Meet Provision: A Critical Part of Our New Use Case-Centric Product Portfolio

In case you missed it while sipping on a Cava in Barcelona during MWC, we recently unveiled our reimagined product portfolio to help Service Providers and Enterprises easily identify the right netnumber Global Data Services (GDS) solutions to meet their evolving needs.

The new portfolio uses a more intuitive, case-centric structure, creating three core product lines that closely match client use requirements: Provision, Route and Trust. 

Over the next few weeks, we’ll dive deeper into the three core product areas – with this blog focused on netnumber GDS’s provisioning services. And at the heart of the Provision line is the newly refreshed netnumber Services Registry (nnSR).

What is the netnumber Services Registry (nnSR)?

Originally launched in 2008, the nnSR is an industry database that manages and distributes authoritative routing information for the messaging industry, empowering innovative communications capabilities and messaging services by publishing dedicated service information for individual phone numbers. It is the most comprehensive and the authoritative routing registry in North America.  Used by the North American messaging ecosystem, nnSR identifies if an OTT/MVNO messaging service has been assigned to a given subscriber number so that SMS and MMS messages can be routed effectively to both text-enabled fixed-line numbers (OTT) and mobile numbers allocated to a virtual (MVNO) operator.

How nnSR Works

Communication Service Providers provision telephone numbers into the nnSR and associate them with NNIDs (for more on NNIDs, click here) and A2P campaign information using REST APIs. The messaging ecosystem consumes the respective data as regular updates or real-time queries through various APIs and integrations (for details, see Carrier ID – North America). 

The result is a solution that can powerfully support use cases across network mergers and migrations, MVNO networks, SMS or MMS enablement and 10 Digit Long Codes (10DLC) A2P campaigns.

Key nnSR Advantages

One of the nnSR’s key advantages is the ability to manage messaging routing independently from voice calling. The nnSR also empowers cost-effective phone numbers for texting, enables toll-free numbers for high-volume enterprise messaging, and ensures high-throughput and appropriate fees for A2P campaigns.

In addition, the nnSR plays a pivotal role in the use of 10DLC in A2P messaging in the United States. In order to be recognized in the industry as 10DLC, telephone numbers used to originate A2P messaging need to be tagged appropriately. Each messaging campaign that is registered with carriers gets a unique Campaign ID, which is then associated with the respective 10DLC.  netnumber GDS provides the tagging service for A2P telephone numbers and distributes this data to carriers and messaging hubs.

Other key benefits include:

• Normalized Routing ID - netnumber GDS normalizes the data for each service provider and returns it in a common format identifying each operator by its unique NNID.
  
  
• Global Carrier Mapping Registry (GCMR) - nnSR customers get free access to the GCMR database, one of the world’s most widely utilized carrier identification databases. It includes every CSP in the world (over 200 countries) via a six-digit routing ID called an NNID. The GCMR provides the translation of the NNID into key information about the destination operator.
  
  
• Robust Provisioning API - The nnSR REST API enables fast service integration and ease of use. In addition, it incorporates a rich set of authorization, conflict resolution, and notification features, which guarantee the nnSR’s accuracy and protects subscribers and CSPs.
  
  
• Lightning-Fast Service - With the nnSR stored in the netnumber GDS data centers or close to the customers’ location in AWS, the service is capable of some of the fastest response times in the industry.
  
  
• Fully Redundant Managed Service - netnumber GDS operates a fully redundant service that is managed and staffed 24×7. This ensures that you will receive carrier-grade service, availability, and performance.

nnSR Use Case Examples 

There are three main nnSR use cases, encompassing carrier network enablement, text and A2P enablement.  When it comes to carrier network enablement, several problems can occur, such as MNO messaging infrastructure that does not support intra-carrier routing or MVNO dependence on host network infrastructure. In addition, there are host MNO charges for forwarding fees that don’t provide added value and voice and message services with different timelines for network migration.

Fortunately, the nnSR can help providers resolve these issues in various ways. Using the nnSR, MNOs can separate messaging traffic of virtual networks from host networks or asynchronously migrate voice and messaging services between networks leading to a smooth messaging process. 

With text and A2P messaging enablement, numerous issues can arise around short and long codes. For instance, short codes may be too expensive and cumbersome for SMEs, lack voice calling capabilities and are not meant for conversational use cases.  In addition, shared short codes are not allowed in the United States, and dedicated short codes may not be available in sufficient quantities (5-6 digits = max. 989,999 codes). Timing is also an issue since short code campaign setup takes months. Regarding 10-digit long codes (10DLCs), issues such as throttling and extensive blocking can occur when unsanctioned.

With the nnSR solution, CPaaS providers and CLECs can add SMS and MMS capabilities to fixed lines, VoIP, and toll-free numbers. Direct Connection Aggregators (DCAs) can also activate phone numbers for 10DLC A2P Campaigns, securing high throughput and appropriate fees on the respective connections.

Learn more about nnSR

Click here if you’d like to learn more about how nnSR can help your organization manage its North American routing needs or email us at sales@netnumber.com.