ST. LOUIS and REDMOND, Wash. June 6, 2005 Amdocs (NYSE: DOX), a leading provider of software and services to enable integrated customer management and the intentional customer experience, and Microsoft Corp. today announced that they have signed a letter of intent designed to enable service providers to more rapidly deliver converged, Internet protocol (IP)-based services to their customers.
Under terms of the letter of intent, the two companies plan to jointly develop, market and deliver solutions that will combine Amdocs consulting and implementation services; the recently announced Amdocs 6 portfolio of integrated, modular products; and Microsoft® Communications Sector solutions, including the Microsoft Connected Services Framework.
“IP convergence is driving innovation in the development of new, personalized services that enable operators to enhance their product portfolios, attract new subscribers and build customer loyalty — all of which improve the revenue opportunities available to service providers,” said Maria Martinez, corporate vice president of the Communications Sector at Microsoft. “We are excited to collaborate with Amdocs in this area, working closely together to develop and deliver converged services and solutions to top-tier service providers worldwide.”
Amdocs and Microsoft will cooperate on a broad set of business and technology initiatives designed to help service providers quickly and easily deliver converged network services that bring together voice, video and data. The letter of intent addresses three main development areas:
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Amdocs will expand its integration with the Microsoft Connected Services Framework to facilitate flow-through provisioning and usage collection for a variety of Microsoft services such as the Microsoft Solution for Hosted Messaging and Collaboration and the Microsoft TV platform.
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Amdocs Partner Manager 6 will be available on the Microsoft platform, encouraging rapid solution deployment and lower total cost of ownership.
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Amdocs and Microsoft plan to develop industry-standard, Web services-based interfaces to facilitate cost-effective, low-risk deployment and faster time to market for new services.
Amdocs Partner Manager 6 is the industry’s leading product for maximizing revenues for third-party partner content services that carriers offer to their customers. It supports nearly all of the partner ecosystem, including intercarrier settlement, roaming, dealer commissions and content providers, facilitating the delivery of a variety of digital multimedia, from ring tones to video to games. In conjunction with Amdocs Commerce Broker 6, Partner Manager 6 provides a clean architecture to simplify the value chain from the content provider to the consumer.
Microsoft Connected Services Framework is an integrated software solution that allows service providers to deliver converged communications services across multiple networks and a range of device types. Connected Services Framework can help wireless and wireline operators reduce the cost and time of service deployment, more efficiently utilize existing infrastructure, and generate additional revenue through new services.
“Communications service providers are putting their customers at the center of their business, transforming themselves from voice service utilities to retailers of digital multimedia services, including IPTV and an endless variety of digital content,” said Michael Matthews, chief marketing officer of Amdocs. “A simplified service delivery architecture can ease this transition, and that’s what our joint work with Microsoft will enable. Amdocs’ unique approach to helping service providers create an intentional and superior customer experience across a full range of services, customer touch points and devices, combined with Microsoft Connected Services Framework, will help operators compete more effectively in this highly dynamic market. Amdocs is looking forward to working with Microsoft to help accelerate this evolution toward true integrated customer management.”
About Amdocs
Amdocs (NYSE: DOX) combines innovative software and services with deep business knowledge to accelerate implementation of an integrated customer management strategy by the world’s leading service providers. By delivering a comprehensive portfolio of software and services that spans the customer life cycle — target, sell, deliver, bill and support — Amdocs enables service companies to deliver an intentional customer experience, which results in stronger, more profitable customer relationships. Service providers also benefit from a rapid return on investment, lower total cost of ownership and improved operational efficiencies. A global company with the revenue of $1.774 billion in fiscal 2004, Amdocs employs over 9,500 IT professionals and serves customers in more than 40 countries around the world. For more information, visit Amdocs at http://www.amdocs.com.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
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