1. Managing Telecommunications
Chapter 6
Information Systems Management in Practice
8th Edition

2. Outline Introduction Telecommunications for Business
The Internet and Telecommunication Services
Digital Convergence
The OSI Reference Model Underlies Today’s Networks

3. Outline The Roles of the IS Department
Planning and Creating the Telecommunications Architecture
Managing Telecommunications
Keeping Abreast of Telecommunication Technology and Policy

4. Introduction
Telecommunications is an electronic highway system (an infrastructure)
Facilitates the flow of information among individuals, work groups, departments, customer sites, regional offices, enterprises, and the outside world
The Internet has opened up a different view of telecommunications—cyberspace
People exist in a virtual world(s)
Second Life (

5. Telecommunications for Business

6. Telecommunications Technologies

7. Telecommunications Technologies

8. The Internet and Telecommunication Services
Brief Internet Timeline
1960s: Internet began in 1960s as government project (ARPANET)
1993: Internet commercialized
TCP/IP (core Internet protocol suite)
1994: World Wide Web (WWW)
Graphical layer on the Internet
HTML, URL, hyperlinks
Internet brought telecommunications to the masses
Internet and business:
Dot com bubble that burst
Here to stay: e-business strategies

9. XYZ Company Case Example: Network Options
Intranet will be heart of XYZ’s corporate operations
Essentially the virtual office for XYZ
Forms, processes, documents
Serving remote users
Transport medium
Twisted pair, coaxial, fiber optic, wireless
Modems
56k(bps), DSL (1.2 mbps), cable (10 mbps)

10. XYZ Company cont’d Serving local users Communicating between offices
Local Area Networks (LANs)
Hubs, switches, routers
Fast Ethernet protocol (100mbps)
Communicating between offices
Wide Area Networks (WANs) - two options
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)
622 mbps; expensive
Gigabit Ethernet
1000mpbs, less expensive than ATM

11. National Semiconductor
Case Example: Extranets
Extranet for distributors, partners and customers—Web site for design engineers
Web hosting outsourced and replicated around the world through mirror sites
Downloadable PDF databooks
Supports 1 million design engineers around the globe, with more than 10,000 downloads per day
National’s extranet application garnered recognition
Internet World’s Business on the Internet (BOTI) Award
CIO Magazine’s Web Business Award for Online Business Excellence

12. Digital Convergence
Any type of information content can be converted into a digital form
Refers to convergence of multimedia
Voice, data and video
Binary format (0s and 1s) allows media to be broken down into packets and then integrated back in highly imaginative ways

13. Digital Convergence IP telephony (VoIP) Video telephony
Use internet to transmit voice to replace telephone system
e.g., Vonage, Skype
Cisco Systems supplies most of VoIP market’s hardware
Video telephony
Video over internet
Conferencing
Digital convergence can change business operation

14. Toronto Pearson International Airport
Case Example: Digital Convergence
Canada’s “next generation” airport terminal
Single, shared IP network infrastructure
Combines 14 communication systems with integrated voice, data and video
2 backbone rings, over 100 switches, 1000 IP phones and 1000 wireless access points
Each airline has access from anywhere in airport terminal to own private LAN via a virtual private network (VPN)
Numerous benefits gained
Reduced network operations costs
Consolidated network support
Increased terminal operational efficiency and capacity

15. The OSI Reference Model Underlies Today’s Networks

16. Why It Is Called a Reference Model?
International Standards Organization adopted seven-level OSI model to guide development of international standards for networks of computers
Recommends functions to be performed at each of the seven layers
Does not specify detailed standards

17. The Model’s Seven Layers
Layer 7: Application
Identifies and establishes availability of communication partner(s)
Send or opens the thing received
Layer 6: Presentation
Part of an operating system
Presents data in standard formats
Converts incoming and outgoing data from one presentation format to another
Ex: from clear text to encrypted text at one end and back to clear text at the other
Layer 5: Session
Coordinates communication between nodes
Coordinates and terminates conversations
Reconnection after an interruption

18. The Model’s Seven Layers
Layer 4: Transport
Manages packetization of data
Managing delivery of the packets, including checking for errors in the data once it arrives
Ensures data integrity via TCP and multiplexing applications
Layer 3: Network (routers)
Packet routing based on IP addressing
Addressing and routing of the data 
Layer 2: Logical Link (switches: faster; not concerned with IP)
Logical link control (LLC) sub-layer: error and flow control
Media Access Control (MAC) sub-layer: MAC addressing
Sets up links across the physical network
Putting packets into network frames
Layer 1: Physical (wires)

19. The Model’s Seven Layers

20. OSI Reference Model

21. The Role of IS Department

22. The Role of IS Department
Two Roles
Planning and Creating the Telecommunication Architecture
Managing Telecommunications
Keeping Abreast of Telecommunication Technology Policy

23. Planning and Creating the Telecommunication Architecture
Set of design rules and company policies needed to obtain desired network environment
Business value of network architecture lies in improving productivity and creating business opportunities through connectivity
Two guiding principles
Build systems that are coherent at the interfaces
Users think they are dealing with one network
Convergence of multimedia and disparate systems
Interoperability of different systems and networks
Capability for different computers using different OS on different networks to work together on tasks

24. Managing Telecommunications
Managing network operations
Controlling telecommunication expenses
Major causes of excessive costs include
Fragmented procurement (units make independent decisions)
Service usage underutilization
Unauthorized and non-work related use
Billing inaccuracies
CIOs can use portfolio management approach to maximize telecommunication resources and minimize overall costs
Identify, report and audit costs between locations
Allocate resources based on changing needs and schemes
CIOs must manage voice and data security and plan disaster contingencies

25. Keeping Abreast of Telecommunication Technology Policy
IS must stay current with technology and explore new business models that can leverage new information technologies for competitive advantage
Require future vision and testing
Need IT budget
IS must be conscious of political debate, particular that which is pertinent to changes in telecommunication regulations and the business environment