Oracle takes telcos from silo to SOA

Oracle has added Norwegian application platform development firm Net4Call to its string of acquisitions and strengthened its service delivery platform (SDP) portfolio. Net4Call's VoIP, mobile and multimedia application vendors operating in a converging environment will help service providers, network operators and systems integrators move from the silo-based networks to service-oriented architecture (SOA). SOA can help carriers provision services quickly to the switching consumer and lower customer churn. Oracle's purchase of HotSip added IMS technology to its lineup, and its recent Portal Software acquisition will add the billing and revenue management components. With an SDP offering, Oracle will be able to take on BEA Systems, IBM, Microsoft, Telcordia, HP and others. This suggests that traditional enterprise vendors are now entering the coveted telco market.

For more on Oracle's SDP:
- read Oracle's press release
- check out this internetnews article

PLUS: Billing systems giant Amdocs bought content download system vendor Qpass for $275 million in cash. This highlights the growing importance of content delivery platforms to telco services. Skype uses Qpass to sell original pictures, sounds and ringtones as part of its new Personalise Skype service. Article