Churn, CRM, Telecom Consulting and UK startup consulting offered by Info Insight Ltd

2G	Second-generation cell-phone networks. Applies to most existing mobile-phone networks. First-generation networks were analog: networks today are digital. Data transfers are possible but limited to around 9.6 kilobits per second (kbps).
2.5G	Intermediate improvement being introduced now by many carriers to jack up speeds using such technology as GPRS. Data speeds could reach about 384 kbps.
3G	The third-generation networks starting to provide voice, high-speed data and multi-media services at speeds of as much as 2 megabits per second. (mbps)
4G	Fourth generation networks may start by 2010 and could bring high-resolution movies and television to mobile devices, with data transmission at more than 20 mbps, or 10 times the speed of 3G
Bluetooth	Low-power radio technology that replaces the wires used to connect personal computers, printers, handheld computers and mobile phones. An alternative to infrared.
Business Intelligence Systems/Software (BIS)	Business Intelligence Systems are integrated technology that extracts, organises and reports on the critical information originating from operational systems. Business professionals that are not technical typically use them.
Cell	The basic unit of today's mobile phone systems. Service areas are based on an overlapping network of cells, each of which has a radio base station. Movement of a phone from one cell to another is unnoticed by the mobile user and is monitored and controlled by a computer at a switching office.
Churn	In the telecommunications industry, churn is the term used to describe customer attrition or loss. There are different types of churn such as voluntary, involuntary and internal. Churn is measured in this industry in different ways. Typically it is calculated by dividing disconnects by the net subscriber base. However, it differs depending at what point of the time period you are measuring (beginning, end or average between the two) and how you define a customer (a line, an account, a phone, etc.). Many operators do not include involuntary and dealer/employee disconnects in their calculations.
Converged Service Providers	These are telecommunications companies that provide more than one type of telephony services (fixed line (landline), mobile (wireless), internet, cable and data) as the boundaries between the different types start to blur.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management)	CRM refers to the integrated technology that assists corporations in managing customer relationships such as customer data warehouses, contact management, campaign management, and customer retention.
Data Mining	This term is used in many ways, however we think of data mining as the specific types of tools that automate statistical models. Data mining enable information and relationships buried in masses of data to be exposed and exploited.
Data Visualisation	This term refers to the tools that allow a more graphical and visual interpretation of information typically provided by data mining or analysis tools.
Data Warehouse	This is the data storage where data is gathered and organised in a fashion that allows for easy access of reporting tools when required.
DSS (Decision Support Systems)	Decision Support Systems refers to the family of software tools that allows a business user to analyse and interpret corporate information. This term is often used interchangeably with BIS.
EIS (Executive Information Systems)	Executive Information Systems are software applications designed for the executive to view already analysed corporate information. These tools are meant to be very easy to use and present key business measures.
EMS	Enhanced Messaging Service. An evolutionary step between SMS and MMS. EMS allows mobile-phone users to add images, melodies and animation to their text messages over the same infrastructure as the SMS, which allows for economical, quick and easy deployment of the service.
Fixed Wireless Network	A cellular network used to serve fixed rather than mobile subscribers.
GPRS	General Packet Radio Service. A data boost for standard GSM and TDMA networks that allows transmission speeds of as much as 171 kbps by converting circuit switching to packet-based technology. GPRS uses radio spectrum efficiently and provides users with "always on" connectivity well suited for email and web browsing.
GSM	Global System for Mobile Communications. The most widespread digital cell-phone technology. It uses narrow-band TDMA. Provides digital voice and data services at a low speed of 9.6 kbps.
i-mode	The popular proprietary service of DoCoMo that provides users with a variety of data services on cell-phones. Based on compact HTML, i-mode is a sophisticated rival to WAP used to deliver Internet content to mobile phones. You need an i-mode phone to get the services which are selected by DoCoMo.
Internal Churn	This term is used differently by different telecom operators. It typically refers to those customers that disconnect phone service to move to another product or payment method. The most common issue in the mobile or wireless industry is monitoring and understanding the movement from contract customers to pre-pay.
Involuntary Churn	Involuntary churn refers to customers that are disconnected by the telecom operator, typically for bad debt or fraud reasons. Disconnects for reasons of fraud or non-payment can be analysed using modelling and data mining to modify credit policies and qualification models.
Knowledge Discovery	This term refers to the methodologies and mathematical algorithms that are used for discovering trends and patterns in corporate data. Click here to refer to kdlabs white paper on this subject.
Knowledge Management	This commonly used jargon is typically used by information technology vendors to mean the use of tools such as data mining and analytical tools to extract information and glean knowledge from vast amounts of corporate data.
Location Services	Location Services are added value services that depend on a mobile user’s geographic position. For example, emergency location and fleet tracking are today’s most common applications. New applications involve marrying the geographic positioning of a mobile user with content from the Internet or other sources to deliver more personalised service. For more information on Location Services please refer to the Info Insight document presented at European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).
MDDM (Multi-Dimensional Data Model)	MDDM refers to the design and organisation of the data in an OLAP system.
Multi-Dimensional Analysis	Multi-dimensional analysis is a method for a business professional to look at corporate data in an easy fashion that is quite similar to analysing a spreadsheet. However, using multi-dimensional (sometimes referred to as OLAP) technology allows for that spreadsheet to have multiple dimensions rather than just down and across.
M-Commerce (Mobile Commerce)	Mobile or M-Commerce is a play off E-Commerce and refers to the use of Internet services from a wireless or mobile device. Many would consider this more than just delivery of common Internet commercial services to a wireless device; they would consider the actual location of the user important to transforming the e-commerce applications to be more personal.
OLAP (On-Line Analytical Processing)	OLAP refers to multi-dimensional analysis which is a method for a business professional to look at corporate data in an easy fashion that is quite similar to analysing a spreadsheet. However, using OLAP technology allows for that spreadsheet to have multiple dimensions rather than just down and across.
PCS	Personal Communications Service. In the United States, a generic term for mobile personal communications service, independent of the technology used to provide it.
ROLAP (Relational On-Line Analytical Processing)	ROLAP is a different implementation of multi-dimensional analysis using relational databases rather than a proprietary OLAP or multi-dimensional database.
SIM	Subscriber Identity Module. A Smart Card used in a GSM phone to store service and authentication information and to encrypt voice and data transmissions.
SMS	Short Messaging Service on 2G mobile phones allowing for transmission of text messages as long as 160 characters between mobiles and to and from other systems such as internet email, paging and voice-mail systems.
TDMA	Time Division Multiple Access. A wireless system that divides radio spectrum into time slots rather than frequency separation or codes and then allocates the slots to multiple calls so that several calls can share a channel without interfering with one another. Available in either 800 or 1900 MHz frequencies.
UMTS	Universal Mobile Telecommunications System. The term used in Europe to describe the concepts behind the development of the 3G networks under the IMT-2000 framework.
Voluntary Churn	Voluntary churn in the telecommunications industry refers to the measurement of customer disconnects for reasons that are at the customer’s choice (e.g. switching to a competitor, cancelling service, moving, etc.)
WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)	Wireless Application Protocol. The cell-phone programming language designed by a 500-company consortium for moving data via wireless phones. Allows mobile users to interact with information and services.
WLL	Wireless Local Loop. A wireless system that connects a home or business to the public communications network by wireless means instead of the traditional fixed-line telephone company.