BSNL plans convergent billing system

Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) which is to introduce convergent billing system across the country is in the process of finalising the winners for the billing contract. The PSU telecos has earmarked over Rs 4,500 crore for it.


Wipro Infotech, HCL Technologies, TCS, Satyam Computers and Tech Mahindra have qualified technical evaluation and financial evaluation is underway. The contract will be split between two players and the winners are likely to be announced next month.

The new system will be more than just convergent billing and will include call record management as well as fraud management. It will involve deployment of storage area networks (SAN) for billing systems.

The Call Detail Record (CDR)-based customer care and convergent billing system will end multiplicity of functions.

A data centre each will be set up in Hyderabad, Pune, Kolkata and Chandigarh. The system will be implemented throughout India in BSNL's four zones and four data centres.

The whole implementation process is likely to over an year while maintenance will be an ongoing exercise.