6533b7d4fe1ef96bd1261cab

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Analysing software integration scenarios: the case of telecommunications operations software

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Telecom operators deploy a vast number of software systems to support their operations. Vendors of this software often integrate in their products several software systems, in order to enable innovations, minimize customer's integration efforts, etc. Different integration scenarios can be envisioned, and the issue of identifying more beneficial scenarios is of a great importance to the vendors. This paper aims at analyzing different software integration scenarios from the viewpoint of their support for innovations, and focuses on the context of telecommunications operations software. For each scenario, the overall modularity of the set of software systems is evaluated, and the expected benefits of the scenario are modeled in terms of the modularity gain it provides. The paper introduces a modularity-based approach to the integration scenario analysis, and applies it to compare the benefits that can be obtained from each scenario. As a result of the analysis, the scenarios which are likely to be more beneficial for the vendors are identified.