ACE*COMM recently introduced N*Score at SuperComm 2003 in Atlanta, Georgia. N*Score is a new N*VISION® module that identifies and ranks high churn-risk customers so the service provider can take action before the customer becomes another churn statistic. N*Score ranks customers according to a "customer scoring system" based on cross referencing known churn risk factors against the customers' actual usage patterns.
Studies show that efforts to keep a customer are far less expensive — and more likely to succeed — than attempts to recover a customer who has already abandoned a service provider. The key to churn control is to reach the high-risk customers before they abandon the service!
Predict. N*Score works in near-real time to rank customers according to their usage patterns. When risk exceeds a configurable threshold, the customer is flagged for immediate attention — before he or she takes action to abandon the service plan. For example, if a customer who never makes long-distance calls suddenly begins making them, he or she is at risk of shopping around for a service plan that is better suited to that kind of usage.
Intervene. Once high-risk customers are identified, the service provider can intervene in whatever way seems appropriate. For example, the customer who has suddenly begun making long-distance calls may be happy to hear about his or her current service provider's long-distance rate plans, preferring to switch plans but stay with the provider rather than seeking a plan with another provider.
Correct. The actual measures a service provider takes to correct churn risk depend on its knowledge of its market and customers. Research indicates that virtually any corrective measures have a positive impact — customers dislike it when their service provider ignores their concerns, but tend to respond very positively to any sort of intervention and corrective action.
Current N*VISION® customers can incorporate N*Score as an add-on module with very little integration effort. N*Score is also available with a specialized subset of the N*VISION® platform that is easy to install and configure and does not require additional N*VISION® components.
For more information about ACE*COMM's N*Score churn-risk engine contact Nancy Horn at nancy.horn@acecomm.com or (301) 721-3064.
NetPlus® EOSS is a Communications Solutions® magazine Product of the Year winner for 2002. Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC™), publisher of Communications Solutions, announced the award in late March 2003. It is the second time an ACE*COMM product has won a TMC "Product of the Year" award — we won in 2001 for our N*VISION specialized network-usage data warehousing platform.
"ACE*COMM's NetPlus is a clear leader in the communications and telecom industry," said Rich Tehrani, president of TMC and group editor-in-chief of Communications Solutions. "We're proud to reward their hard work and innovation with a Product of the Year Award for 2002."
Marc Robins, TMC's Vice President of Publications and Trade Shows, added "The Communications Solutions Product of the Year Awards are an important tradition and the perfect way for us to honor companies developing cutting-edge products and services."
ACE*COMM recently launched NetPlus® 6 — the next generation of its award-winning enterprise operations support system. It features a whole new level of usability and interoperability, including:
Enhanced network and communications performance.
Expedited deployment of new services and technologies.
Support for application servers and third-party plug-ins.
The seamless integration and/or replacement of disparate systems.
Increased reliability and operational efficiencies.
Workflow Engine with business rule and process definition for improved productivity and data accuracy.
For more information on NetPlus 6, please visit our website, or contact .
BTI Signs-on to "Proof of Value" Purchase Program
Business Telecom Inc. (BTI), the Southeast U.S.'s leading integrated communications provider, has signed-on to acquire ACE*COMM's N*VISION Go!™ — the rapid deployment version of the N*VISION® data management solution. After an initial investment, the Proof of Value program allows BTI's payment for the system to be derived from the bottom-line benefits they realize.
"The Proof of Value program makes good business sense for us in terms of revenue assurance — particularly when ACE*COMM is prepared to share in the risk and stand by their proven ROI track record," said Pam Schaard, Vice President Information Services at BTI.
N*VISION Go!™ will collect and process BTI's network transaction data in real time. It will identify revenue opportunities while improving overall network productivity. The Field Trial phase allowed BTI to observe N*VISIONGo!™ in its own operating environment to evaluate how well it integrates with their network and business practices, and to quantify cost management benefits before making purchase and installation decisions.
"At a time when an estimated 60 percent of carriers are considering replacing their mediation platforms to capture more revenue from ongoing business and save operating costs through improved performance, ACE*COMM is prepared to stand by its excellent track record and to 'prove' its value to customers" said Martin Demers, Chief Marketing Officer at ACE*COMM.
Get more information on the "Proof of Value" program by contacting ACE*COMM at
1-301-721-3064 or .
ACE*COMM Attracts Strategic Investment from SGF
ACE*COMM has reached an agreement in principle with SGF Tech Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Société générale de financement du Québec (SGF), to fund corporate development initiatives at the Company's office in Canada.
SGF Tech Inc. is to invest approximately US$4.5 million in ACE*COMM. The deal is expected to be sealed by the end of June 2003, after which the details of the agreement will be announced. The financing will enable the Montreal-based Canadian office to make strategic acquisitions of technology and to further tap into the vast industry knowledge that can be found in the Canadian province of Québec.
SGF (www.sgfqc.com) is an industrial and financial holding company that provides Québec businesses with development capital. With a focus on long-term economic development, SGF chooses projects that promise high profitability in 10 industry sectors, from natural resources to high technology.
The agreement is subject to due diligence and approval by the boards of directors of ACE*COMM and SGF.
ACE*COMM Provides Data Collection Technology and Support for Alcatel Customers
ACE*COMM has joined Alcatel's "Connected" partner program. As the connected partner for mediation technology, ACE*COMM supports usage-sensitive billing with flexible, configurable network usage collection for Alcatel's customers.
This new arrangement replaces ACE*COMM's long-standing original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partnership with Alcatel, in which ACE*COMM provided customized versions of its data collection platform — N*USAGE® — to Alcatel, and by extension, to its customers. Now, Alcatel's customers have direct access to ACE*COMM and its full line of related mediation technologies.
Those customers can build upon their N*USAGE® installations by adding supporting modules and applications — cost-saving and revenue-generating solutions that extend their mediation capabilities and are tailored to their specific needs.
Alcatel customers should contact Deepak Tiku at
for more information.
Value-added Reseller Agreement with SAIC
ACE*COMM has signed a value-added reseller agreement with Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), the largest employee-owned research and engineering company in the U.S. The agreement expands upon the company's existing relationship that targets potential end-users in the large carrier, federal government, state government, municipal government, and Fortune 500 market sectors.
Both companies agree that there is substantial market opportunity in providing solutions to service providers who seek to capitalize on their existing infrastructure. As well, there is an increasing demand by service providers and enterprises for mediation and OSS technologies to inject intelligence into their networks, and to derive intelligence from them.
Under the terms of the value-added reseller agreement, SAIC can resell ACE*COMM's Convergent Mediation™ and NetPlus® EOSS products. SAIC intends to introduce the ACE*COMM products to both existing and potential new customers, offering them complete network interoperability.
Go to the "Press Coverage" page to see what is being said about us in the media!
ACE*COMM Joins IPDR Board
Martin Demers, ACE*COMM's Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, has been elected to the Board of Directors of IPDR.org.
IPDR.org is an open consortium of leading service providers, equipment vendors, system integrators, and billing and mediation vendors, collaborating to facilitate service measurement and exchange for next-generation services by implementing de-facto standards.
According to IPDR.org President Aron Heintz, "The IPDR.org Board represents an impressive forum of industry leaders gathered around key issues of next-generation service accounting and billing."
Upcoming Events
Visit ACE*COMM at these upcoming events!
ACUTA Annual Conference
July 27 - 31, 2003, Hollywood, Florida.
Billing World Asia Pacific 2003
September 10 - 11, 2003, Beijing, China.
Feature Quote
...convergent mediation is a valuable tool for revenue assurance from all types of services, including PSTN, mobile, cable, IP, as well as 2.5G and 3G mobile services.
Dr. Therese Cory, The Strategic Importance of Service Provisioning and Mediation, Chorleywood Publications, 2003.
Customer Support Contact Info
Hours: 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM U.S. EST
Weekdays, except for ACE*COMM-observed holidays. After-hours calls are handled by the ACE*COMM answering service.
Contact Customer Support:
800-989-5566
301-721-HELP (4357)
Escalation Path:
(1) Customer Support
(2) Bob Lintvedt, Director of Customer Service
(301-721-3089)
(3) Charles Wood, VP of Customer Care
(301-721-3031)
About ACE*News
ACE*News is a publication for ACE*COMM customers and partners. If you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions on how we can improve this publication, please contact:
ACE*COMM recently introduced N*Score at SuperComm 2003 in Atlanta, Georgia. N*Score is a new N*VISION® module that identifies and ranks high churn-risk customers so the service provider can take action before the customer becomes another churn statistic. N*Score ranks customers according to a "customer scoring system" based on cross referencing known churn risk factors against the customers' actual usage patterns.
NetPlus® EOSS is a Communications Solutions® magazine Product of the Year winner for 2002. Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC™), publisher of Communications Solutions, announced the award in late March 2003. It is the second time an ACE*COMM product has won a TMC "Product of the Year" award — we won in 2001 for our N*VISION specialized network-usage data warehousing platform.
Business Telecom Inc. (BTI), the Southeast U.S.'s leading integrated communications provider, has signed-on to acquire ACE*COMM's N*VISION Go!™ — the rapid deployment version of the N*VISION® data management solution. After an initial investment, the Proof of Value program allows BTI's payment for the system to be derived from the bottom-line benefits they realize.
ACE*COMM has reached an agreement in principle with SGF Tech Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Société générale de financement du Québec (SGF), to fund corporate development initiatives at the Company's office in Canada.
ACE*COMM has joined Alcatel's "Connected" partner program. As the connected partner for mediation technology, ACE*COMM supports usage-sensitive billing with flexible, configurable network usage collection for Alcatel's customers.
ACE*COMM has signed a value-added reseller agreement with Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), the largest employee-owned research and engineering company in the U.S. The agreement expands upon the company's existing relationship that targets potential end-users in the large carrier, federal government, state government, municipal government, and Fortune 500 market sectors.
Martin Demers, ACE*COMM's Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, has been elected to the Board of Directors of 
IPDR.org is an open consortium of leading service providers, equipment vendors, system integrators, and billing and mediation vendors, collaborating to facilitate service measurement and exchange for next-generation services by implementing de-facto standards. 
