REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Sept. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- SupportSoft (Company
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Studies), Inc. (Nasdaq: SPRT - News), a leading provider of Real-Time Service Management (RTSM(TM)) software, today unveiled its vision for triple play service delivery and detailed its product integration plans for the solutions from Core Networks, a software company specializing in technologies for network monitoring, management and activation of advanced digital services for DSL and cable broadband providers. SupportSoft recently acquired substantially all of the assets from Core Networks. Core Networks' products are expected to provide new and extended capabilities for SupportSoft service automation solutions in four key areas: network management and monitoring, usage policy management, firmware upgrade management and remote management of home network devices.
The days of purchasing a single service from a single service provider are over. Technology convergence now makes it possible for subscribers to access VoIP, video and broadband -- all from one service provider. Often termed the "triple play," this convergence is expected to change the way people work, learn and play. But with market opportunity comes challenges. Service providers must offer an exceptional customer experience to spur profitable adoption of triple play services.
SupportSoft's new Digital 360 degree vision is to help service providers cope with these new service delivery challenges by providing them with a single view of both "the last mile" of the network, as well as the devices within the customer premises, to manage, diagnose and resolve problems with one, comprehensive set of service automation solutions -- no matter which service, voice, video or high speed data is the source of the problems. The impact of this unified approach to customer service delivery can be significant, enabling service providers to:
-- more quickly pinpoint and resolve problems either within the network or
customer premises;
-- simplify customer service administration;
-- effectively scale service delivery for triple play requirements;
-- leverage a common, automated problem resolution platform for customers,
field technicians and customer service representatives alike; and
-- reduce overall customer service expense.
The integration of Core Networks' products with those from SupportSoft, which has already begun, makes the Digital 360 degree vision possible. For example, a field technician may be at a customer site installing new VoIP service in conjunction with an existing broadband connection. Before leaving the premises the technician performs a "whole house" check to determine that both services are working and not conflicting with each other. Using SupportSoft's new ServiceVerify(TM) software, he can assess the network performance against the proper specifications provided by netMeter(TM), a technology developed by Core Networks. If out-of-specification, netMeter can be used to look for broader network outages to pinpoint the cause of the problem. Once resolved, ServiceVerify can then be used again to assess the reliability of the service delivery. The result from this integrated software approach for the service provider can be elimination of unnecessary truck rolls, fewer frustrated customers and reduction of overall service costs.
"It is essential for broadband service providers to focus on enhancing their service platforms as a competitive differentiator. Yankee Group research shows that customer service is one of the top three reasons for consumer churn," indicated Patrick Mahoney, Consumer Technologies and Services Analyst for The Yankee Group. "Many broadband service providers are turning to service automation software from SupportSoft to ensure timelier, more profitable customer support. Moreover, SupportSoft, through its recent acquisition, can also provide diagnostics to help the provider resolve problems in the network before the customer even experiences an outage. At a time when customer acquisition for broadband is a heated battle, ensuring quality customer service should be a paramount priority for service providers."
"Just days after closing the Core Networks acquisition, SupportSoft is already capitalizing on its expanded capabilities by offering immediate value to service providers," said Radha Basu, chairman and CEO, SupportSoft. "The rapid integration of the companies' complementary technologies competitively positions SupportSoft as the one source for a comprehensive service automation platform for video, VoIP and high speed data delivery starting within the service provider's network and extending into the customer's premises."
Depth of Network Vision: Digital 360 degree
With today's announcement, SupportSoft is introducing the newest networking components of its Digital 360 degree vision, integrating Core Networks technology with its own Real-Time Service Management software platform. New, integrated products include:
SupportSoft ServiceGateway(TM) is designed to enable the remote management and smooth operation of home and small business broadband gateways, routers and access points. For many service providers, voice and video services are delivered through powerful multi-service gateways. ServiceGateway can enable services providers to remotely diagnose and troubleshoot problems, as well as manage firmware and service configurations to maintain service continuity. As a result, service providers can streamline the rollout and adoption of triple play services.
SupportSoft ServicePolicy(TM), which is expected to be generally available in fourth quarter of this year, is designed to enable service providers to automate the monitoring and enforcement of subscriber bandwidth usage and security policies from either usage data or real-time trigger events. If it is determined that subscribers are exceeding their designated bandwidth usage, or are infected with a virus, the software is designed to initiate specific actions to remedy the problem, which may include re-direction to a quarantine area, often referred to as a "walled garden."
SupportSoft netConfiguration(TM) is a firmware upgrade manager that is designed to discover certain devices on the network, report their status, and perform successful upgrades on them. The solution simplifies the implementation and management of the upgrade process by network management. This is accomplished through the use of a wizard-based design to reduce the complexity of the workflow and the functionality required to upgrade these devices successfully in a timely manner. As a result, training time can be reduced, staff productivity can be optimized, organization policies can be better enforced, and service outages can be minimized.
SupportSoft netMeter(TM) is designed to provide network trend and performance management capabilities that aggregate, summarize and display historical data, offering trend management from a variety of administrative levels. This enables network support staff to better isolate and resolve network blockages, perform preventive and directed maintenance, and plan for network and subscriber growth.
For a service provider, the proverbial "last mile" in its network leading to the customer's premises equipment (CPE) can be the largest source of service-related problems. SupportSoft's Digital 360 degree vision underlines the importance of a fully rounded understanding of both the network and CPE combined with the ability to automatically diagnose and resolve problems no matter where they exist. SupportSoft's newly expanded set of network-focused solutions combined with its proven portfolio of service automation software, uniquely positions the Company to deliver value at each step in the triple play customer experience, starting at the time of service installation through ongoing, automated support for customers, field technicians and customer service representatives.
About SupportSoft
SupportSoft is a leading provider of Real-Time Service Management (RTSM(TM)) software designed to ease enterprise technical support, provide for IT endpoint automation and enable triple play service automation for VoIP, video or broadband delivery by service providers to their customers. Digital service providers benefiting from SupportSoft solutions include Adelphia Communications, BellSouth, Charter Communications, Comcast Communications, Cox Communications, Time Warner, TeliaSonera and UPC. Enterprises that have licensed SupportSoft software for IT requirements include ADP, Bank of America, Cisco Systems, IBM, Procter & Gamble, Siebel Systems, Sony and Thomson Financial. Managed service providers that utilize our solutions to provide outsourced services to their enterprise customers include Accenture, ACS, CGI, CompuCom, CSC and IBM Global Services.
Except for the historical matters contained herein, the statements in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These are statements that relate to future events and include, but are not limited to, statements related to the expected new and extended capabilities for SupportSoft service automation solutions, the expected convergence of services and the results and challenges thereof, SupportSoft's ability to achieve the Digital 360 degree vision and to achieve the position of delivering value and being the one source for a service automation platform for video, VoIP, and high speed data delivery, and the availability of and expected benefits from the products. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the ability to successfully integrate the technologies, business, personnel, and products of both companies, our ability to manage growth effectively, the ability of the software to operate with hardware and software platforms that are used by our customers now or in the future, the technical challenges and time and effort involved in the deployment of the solutions, our ability and our customers' ability to achieve broad adoption and acceptance of their services and our solutions, the rapid pace of technological change, competition and the uncertain economic conditions in the United States and in international markets as well as other risks detailed in SupportSoft's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2004 and from time to time in its SEC filings. Statements included in this release are based upon information known to SupportSoft as of the date of this release, and SupportSoft assumes no obligation to update information contained in this press release.
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