Mobile virtual network enabler

A mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE) is a company that provides network infrastructure and related services, such as business support systems, administration, and operations support systems to a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). This enables MVNOs to offer services to their own customers with their own brands. The MVNE does not have a relationship with consumers, but rather is a provider of network enablement platforms and services.^[1]

MVNEs specialize in planning, implementation, and management of mobile services. Typically this includes SIM provisioning and configuration, customer billing, customer relationship management, and value-added service platforms. In effect, they enable an MVNO to outsource both the initial integration with the MNO, and the ongoing business and technical operations management. A related type of company is a mobile virtual network aggregator (MVNA). MVNE is a telecom solution, whereas MVNA is a business model which includes wholesale of an operator's airtime and routing of traffic over the MVNE's own switches.

The benefits of using an MVNE include a reduction in the upfront capital expenses of an MVNO, financing arrangements offered by MVNEs to cover start-up costs, and reduced wholesale airtime costs achieved through economies of scale of hosting multiple MVNOs on a single MVNE platform. Other potential benefits include reduced operational expenses via outsourcing management of business and technical operations, smoother launch processes, and benefiting from previous experience of the MVNE as a negotiating channel for smaller MVNOs to reach a wholesale agreement with the MNO.

Using an MVNE may not be appropriate for all MVNOs. The considerations for this decision are manifold; however, some of the key reasons for an MVNO to not use an MVNE would be:

• The MVNO is large enough to achieve volume efficiency when going direct to the host operator (usually several hundred thousand subscribers).
• The brand and distribution channels are sufficiently strong to negotiate a joint-venture or direct relationship and obtain better margins.
• The MVNO has access to existing telecom infrastructure, for example switches, international capacity, fixed infrastructure, and billing platforms.

List of Mobile Virtual Network Enablers

• Lifecycle Software - https://www.lifecycle-software.com/nexus-mvne-platform
• Pareteum MVNE
• 1&1 Drillisch
• Bouygues Telecom Business – Distribution (BTBD, formerly called Euro-Information Telecom)
• Isoton
• Kajeet (previously dba Arterra Mobility)
• Medion AG
• Transatel
• FreedomPop
• Plintron
• Plum MVNA
• Helix Wireless
• Ventocom GmbH
• YESSS! Telekommunikation

See also

• Business Process Framework (eTOM)
• Mobile network operator
• Mobile virtual network operator
• Operations, administration and management (OAM)

References

This page was last edited on 8 January 2024, at 16:42