Smart pipe, related to a

mobile network operator A mobile network operator (MNO), also known as a mobile network provider, mobile network carrier, mobile , wireless service provider, wireless carrier, wireless operator, wireless telco, or cellular company, is a telecommunications provider of se ...

(MNO or ''operator''), refers to an operator’s network which leverages existing or unique service abilities, and the operator’s customer relationships, to provide value beyond that of data connectivity only. The use of the term “smart” refers to the operator’s ability to add value for added, and often unique, types of services and content beyond bandwidth and network speed only. Among the commonly understood operational models for a MNO are smart pipes,

walled gardens A walled garden is a garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. ...

, and dumb pipes.

Examples

While there is no real

industry standard ''Industry Standard'' is the sixth studio album by the Dregs, released in 1982. The album garnered the group their fourth Grammy nomination. This was the final album by the Dregs before their split in 1983, and their last one for 12 years until ...

definition of a smart pipe, there are several operators, bloggers, and researchers who have described aspects of a smart pipe which are generally accepted. Network operator 3 led the way with the release of its X-Series line of devices in 2006. The X-Series platform bundles a set of services, several of which are unique to 3, and provides unlimited data access in exchange for a fixed monthly premium. While not necessarily a full realization of a smart pipe, 3 is one of the first operators to offer such a combination of bandwidth and value-added services for flat-rate pricing. In addition to pricing, there is a set of services commonly viewed as parts of a smart pipe,The Operators vs. the Media Brands
/ref> such as: *

Location-based service Location-based service (LBS) is a general term denoting software service (economics), services which use geographic data and information to provide services or information to users. LBS can be used in a variety of contexts, such as health, indoor ...

s *

Presence information In computer network, computer and telecommunications networks, presence information is a status indicator that conveys ability and willingness of a potential communication partner—for example a user (computing), user—to communication, communicat ...

Customer analytics Customer analytics is a process by which data from customer behavior is used to help make key business decisions via market segmentation and predictive analytics. This information is used by businesses for direct marketing, site selection, and ...

Computing platform A computing platform, digital platform, or software platform is the infrastructure on which software is executed. While the individual components of a computing platform may be obfuscated under layers of abstraction, the ''summation of the requi ...

s, mobile or application **

Mobile operating system A mobile operating system is an operating system used for smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, smartglasses, or other non-laptop personal mobile computing devices. While computers such as laptops are "mobile", the operating systems used on the ...

s *

User interface In the industrial design field of human–computer interaction, a user interface (UI) is the space where interactions between humans and machines occur. The goal of this interaction is to allow effective operation and control of the machine fro ...

s *

Personalization Personalization (broadly known as customization) consists of tailoring a service or product to accommodate specific individuals. It is sometimes tied to groups or segments of individuals. Personalization involves collecting data on individuals, ...

Application programming interface An application programming interface (API) is a connection between computers or between computer programs. It is a type of software Interface (computing), interface, offering a service to other pieces of software. A document or standard that des ...

s (APIs), for devices or networks *

Payment A payment is the tender of something of value, such as money or its equivalent, by one party (such as a person or company) to another in exchange for goods or services provided by them, or to fulfill a legal obligation or philanthropy desir ...

, Billing *

Directory assistance In telecommunications, directory assistance or directory inquiries is a phone service used to find out a specific telephone number and/or address of a residence, business, or government entity. Technology Directory assistance systems incorporate ...

, directory services *

Quality of service Quality of service (QoS) is the description or measurement of the overall performance of a service, such as a telephony or computer network, or a cloud computing service, particularly the performance seen by the users of the network. To quantitat ...

By exposing these types of services to the mobile ecosystem, network operators can maintain the value of their pipes while enabling entrepreneurs to create new business models and generate entirely new revenue streams. The need for operators to innovate around a smart pipe is rising as they face rising pressure from media companies and new technologies, such as Apple’s

iPhone The iPhone is a line of smartphones developed and marketed by Apple that run iOS, the company's own mobile operating system. The first-generation iPhone was announced by then–Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007, at ...

Nokia Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications industry, telecommunications, technology company, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, originally established as a pulp mill in 1 ...

’s consumer portal Ovi, and even the open-access policies of the U.S.

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...

(FCC) introduced around its upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction. Recently,

Arun Sarin Arun Sarin (born 21 October 1954) is an Indian-American telecommunications executive. Sarin was the former CEO of the telecom giant Vodafone, serving from 2003 until 2008. He drove the integration of Vodafone, Airtouch and Mannesman. He was al ...

, CEO of

Vodafone Vodafone Group Public Limited Company () is a British Multinational company, multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates Service (economic ...

, was criticized for some statements he made about how

will always have a unique relationship with its subscribers through its billing relationship.Vodafone CEO sticks head in sand, goes 'La la la'
/ref> Although Sarin’s point has been true traditionally, as the article points out there are several new threats to that exclusivity such as traditional credit card, Obopay, PayPal Mobile, and existing media companies like

Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...

via the Android platform,

Yahoo Yahoo (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web portal that provides the search engine Yahoo Search and related services including My Yahoo, Yahoo Mail, Yahoo News, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Sports, y!entertainment, yahoo!life, an ...

via Go, and

Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

via

References

{{Reflist Mobile technology

Examples

See also

References