Short Message Service (SMS) was considered almost from the very beginning of the GSM mobile digital telephony standard, as a mean of delivering “short” messages to notify subscribers about special network events such as voice mail receptions.
One of the main requirements of the SMS was to be able to handle situations where mobile subscriber became unavailable for a period of time. This requirement was fulfilled by introducing the service centre (SMSC) as a new network element. The SMSC delivery procedure was designed to follow the same routing and termination principles used by the MSC’s for voice calls; that is, the SMSC had to transfers the SM sent by one of its users directly to the MSC where the destination subscriber was registered. The decision to somehow emulate the termination procedure of voice calls had a major contribution to the GSM development, as this SMS delivery procedure contributed to a smooth interconnection between operators and subscribers in a roaming situation.
However, a result of the chosen GSM SMS delivery procedure, Home networks became unaware of SM sent to their subscribers from associated networks, when those subscribers where roaming out in any Visited network.
AerVox SMS via-Home solves the SM limitations associated to the combined inter-working and roaming scenarios. By reshaping the SM mobile terminated message flow, this solution allows all the SM signalling traffic to go through the subscriber’s Home network, regardless of the subscriber location.
Key Benefits
Allows SM accounting for MT-SM traffic terminated outside the HPMN.
Avoids disclosing subscribers’ sensitive information (location & status) to 3rd parties, protecting the subscribers from unsolicited short messages (Spam).
Fulfils legal requirements of Content Control & Lawful Interception.
Enables SM related Value-Added Services (SM forwarding to email, etc.) to be provided for subscribers even when they are roaming in other networks.
Provides a coherent protection of subscribers against potential fraud situations (spam, content protection, etc.) even when they are roaming in other networks.
Allows VPMNs to consider the short messages as being generated by the HPMN, and thus be delivered on the basis of existing HPMN roaming termination agreements, regardless of the inter-working relationships.
During a standard SM delivery procedure the HPMN lost of control over the messages sent to its subscribers takes place in an inter-working scenario where the destination subscriber is in a roaming-out situation. In this scenario, when a subscriber from an associated network (APMN) sends a SM, the APMN’s SMSC queries the destination subscriber HLR by means of a SRIForSM in order to find the serving Visited network (VPMN) MSC where the destination subscriber is registered. Once the SMSC knows the MSC where the subscriber is located, it then sends the MT-SM by means of a MT-FwdSM directly to the MSC, skipping the subscriber’s Home network.
As a result of the MT-SM flow not being routed through the HPMN, some undesirable consequences appear such as the uncontrollable HPMN SMS accounting, the disclosure of subscriber sensitive information that leaves the subscribers exposed to unsolicited short messages (Spam), or the impossibility to perform SM content control & lawful interception.
Through the intelligent rerouting of the SM termination traffic via the HPMN, the SMS Via-Home brings the SM control back to the Home networks thus eliminating the previously mentioned undesirable consequences.
Main Features
Flexible network integration to initiate the SMS delivery procedure - SM routing information (SRIForSM operation) reception and manipulation.
Flexible MT-FwdSM operation manipulation.
Flexible message screening through VPMNs’ and Associated Networks’ blacklists and white lists.
Open architecture enabled to be interfaced by third party value-added service.
Provides fully configurable records with CSV, ASN.1, etc., compatible formats.
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