WO2008078338A2

WO2008078338A2 - Method and apparatus for controlled retention of an inbound roaming mobile station

Info

Publication number: WO2008078338A2
Application number: PCT/IN2007/000602
Authority: WO
Inventors: Atul Madan; Vikas B.V.; Sanjive Shrivastava; Sanjay Gupta; Manish Jain; Ashish Desai
Original assignee: Bharti Telesoft Ltd.
Priority date: 2006-12-25
Filing date: 2007-12-26
Publication date: 2008-07-03
Also published as: WO2008078338A3; WO2008078338A8

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a method that enables controlled retention of an inbound mobile station and associated systems. The method includes detecting an attempt to register on to a second visiting network upon receipt of a cancellation registration message in a first visiting network from a mobile station's home network, sequentially comparing said second visiting network with a series of pre-stored preferred networks, terminating said attempt by sending one or more registration messages to said home network responsive to said cancellation registration message upon determining that the attempt to register is not with a preferred network; wherein said step of terminating said attempt to register is discontinued after a pre-defined interval of time; and wherein said step of terminating said attempt to register is discontinued when the second visiting network is identified as a location near to said inbound mobile stations home network, thereby enabling controlled retention of said inbound mobile station.

Description

Title of the Invention

Method of Controlled Retention of an Inbound Mobile Station and Systems Thereof Field of the Invention

This invention, in general, relates to providing enhanced roaming services. More particularly, it relates to a method and system for controlled retention of an inbound mobile station. Background of the Invention In the world of telecommunication big portion of revenues have been generated from roaming customers that provide mobile operators with one of the most significant revenue streams, accounting for around 15% to 20% of overall revenues. Today, international roaming revenue in the GSM world is estimated to be worth US$50 billion annually. To ensure they gain a maximum share of that revenue, GSM carriers must provide their roaming customers with a home-like experience in the networks they visit. To achieve this, they must proactively move customers to specific networks in the area visited and retain roaming customers on these networks.

The foremost important thing to generate more revenues from roaming customers, the service providers must ascertain two important factors i.e. the number of roamers and their life on the network. As the first factor is self explanatory such that as much as customers are on roaming on particular network corresponding revenues are generated. Other factor i.e. customer's life on the network plays a vital role and is a challenging task for every network (or say service provider). Hence retaining customers on a particular network plays an important role in generating revenues. However, roaming customer can be characterized in two categories:

1. Inbound roamers .

2. Outbound roamers.

A network can further enhance roaming revenues by retaining an inbound roamer. However, retaining of an inbound roamer is still a challenge for operators as there is little that can be done to ensure inbound roamers remain loyal to a network.

There are various factors such as network coverage issues and competition, which makes retaining roamers on a network increasingly challenging. When first attempting to roam, subscribers generally latch on to the first network that their handset detects. In most instances, the subscriber does not have a special preference for a particular network, or any knowledge of the quality of service he will receive from that network. Instead, the network he latches on to is determined by his handset properties and the strength, availability and coverage of the network signal.

As a general rule, subscribers do not proactively change networks during the stay, but in reality, the existence of blind spots, which occur in any operator's network, where coverage momentarily disappears, causes roamers to look for a new network. This in turn leads to a reduction in the average time on the network and lower average revenue per roamer. Assuming that operators provide excellent coverage and quality of service, the ability to exert control on inbound roamers to ensure retention on their networks, provide a significant boost to an operator's revenues. However, retaining the in-roamer under every circumstance may not be favorable for the in-roamer. There is a need of a system that addresses the above-mentioned requirement, thereby enhancing the roamers user experience. Summary of the Invention

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a method enabling controlled retention of an inbound mobile station. It is another object of the present invention to provide a system that enables controlled retention of an inbound mobile station.

The above objects are achieved by different embodiments of the invention, however, not limited to, as disclosed hereinafter.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method which comprises the steps of detecting an attempt to register on to a second visiting network upon receipt of a cancellation registration message in a first visiting network from a mobile station's home network, sequentially comparing said second visiting network with a series of pre-stored preferred networks, terminating said attempt by sending one or more registration messages to said home network responsive to said cancellation registration message upon determining that the attempt to register is not with a preferred network; wherein said step of terminating said attempt to register is discontinued after a pre-defined interval of time; and wherein said step of terminating said attempt to register is discontinued when the second visiting network is identified as a location near to said inbound mobile stations home network, thereby enabling controlled retention of said inbound mobile station.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a system which comprises a detecting means configured to detect an attempt to register on to a second visiting network upon receipt of a cancellation registration message in a first visiting network from said mobile station's home network; a comparator for determining if the second visiting network corresponds to any of a series of preferred networks stored therein, a terminating means configured to terminate said attempt to register to said second visiting network by sending one or more registration messages to said home network responsive to said cancellation registration message upon the determination that said attempt to register is not with a preferred network, the terminating means is in communi cation with the detecting means and the comparator, wherein the terminating of the attempt to register is discontinued after a predefined interval of time; and wherein the terminating of the attempt to register is discontinued when the second visiting network is identified as a location near to said inbound mobile station's home network, thereby enabling controlled retention of an inbound mobile station.

In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method, wherein the cancellation registration message is a cancel location message sent by the inbound mobile stations home network.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method, wherein the one or more registration messages are location update messages sent from the first visiting network.

In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method such that the step of terminating the attempt to register does not commence for one or more of pre-configured inbound mobile stations.

In accordance with yet embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method wherein the second visiting network includes a plurality of competitor networks predetermined for the inbound mobile stations. In accordance with still another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method wherein the step of sequentially comparing the second visiting network with a series of pre-stored preferred networks includes establishing a preferred-network on the basis of priority. In accordance with still another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a system wherein the second visiting network includes a plurality of competitor networks pre-determined for the inbound mobile stations.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a system, wherein the detecting means is configured to monitor roaming signals between the inbound mobile station's home network, said first visiting network and said second visiting network. Brief Description of the drawings

Further aspect of the present invention together with additional features contributing thereto and advantages occurring there from will be apparent from the description of preferred embodiments of the present invention which are shown in the accompanying drawing figures.

Figure 1 illustrates a system environment where the apparatus in accordance with the present invention is implemented. Figure 2 is an exploded view of the apparatus in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Figure 3 is an exemplary system environment in which the apparatus in accordance with the present invention is implemented.

Figure 4 is a process flow illustrating the process of retaining a roamer on the network in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Figure 5. is a process flow illustrating the process of retaining an inbound mobile station in an exemplary system environment in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Invention Figure 1 illustrates a system environment (100) where the apparatus (140) in accordance with the present invention is implemented. As illustrated therein, the apparatus (140) is deployed in the visiting network, which retains a roaming mobile station (150) in a preferred network. The apparatus (140) is connected to the SS7 link between the home network and the visited network. The apparatus (140) is adapted to monitor the roaming links and latch the inbound roaming Mobile Station (MS) (150) to a preferred network configured therein. It is to be understood that the system environment can be any mobile telephony infrastructure such a GSM, 3GSM, 3 G, CDMA, WCDMA, GPRS etc or any mobile telephony systems or networks such as WiFi, WiM&x etc, or any system capable of communication over home or visited networks.

Figure 2 is an exploded view of the apparatus (140). The apparatus (140) comprises a detecting means (160), a comparator (170) and a terminating means (180). The detecting means (160) is configured to intercept the cancel location messages from the home networks, thus detecting the inbound mobile station's (150) attempt to register to another network. The detecting means (150) is in communication with a comparator (170). The comparator (170) contains a series of preferred networks that is stored therein. It compares the VLR id of the network with which the mobile station (150) is attempting to register i.e. the second visiting network with those of the preferred networks stored. The comparator (170) is in communication with a terminating means (180) which in turn is in communication with the comparator (170) and the detecting means (150). The terminating means (180) sends registration messages in the form of Fake Location Update messages, if the second visiting network with which the inbound mobile station (150) is attempting to register is not found to be a preferred network. The terminating means (180) functionality stops after a predefined interval of time and when the network is identified to be in a location close to the home network (130).

The innovative apparatus (140) for enhancing roaming services disclosed herein is referred as 'Roam Enhancer⁵ throughout the specification.

Roam Enhancer ensures that roamers do not leave the network due to momentary black spots. Roam Enhancer in one embodiment uses standard GSM LU messages to interface with the home network and retain the roamer. The redirection is transparent to the mobile station and integrating the solution with existing network elements is simple and quick to deploy. Roam Enhancer is an SS7 node that is under the operator's direct control. Marketing and technical strategies govern the dynamics and logic used to control traffic and operators define retention logic. Using Roam Enhancer, operators dynamically control and monitor network traffic in real-time. Roam Enhancer can also be used to counter or neutralize preferred roaming solutions installed by any operators who have preferential roaming with competing network operators. The solution helps to cut down unwarranted abort or error codes that such operators might be generating - and with which they may be loading your network. Figure 3 is an exemplary system environment (200) in which the apparatus (140) in accordance with the present invention is implemented. The system (200) indicates a visited network (210) and home network (220). The home network's (220) Home Location Register (HLR) (290), stores all information related to the mobile station (230) and a Gateway Mobile Switching Center (GMSC) (280), provides routing information of the mobile station (230) to its HLR (290). GMSC (260) resides in the visited network (210). When a mobile station (230) enters into the visited network (210), it becomes an inbound roamer for the visited network (210). Once the roamer enters the visited network (210), the home network's (220) MSC/VLR (250) updates the location of the roamer and sends a Cancel Location (CL) message to the GMSC (260). Upon receiving the CL message the GMSC (260) routes E.214 based MAP messages via a SS7 El link (270) to the Roam Enhancer (140) deployed in the visited network (210). The Roam Enhancer (140) is placed in the visited network 210 with a distinct point code and network address related to the home network 220. The Roam Enhancer (140) validates the network, selected by the mobile station while roaming, by extracting the Visitor Location Register (VLR) id from the Location Update (LU) message of the second visiting network. The Roam Enhancer (140) compares the VLR id to a list of preferred networks that is configured thereto. It checks and verifies network selection logic and the rules defined. Upon validation and configured logic, if the inbound roamer is to be retained, a SS7 signaling message needs to be sent immediately to the home network (220), thus forcing the home network (220) to send a CL message to the second network which is the competing network thereby forcing the inbound roamer to abort the LU to the non-preferred network and then initiate a new LU. This process continues until the preferred network is selected by the inbound roamer and the LU is accepted by the node and directed to the GMSC (280) and from there eventually to the HLR (290). Thereafter, Roam Enhancer (140) continuously monitors the activity of the roamer on the visited network (220). Monitoring the roamer activity comprises monitoring the MAP packets such as the MAP Update Location, MAP Cancel Location. MAP Insert Subscriber Data, MAP Purge MS. The Roamer information is updated in the Roam Enhancer (140) through UDP Packet. The UDP packet ROAMJNFO contains IMSI, MSISDN, VLR, HLR, and operation code. The terms inbound mobile station, mobile station and roamer are interchangeably used throughout the specification.

The Roam Enhancer (140) provides SS7 Interfaces to the user applications. The Roam Enhancer Application communicates through TCP & UDP socket. It has TCP & UDP interfaces based on type of Packets it supports. Once the roamer reaches predefined limit of retaining criteria, according to the present invention, the Roam Enhancer (140) drops the roamer and stops monitoring or retaining the roamer on host network.612 and terminates all communication with the roamer 613. Further, if the second network is identified to be in a location near to the home network (220), the Roam Enhancer (140) stops retaining the roamer in the visited network (210). This prevents the subscriber from being affected by the retention attempts, when the subscriber is actually in their home network.

Figure 4 is a process flow illustrating the process of retaining a roamer on the network by the Roam Enhancer (140) in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. The process begins with the entry of an inbound mobile station (150) in the visited network (120) at step 310. The Roam Enhancer (140) detects an attempt of the inbound roamer to register with a second visiting network at step 320. More specifically, the detection means (160) residing in the Roam Enhancer (140) taps information regarding CL message from the home network and LU message from the second visiting network. At step 330, the comparator (170) sequentially compares the VLR id of the second visiting network with that of a series of preferred network stored in the Roam Enhancer 140. At step 350 if the second visiting network is found to be a preferred network, the mobile station is allowed to latch onto the second visiting network at step 410. At step 360, if the second visiting network is not the preferred network, at step 370, the terminating means (180) terminates the registration attempt with the second visiting network. If the mobile station reaches a predefined criteria of retaining period at step 380, predefined criteria is the number of retention attempts allowable which is preconfigured in the system, the termination process discontinues in step 400. Also, if the second visiting network is identified as a location near to the home network, the termination process discontinues at step 400. The mobile station is allowed to latch onto the second visiting network at step 41O.Thus, if the mobile station is not to be retained, the Roam Enhancer 140 stops tapping the El link of the particular mobile station and allows the mobile station to select the second visiting network. It is to be understood that the functionalities of the detecting means, comparator, and the terminating means can be performed by the Roam Enhancer (140) alone.

Figure 5. is a process flow illustrating the process of retaining an inbound mobile station by the Roam Enhancer (140), when deployed in an exemplary system environment (200) in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. The process begins at step 410 with the entry of the mobile station (230) in the visitor's network (210). Location of the mobile station is updated by the MSC/VLR (250), which sends CL message to GMSC (260) at step 42O.The GMSC (260) routes E.214 based MAP messages from the roaming links to the Roam Enhancer (140) at step 430, The Roam Enhancer (140) database consists of a list of preferred networks and it compares the VLR to the same at step 440. The Roam Enhancer (140) validates the network by extracting the VLR id from the LU message and checks for predefined network selection logic and the rules. Upon validation of VLR id, the Roam Enhancer (140) decides whether to retain the mobile station (230) on the network or not. At step 450, if it determines that the network to which the mobile station is attempting to latch is not a preferred network (competitor network), the mobile station is to be retained. At step 460 a SS7 signaling message is sent to the home network (220) immediately. Upon receiving the SS7 signaling message, the home network (220) sends CL message to the competing network and forces the inbound roamer to abort the LU to the non-preferred network and then initiate a new LL¹ at step 470. Further, the home network (220) continues sending CL messages to the inbound mobile station (230) until he selects the preferred network and the UJ is accepted by the node and directed to the GMSC (280) and from there eventually to the HLR (290) at step 480. The process discontinues after a predefined interval of time. The process also discontinues if it is determined that the network to which the mobile station is attempting to register is at a location near to the home network. This is achieved by configuring the Location Area (LAC) and cell ID and an association with neighbour operator networks. Further, the border area retention rules are configurable.

The disclosed embodiments are illustrative from various ways in which the present invention may be practiced. Other embodiments can be implemented by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

We Claim:

1) A method comprising the steps of: detecting an attempt to register on to a second visiting network upon receipt of a cancellation registration message in a first visiting network from a mobile station's home network; sequentially comparing said second visiting network with a series of pre-stored preferred networks; terminating said attempt by sending one or more registration messages to said home network responsive to said cancellation registration message upon determining that the attempt to register is not with a preferred network; wherein said step of terminating said attempt to register is discontinued after a pre-defined interval of time; and wherein said step of terminating said attempt to register is discontinued when the second visiting network is identified as a location near to said inbound mobile stations home network, thereby enabling controlled retention of said inbound mobile station.

2) The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cancellation registration message is a cancel location message sent by the inbound mobile stations home network.

3) The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the one or more registration messages are location update messages sent from the first visiting network.

4) The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the step of terminating said attempt to register does not commence for one or more of pre-configured inbound mobile stations.

5) The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second visiting network includes a plurality of competitor networks pre-determined for the inbound mobile stations. 6) The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of sequentially comparing said second visiting network with a series of pre-stored preferred networks includes establishing a preferred-network on the basis of priority.

7) An apparatus (140) comprising: a detecting means (160) configured to detect an attempt to register on to a second visiting network upon receipt of a cancellation registration message in a first visiting network (120) from said mobile station's home network (130); a comparator (170) for determining if the second visiting network corresponds to any of a series of preferred networks stored therein; a terminating means (180) configured to terminate said attempt to register to said second visiting network by sending one or more registration messages to said home network (130) responsive to said cancellation registration message upon the determination that said attempt to register is not with a preferred network, said terminating means (180) in communication with said detecting means (160) and said comparator (170), wherein said terminating of said attempt to register is discontinued after a predefined interval of time; and wherein said terminating of said attempt to register is discontinued when said second visiting network is identified as a location near to said inbound mobile station's home network (130), thereby enabling controlled retention of an inbound mobile station.

8) The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein said second visiting network includes a plurality of competitor networks pre-determined for the inbound mobile stations.

9) The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the detecting means is configured to monitor roaming signals between the inbound mobile station's home network, said first visiting network and said second visiting network.