TM Forum ODA and OryxGateway

Author

Gergo Toth
October 24, 2023

Meet Koenraad Peeters, the founder of an innovative telecom vendor startup called OryxGateway. The following interview was conducted with Koenraad on 21st October 2023.

[Gergo Toth / Telecom Truffle] Could you please start by giving us a brief overview of your background as the founder?

[Koenraad Peeters / OryxGateway] With over 30 years of experience in consulting within the telecommunications industry, my background spans a diverse range of roles. Initially, a substantial portion of my work revolved around network-related projects. However, over the last two decades, my focus has shifted predominantly towards IT transformation initiatives.

As a dedicated member of TM Forum, an industry association uniting CSPs (Communication Service Providers) and software vendors, I remain actively engaged in shaping the future of the Open Digital Architecture (ODA). ODA represents a forward-looking approach aimed at establishing a cloud-based architectural framework tailored for telecommunication providers.

The core vision behind ODA is to foster an environment where innovative software solutions can be seamlessly deployed as well-defined components. These components are meticulously designed to offer specific functionalities, ultimately fostering greater agility and adaptability within the telecommunications sector.

Could you describe your startup and the software it offers in more detail?

OryxGateway offers an event-driven integration platform designed specifically for Open Digital Architecture (ODA). In the realm of Communication Service Providers (CSPs), it's common to find a multitude of applications, often numbering around a hundred, each serving different functions within the organization.

Traditionally, these applications have been interconnected through synchronous APIs, resulting in a tightly coupled environment. This situation is blocking innovation for the telcos. Our integration platform is designed around loose coupling and intends to make CSPs ready for the new world with agility and AI.

The move to this new world is required to enable the digital experience that customers are nowadays used to from players such as Uber and others. At the same time replacing legacy systems will take time at most CSPs. The OryxGateway platform helps with this transition without requiring you to rip out all legacy systems before you can see results.

Where did the idea for this software originate, and which specific pain point does it aim to address?

The concept for this software originally sprang to life during the mPower project at SES, which was centered around the creation of a new Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellite constellation aimed at delivering high-bandwidth services to remote, challenging-to-reach locations. Some typical use cases involve delivering high-bandwidth internet services to entities such as cruise ships, oil rigs, or mining sites.

Intriguingly, this undertaking involves the transmission of directed satellite beams from moving satellites to dynamic targets on the Earth's surface. Such an environment is incredibly dynamic and necessitates the seamless real-time integration of multiple intricate applications.

In this context, traditional peer-to-peer (P2P) connections between applications would be insufficient to meet the demands of real-time operations. As a result, an Event-Driven Architecture powered by Kafka was meticulously crafted. This architectural approach introduced a remarkable level of flexibility, enabling loosely coupled interactions between applications. Interestingly, this loose coupling quickly unveiled several additional advantages, notably in the realm of enhanced analytics.

OryxGateway brings the lessons learned from this innovative environment and makes it accessible for all telco players.

How does your software distinguish itself from similar offerings in the market?

The software integration industry has evolved through several technological generations, each bringing its own set of advantages and challenges.

The first generation was rooted in the ETL (Extract Transform Load) pattern, primarily focused on creating batch jobs that transformed data from one system into a format compatible with another. Unfortunately, this method often resulted in a lag of up to a day before the data became available in the next application. As a consequence, the customer assurance department could only react to changes with a day's delay, making customer support appear slow and unresponsive.

The second generation witnessed the rise of ESB (Enterprise Service Bus), where APIs of various applications were intricately mapped to one another with complex logic. However, this approach led to tightly coupled APIs, giving rise to performance bottlenecks and a single point of failure in the form of the ESB. Moreover, it resulted in a monolithic architecture ill-suited for scaling in cloud environments.

In contrast, the third generation of integration technology has shifted towards message brokers and microservices, fostering the development of event-driven architectures. Notably, many integration platforms on the market face challenges when transitioning from the second to the third generation.

What sets us apart is that even within the third generation, we recognize the critical importance of industry-specific knowledge. We've designed OryxGateway from the ground up as an Event-Driven Architecture (EDA), fully aligned with TM Forum ODA standards. This focus on industry insight is what truly distinguishes us from others in the field.

Can you outline the key benefits of your software? What specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) can telecom operators expect to improve by using your software?

Our software offers a pivotal advantage by significantly enhancing the agility of Communication Service Providers (CSPs). It breaks away from the conventional telecommunication release cycles, which often demand six months to incorporate new functionalities into the IT architecture. With our solution, you can introduce new features in a more agile manner, eliminating the constraints that previously made changes for the new year impractical after May.

Simultaneously, our platform opens the door to an array of innovative applications, including real-time analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Many CSPs can only dream of such advancements due to their limited access to real-time data.

How do you ensure the security, scalability, and reliability of your software, particularly considering the sensitivity of telecom data and its critical role in infrastructure?

Our platform aligns with the ODA concept, emphasizing a zero-trust approach built on OAuth 2.0. For components striving for full ODA compliance, integration becomes nearly automatic. Configuration in the ODA Canvas is mainly focused on permissions, streamlining the process.

Furthermore, our platform is built on Kafka, known for its exceptional scalability and reliability, setting a high standard in real-world scenarios. Kafka's horizontal scalability is extensively documented on the internet. Communication Service Providers (CSPs) can enhance both scalability and reliability by adopting multi-cloud strategies. Our platform fully supports this approach, although it's important to note that leveraging multiple cloud providers may entail additional costs.

Could you provide information about existing or ongoing implementations of your software with telecom operators?

SES stands as our inaugural client, and following our launch just last month, we're actively in the process of securing new partnerships with prominent service providers, such as Vodafone and BT Openreach. Concurrently, we are engaged in discussions with several software vendors to collaboratively develop proxy components for their existing software, enabling them to achieve ODA compliance. There is a growing momentum among these vendors, who are increasingly recognizing the significance of adhering to TM Forum standards, particularly as CSPs are now incorporating these requirements into their procurement conditions.

How do you manage the integration of your software into the existing architecture of telecom operators?

As a standard practice within our Proof of Concept (PoC) process, we often reach an agreement to establish new integrations between two applications or replace existing ones.

In cases involving legacy applications lacking standardized APIs, we can leverage Change Data Capture (CDC) patterns to initiate real-time integration directly with the underlying database. This flexible approach allows us to adapt to a variety of integration scenarios.

What is the commercial model for your software?

Our commercial model operates on SaaS principles, wherein we levy a monthly fee per connection. This model applies consistently to both Cloud and on-premises instances. It's worth noting that the telecom industry is often encumbered by intricate regulations, occasionally impeding the utilization of cloud solutions.

Can you share your software's roadmap and future plans?

The core product is now complete, providing us with the entire array of 55 TM Forum OpenAPIs, readily available for compliance testing across various environments. While some minor adaptations are needed to align with the evolving security model of the TM Forum ODA, these adjustments are well within reach.

Our next phase involves the development of connectors for applications that do not fully adhere to TM Forum compliance standards. Popular platforms like Salesforce and SAP fall into this category, necessitating connectors that bridge the gap between their proprietary data models and the TM Forum data model. This integration will significantly accelerate the process of incorporating such applications into our ecosystem.

Finally, can you elaborate on your vision for the future of telecom networks and explain how your software aligns with that vision?

We subscribe fully to the TM Forum vision that software should be plug-and-play. Replacing your CRM with an alternative should be an easy task, not a 2-year project. Our software is one of the important enablers required to realise this vision and once we have a set of standard connectors ready we intend to demonstrate this dream of plug-and-play before the end of 2024.

Thank you Koenraad for sharing the story of OryxGateway.

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The author is not affiliated with OryxGateway.