Major Cable Operator Transparently Absorbs Acquired Assets Using Visionael Network Resource Manager

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Acquiring a bankrupt competitor’s assets is both a blessing and a curse—dramatic increases in market share can be gained, but quickly lost if service quality does not meet the expectations of customers vulnerable to defection. This major Cable Operator today serves more than 21.5 million cable subscribers, over 7.7 million high-speed Internet customers and 1.2 million cable telephone subscribers across the US. In 2002 it had just 8.4 million subscribers nationwide when it acquired the network assets of a former broadband provider and business partner, and was under significant pressure to rapidly migrate the newly obtained assets into its own network.

NRM enables complete network discovery
After the abrupt bankruptcy of its business partner, to which it had outsourced its broadband service offering, the Cable Operator was forced to quickly migrate the former broadband provider’s infrastructure to its own network—an absolute necessity in maintaining high service levels and customer satisfaction.

The first step in the process was to gain complete knowledge of the acquired network assets. A Visionael^® Business Partner implemented the Visionael Network Resource Manager (NRM) solution for the Cable Operator. The NRM solution was deployed to document the former broadband provider’s network, which spanned 41 markets and 375 network operations centers supporting nearly a million subscribers. During a 60-day effort by the Cable Operator to model the expanded network in its own development and pre-production test lab, more than half of the network was documented in the NRM product. After the implementation was complete, NRM went “live,” managing the network in real-time.

Comprehensive functionality for ongoing management
An inventory of the combined network gave the Cable Operator 625,000 managed objects in the NRM solution, including more than 700 Cisco universal broadband routers (UBRs) and associated ports, cards and connectivity. The NRM product also documented the Cable Operator’s VPN coverage, servers, routers, switches and circuit connectivity, providing a complete picture of the expanded network’s assets.

Visionael’s NRM solution continued to play an integral role in streamlining ongoing operations. In conjunction with the Cable Operator’s operations support system (OSS), NRM was integrated with Micromuse Netcool and Impact, as well as Remedy Action Request System (ARS). The NRM data was used to automatically enrich network system events via integration with Impact, which then populated ARS trouble tickets, allowing field engineers to rapidly locate and repair failed or impaired devices. Additionally, Visionael’s NRM product allowed the Cable Operator’s network personnel to temporarily suppress alarms for specific devices during planned events such as network maintenance.

Fast payback from a business-critical investment
The NRM solution played a pivotal role in alleviating the extreme pressure the Cable Operator was under to swiftly absorb the acquired network assets and restore customer confidence. The solution’s rapid discovery and documentation process enabled the Cable Operator to quickly gain control over its new network assets, transparently; customers experienced no change in service during the migration.

Ongoing management of a much larger, more complex network was made significantly easier by integrating Visionael’s NRM solution with Micromuse and Remedy, which enabled engineers to rapidly locate and repair failed or impaired devices. This capability streamlined the troubleshooting process and eliminated most avoidable network downtime.

Network management was further simplified by the ability to suppress alarms during planned network maintenance, saving time by freeing field operations from “false alarm” distractions and allowing them to focus on legitimate network events. By providing this capability, the NRM product enabled a smoother upgrade process for updating network devices with the latest firmware.

In sum, the complete, accurate knowledge of network inventory NRM facilitates helps drive the time and cost out of network management, allowing the Cable Provider to focus its resources on increasing the value of its services to its customers.

Three years later, the Cable Operator relies on Visionael’s NRM solution more than ever.
Since acquiring the assets of the bankrupt cable provider it has grown organically and has successfully merged with another large broadband provider, nearly tripling its customer base.

Industry/market:
Cable/broadband

The Network Environment:
A national network serving 8.4 million customers across the US, which was expanded by the acquisition of a business partner’s network that served 41 markets and nearly a million subscribers.

The Challenge:
To quickly discover and absorb the new network resources, transparent to customers, who were prone to defection following the original broadband provider’s bankruptcy. Streamlined ongoing network management was a strong second requirement.

The Solution:
The Cable Operator chose the Visionael NRM product, a comprehensive software solution that allowed it to automate the discovery, documentation, design, deployment and provisioning of critical network resources. NRM also integrated with key network management tools including Micromuse Netcool and Impact, and Remedy Action Request System.

The Benefits:
The NRM product enabled the Cable Operator to quickly catalog the acquired assets. The complete, accurate knowledge of network inventory enabled by NRM helped drive the time and cost out of network management, allowing the Cable Provider to focus its resources on increasing the value of its services to its customers.

Epilogue:
Three years later, the Cable Operator relies on the NRM solution more than ever. Since acquiring the assets of the bankrupt cable provider it has grown organically and successfully merged with another large broadband provider, nearly tripling its customer base. Visionael remains a primary network management solution.

Customer Profile:
The Cable Operator is a leading provider of cable, entertainment and communications products and services. Today it serves more than 21.5 million cable subscribers, over 7.7 million high-speed Internet customers and 1.2 million cable telephone subscribers.

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