Policy Management Software will pass $1 bn in 2013

CAMPBELL, USA: Market research firm Infonetics Research released excerpts from its latest Policy Management Software report, which tracks policy management software deployed in wireless (3G, 4G broadband) and fixed-line broadband and cable broadband networks.

"While operators continue to implement policy management for their 3G networks - particularly in emerging markets struggling to deal with a rapid influx of smartphones - we're seeing a bump in investment due to the ramp-up of LTE deployments," said Shira Levine, directing analyst for service enablement and subscriber intelligence at Infonetics Research.

Levine continues: "Many operators view policy less as a technical play and more as a tool for monetizing their network investments and enabling the quality of service required for new LTE-based services like voice over LTE (VoLTE)."

Policy management market highlights:

* Infonetics expects 41 per cent growth in the global policy management software market in 2013 to top $1 billion for the first time, with significant momentum coming from operators implementing policy as part of network modernization initiatives

* Policy management will play a key role in software-defined networking (SDN), enabling data abstraction from a range of network sources, including network subscriber databases, DPI, and probes

* Oracle's acquisition of Tekelec has created another potentially powerful player in the integrated policy/charging space, particularly given the software giant's customer relationship management, service fulfillment, and analytics assets

* To address mobile security, WiFi offload, and better management of signaling congestion, partnership and M&A activity is expected to continue, centering on incorporating policy enforcement at the device level