Research Purpose and Scope |
Methodology
Definitions
Demographics & Population Selection
Job Titles of Carrier Survey Participants

Carriers Surveyed by Number of Customers Billed
Types of Carriers by Planned Level of EBPP Investment

The Human and Economic Cost of the Paper Bill
Overview of the Internet and On-Line Financial Applications
The Labyrinth of EBPP Connections & Subsystems
Opportunities & Pitfalls of Web-Enabling Customer Care
Rationalizing Bill Data Formats
BILL CONSOLIDATORS -- Viable Models for Bill Payment Intermediaries
Consolidators and the NACHA Vision
EBPP PROTOCOLS -- OFX, Markup Languages and EDI
OPERATIONAL ISSUES -- Unix, NT... or Java?
Security in League with the Cracker Attack Swap Meet
Encryption -- Securing the Carrier/Customer Transaction

Screenshots of E-Billing Examples from Carriers (AT&T, Essential.com)
Screenshots of Demonstration E-Bills by EBPP Service Bureaus (Derivion, TransPoint)
Screenshots of Demonstration E-Bills by Vendors (BlueGill Technologies, Edocs, Adesso Software)
Preferred Carrier Formats for Storing Bills
Preferred Telecom EBPP Server Operating Systems, Today and in the Future
Server Operating System Shipments for Telecom EBPP

MAKING THE BUSINESS CASE -- Paper vs. E-Bill Cost Savings
The Bankruptcy of the Cost Savings Pitch
E-BILLING's REAL ATTRACTION -- Man-Eating Piranhas or Amazon.com
The Lure of "Call Shedding" via Web Self-Care
THE TELECOM EBPP MARKET -- Deployments by Major Telcos
Telco Spending on E-Billing
OBSTACLES TO OVERCOME -- Firefighters, the Personal Touch, Publicity and Profit Hurdles
Culture Clash -- Telco Reliability vs. the Fast Moving Web
CASE STUDY: ESSENTIAL.COM

Carrier Obstacles Slowing the Adoption of EBPP
Forecasts of E-Bill Adoption by Telecom Customers  Through 2004
Channels of Inbound Customer Care Interaction
Drivers to Customer Self-Service via the Internet
Web Self-Care Solutions -- Factors Driving Demand from Vendor's Viewpoint
Planned Carrier EBPP Investment in the Next 12 Months
Carrier Spending Allocation of EBPP Investments
Obstacles Critically Slowing Customer Self-Service  via the Internet
Internet Self-Service Functions in the Year 2000

TELECOM BILL SERVICE BUREAUS -- Carrier Options  & the Role of Traditional Telco Services Bureaus
BILL PRINTERS -- Differences Between Bill Calculation and Bill Print Production
Telecom Bill Printers Move into the EBPP Business
Print Formatting -- The IT Heart of Statement Production
The Role of Bill Print & Mail Equipment in E-Billing
Bill Design: The Role of Bill Printers and of  Siegel & Gale, Strategic Branding Bill Design Specialist
THE EBPP CONSOLIDATORS -- CheckFree and TransPoint Attack the Large Biller Market
THE EBPP SERVICE BUREAUS -- Cyberbill Specialty Firms Serve Mid-Tier Billers
E-BILL PUBLISHERS -- Interfacing Billers with an Explosion of Consolidators

Figures:

In-House vs. Outsourced Carrier Paper Telecom Bill Printing by Carriers
Telecom Bill Printers Used by Carriers
Server Operating Systems in Use by Telecom Bill Printers
EBPP Software Vendors Partnered with Service Bureaus, Bill Printers & Systems Integrators
Screenshot: Opus Bill Design Software by Elixir Technologies
Through Thick and Thin: E-bill Consolidator Strategies  Favored by Carriers
Consolidators Under Evaluation by Carriers
Diagram of YourAccounts.Com's E-Bill Publishing Process

How Outsourced e-Remittance Processing Works
An Overview of Payment Processing Systems
EXCEPTIONS HANDLING -- Applying the 80/20 Rule to Remittance Processing
The Hidden Dangers of Exceptions in e-Billing
TODAY'S E-PAYMENT INFRASTRUCTURE --  Alternatives to Checks
Payment Options at Ameritech
The Mixed Blessings of Credit Cards
American Consumers Wary of Direct Debit
Payments and Internet Access on the International Scene
PAYMENT INFRASTRUCTURE AND TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVES
NACHA and the ACH: A Multi-Trillion Dollar Network
Electronic Payment Initiatives: Financial EDI, ACH/Internet  Integration, Electronic Checking, and Token-Based  Transactions

DEDICATED VS. INTEGRATED EBPP DATABASES -- Evaluating the Two Approaches
TELECOM BILLING RECORDS STORAGE -- Storage  Strategies for Small vs. Large Carriers
The Tools of Storage: DASD, Tape Silos, Laser Disks and  Micrographics
Integrating e-Billing Archives Beyond DASD:  Does It Make Sense?
COLD STORAGE -- Technology Advantages and  Key Players
COLD Applications at Large Carriers
The Cross-Pollination of Core COLD Skills with EBPP

Storage Devices Used in Telecom Billing
Carrier E-Billing Records Stored In-House vs. Outsourced
Databases Used to Access EBPP Records
Forecast of Telecom EBPP-Related Database Sales Through 2003
Primary Storage Media Used for Billing Records Held  by Carriers Over Time
Accessibility of Carrier Bill Record Archives
Server Operating System Sales Related to COLD Systems  in Telecom
COLD System Sales by Geographic Region
Database Sales Related to COLD Systems in Telecom

E-Billing as Carriers' First E-Commerce App on the Street
Web Interaction a Potential Cost-Cutter for Telcos
Large Corporate Customers Driving E-Business
The Web Terminal Boom Will Boost E-Billing
TELCO APPROACHES TO WEB & E-BILLING DEVELOPMENT
Separating Web Content from Web Infrastructure
Buy Off-the-Shelf, but "Productionize"
Recommendations for EBPP Software Vendors
SYSTEMS INTEGRATORS -- I-business Comes Before E-business
Managing the End to End Web Customer Transaction
EBPP SERVICE BUREAUS -- Billing Service Bureaus, Hybrid Bureau/Print Shops, and the Bureaus' Achilles Heel
Recommendations for Consolidators

Telecom EBPP Market Forecasts Through 2003
Carrier Build vs. Buy vs. Outsource Decisions in EBPP  Components
Market Strengths & Future Telecom Direction  by Vendor Type
The Telecom EBPP Systems Process Flow Diagram
Types of Suppliers Participating in EBPP Design  & Installation
Billing Software Vendors Partnered with EBPP  Software Vendors
Billing Software Vendors Being Evaluated for Future Use by Carriers
Forecast Size of Telecom Billing Software & Services  Market Through 2003
Market Share of Leading Vendors in Telecom Billing  Software & Services
Market Share of Leading Vendors in Telecom Systems Integration
Telecom Departments Leading the EBPP Purchase  Decision
Systems Integrators Partnered with Telecom Billing & EBPP Vendors
Systems Integrators in Use or under Evaluation by Carriers
Market Share of Leading Vendors in Telecom Bill Printing

Chapter 9. Vendor Profiles (149 pages)

Chapter 9 provides profile information on some 82 solution and technology vendors spanning 149 pages. Here you can track the progress of your partners and competitors whoever they are: telecom software vendors... EBPP vendors... billing service bureaus and bill printers... and others. You will find up-to-date vendor statistics and analyses covering:

• Overall telecom industry revenues
  
• Operating systems and databases supported
  
• Past, current and planned areas of concentration
  
• Significant partnerships with other vendors
  
• Product details
  
• Contact information: phone, fax, mail, stock market ticker and web addresses.

This chapter will save a lot of legwork for those trying to home in on the appropriate vendors that meet their company's needs.

@WORK TECHNOLOGIES
ACCUDOCS
ADESSO SOFTWARE
ALLTEL INFORMATION SERVICES
AMDOCS
APTIS SOFTWARE (see Billing Concepts).
BELL & HOWELL MAIL & MESSAGING TECHNOLOGIES
BILLING CONCEPTS
BILLSERV.COM
BLUEGILL TECHNOLOGIES
BROADVISION
CABLEDATA (see DST Innovis)
CDG
CHECKFREE
CONVERGYS
CSG SYSTEMS
CYBERBILLS
CYBERCASH
CYBERPLEX INTERACTIVE MEDIA
CYGENT
DALEEN TECHNOLOGIES
DATAMATX
DATAPROSE
DCA SERVICES
DERIVION
DST INNOVIS
EASTMAN SOFTWARE
EDIFY
EDOCS
EXECUTIVE EXTENSION, INC.
EHPT
ELIXIR TECHNOLOGIES
ESSENTIAL.COM
EXCHANGE, THE
FILENET
FSSI
GENEVA TECHNOLOGY
GE INFORMATION SERVICES
GROUP 1 SOFTWARE
HYLAND SOFTWARE
IBM
INSCI
INTERFACE SYSTEMS
INTERNATIONAL BILLING SERVICES (IBS) see Output Technology Solutions)
INTERTECH MANAGEMENT GROUP
INVOICE LINK
ISIS PAPYRUS
ITDS
JUST IN TIME SOLUTIONS
KENAN SYSTEMS
KSCL
KPT
LASERCOM
LHS COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
M&I DATA SERVICES
MINDPORT IBS
MOBIUS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
MOORE BUSINESS COMMUNICATION SERVICES
NATIONAL INDEPENDENT BILLING
NETDELIVERY
NETSCAPE COMMUNICATIONS
NIIT SOFTWARE SERVICES
NKSOFT
NOVAZEN
OAN SERVICES
OCE PRINTING SYSTEMS USA
OPTIKA
ORACLE
OSG BILLING SERVICES
OUTPUT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS
PAYMYBILLS.COM
PITNEY BOWES
PRINCETON ECOM
PSI TECHNOLOGIES
QUANTUM INFORMATION
SAVILLE SYSTEMS
SELECTSTAR
SIEGEL & GALE
TELECHECK INTERNATIONAL
TMNG
TRANSPOINT
TREEV
TRISENSE SOFTWARE
VESTCOM INTERNATIONAL
XEROX
YOURACCOUNTS.COM

Software Applications Capabilities of Key Vendors
Integration & Consulting Services of Key Vendors
Service Bureau & Bill Printing Services of Key Vendors