Posted on: 2007-01-22
Expression of Interest for provision of Voice SMS for Cellular Mobile subscribers of BSNL in all four zones
Last date for receipt of proposals has been extended Details>>
BSNL is currently providing the Cellular Mobile telephony services & PSTN services across the nation except Delhi & Mumbai.
BSNL invites proposals from interested eligible companies for provision of Voice SMS to Cellular mobile subscribers of BSNL in all four zones.
2. SERVICES PROFILE
2.1 Service Description:
Voice SMS allows a subscriber to send the voice message to the other subscriber without talking to the recipient. The sender does it by dialing the recipient number in a pre-defined fashion/pre-defined by the operator. The network then routes the call to the IVR front end of the Voice SMS system. The sender then leaves a message in the Voice SMS system and hangs up the phone. The recipient is then sent an alert from the Voice SMS system about the sender's message. The receiver of the message can then listen to the sender's message and can also reply to the message by pressing a pre-designated numeric key and start speaking and end up by hanging up the phone. The original sender will receive an alert regarding the recipient reply and so on.
2.2 Following are the functionalities required in context of the proposed Voice SMS solution (These profiles are only indicative and any profile/capability/feature over and above these may be mentioned separately in the proposal.)
(i) It is proposed to roll out the services on zonal basis. The zones in BSNL network comprise the following LSAs.
| S. No. | Zone | Licensed service areas |
| 1. | East | Orissa, West Bengal, Calcutta Telecom District, Bihar including Jharkhand, NE-I including NE-II, Assam, A&N |
| 2. | West | Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh including Chhatisgarh |
| 3. | North | Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, UP (East), UP (West) including Uttranchal, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir |
| 4. | South | Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chennai Telecom District |
(ii) The zonal solution will cater to the subscribers in the LSAs falling under the concerned zone and should be scalable of meeting the demand of the services by the subscribers in the said zone.
(iii) The zonal solution shall interconnect to the solution(s) in the other zones over secure IP/VPN connectivity via Internet with public IP address. The solution provider shall ensure the inter-operability/ inter-working with the Voice SMS solution in the other zones at its own costs.
(iv) The solution provider will have to provide the IVR as part of the solution. The solution provider shall deploy Multilingual voice prompts for the IVR front end of the Voice SMS system. The language shall be deployed depending upon the zone in which the solution is deployed.
(v) The solution shall be in active - active configuration.
(vi) The solution shall also facilitate lawful interception/monitoring of Voice SMS, as and when desired by BSNL or as directed by the licensor. (The legal monitoring/ interception facilities available in the solution should be duly highlighted)
(vii) The solution shall have the features to provide:
· Message listen notification - Notification to the original sender that the intended recipient has listen to the Voice SMS end.
· Group Messaging - It should be possible to send /forward a Voice SMS to a number of subscribers.
· Message Scheduling - It should be possible to schedule the delivery of a Voice SMS at a particular time. The maximum minimum time frame for scheduling be indicated in the proposal.
· Configurable Message Storage interval - It should be possible to store a Voice SMS in the system for a BSNL configurable time period to enable a recipient retrieve/ hear the VSMS (The flexibility of the system should be highlighted in the proposal).
· Single Message Length - The typical single message length is desired as 30 seconds, however, it should be configurable by BSNL (The capability of the solution be clearly indicated in respect of this feature as minimum and maximum limit)
· The system should be capable to allow the sender to insert the interesting audible, short bits of movie dialogs/songs in the background at any time during the Voice SMS recording.
· The system should have capability to support free reply to Voice SMS by inserting advertisement clips.
(viii) BSNL shall reserve the right to fix the tariff in respect of these services, after considering the inputs from the concerned solution providers. The BSNL decision shall be final in respect of tariff fixation/revision. The system should have the flexibility to provide the Voice SMS service to BSNL subscribers either on subscription basis or on per message basis depending upon the market scenario, requirement of BSNL, etc
(ix) The system should have capability to support all of the following service billing approaches. (BSNL may decide to implement any one of the below depending upon the network architecture, subscribers requirement, Market conditions etc. BSNL should have final say in this regard.)
(i) Duration based charging for all calls for the Voice SMS deposit /retrieval.
(ii) Duration based charging for all the pre-paid users for sending and replying Voice SMS and event based charging for the post-paid subscribers for sending or replying Voice SMS.
(iii) Message based charging for sending or replying Voice SMS with the flexibility to keep the Voice SMS retrieval free for a configurable number of times for both pre-paid and post-paid subscribers.
(x) BSNL intends to provide the services to its Cellular Mobile subscribers and PSTN subscribers in phased manner. In the first phase, it will be made available to the Cellular Mobile subscribers. In the second phase starting after three months from phase I, the service shall be extended to PSTN subscribers of BSNL also in the respective zone.
(xi) The BSNL subscribers should be able to send the Voice SMS to the subscribers of other operators nationally as well as internationally. The subscribers of such operators should be able to send a reply SMS to the sender BSNL subscriber on short code or long number (MSISDN/ PSTN number, as applicable) [The networks supported for this feature as on the date of proposal, should be clearly mentioned in the proposal]
(xii) The service should be available to the BSNL subscribers roaming in other zones of BSNL's network. In case of BSNL subscribers roaming in other non-CAMEL CMTS network, a solution shall provide USSD call back to the roaming subscriber.
(xiii) The solution provider shall arrange the content required for the service at its own costs. The solution provider shall provide the latest content for the service without any discrimination vis-à-vis its offerings on any other network.
(xiv) The solution provider shall ensure that the features developed subsequently in respect of services are extended to BSNL on first priority on mutually agreed terms.
(xv) The services are proposed on revenue sharing basis wherein the initial contract will be for three years and renewal on mutual consent after the initial three years.
3. SCOPE OF WORK
(A) The work by the solution provider shall comprise the following activities, which are indicative but not exhaustive:
(a) Provision of hardware and software: The solution provider shall be responsible for provisioning & commissioning of the requisite hardware, software and/or application (s) at its own costs. This will also include the provision of integrated & easy-to-use module(s) required for customer care (to help in answering the subscriber queries & to help them in provisioning process), generation of various statistics pertaining to the services ( report engine) , system monitoring/auditing, etc. The access to such module(s) shall be through a secure/ protected web based interface.
(b) Hosting infrastructure: The solution provider shall be responsible for provisioning of the requisite hosting infrastructure for the requisite content/modules/ applications at its own expenses.
(c) Content management: The company/ content provider shall be responsible for arranging and managing the required content along with the copyrights/ IPRs at its own costs.
(d) Billing information: The necessary logs/Call Detailed Records (CDRs) in support of delivery/ provisioning of content/services to facilitate the charging/billing of the subscribers of the services shall be provided to BSNL, as per format & frequency requested for by BSNL.
(e) Operation and Maintenance: The operation & maintenance of the requisite hardware, software and/or application server(s) on 24X7X365 basis shall be done by a dedicated team of the solution provider at its own costs. It shall include the regular monitoring & updation of the content /services based on market scenario /trends, as per customers’ tastes & preferences and/or as desired by BSNL.
(f) Miscellaneous: Any other activity (ies) necessary for the smooth implementation of the Project. Further, the solution provider shall undertake to develop and enhance the services to meet the changing needs of BSNL, the changing technologies and changing regulatory directives or any relevant standard pertaining to the solution. The solution provider shall have the necessary technical in-house expertise to undertake such activities.
(B) The deliverables from BSNL side shall comprise the following:
(a) Provision of E1s to the switches with ISUP/SS7 signaling at the cost of BSNL.
(b) Connectivity to the SMSC of BSNL over SMPP/IP to facilitate Voice SMS deposit notification and listen receipt notification to the subscribers.
(c) IP VPN connectivity to the other Voice SMS solution in the other zones. Such IP connectivity as well as IP connectivity to SMPP shall be arranged by the solution provider on prevailing commercial terms.
(d) BSNL shall facilitate the collocation of Voice SMS solution at location, depending on the availability & feasibility. A maximum space on free of cost basis limited to 25 Sq ft may be facilitated for such purpose. This will include the provision of electricity/AC on the cost of BSNL.
(e) BSNL shall facilitate a panel of MSISDN/ PSTN numbers for facilitating the VSMS exchanges between BSNL network and the other networks- National as well as International.
(f) MARKETING & PROMOTION: The services shall be marketed & promoted by the solution provider initially, during which BSNL shall facilitate the selective SMS broadcast and bill insertion for such services. Subsequently, BSNL may decide to market/advertise/promote the services at its own cost.
4. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
The Eligibility criteria for qualifying companies to participate in EOI shall be as below:
a) The company should be registered & incorporated under the Indian Companies Act, 1956.
b) The company and/or its partner should have experience of providing the similar services to other CMSPs for minimum last three months with a minimum subscription of 20,000.
c) The company should have a minimum annual turnover (audited) of Rupees One crore in the field of Mobile based Value added services during last financial year.
d) The company shall not have an equity stake in & of any Basic services/ Cellular services/ Internet services/ Unified Access services/ National Long Distance/ International Long Distance services operating company (ies) in India or its promoter(s). Similarly, the partner, whose experience has been quoted for fulfilling the criteria at (b) abov, should not have an equity stake in & of any basic services/ cellular services/ Internet services/ Unified access services/ NLD/ ILD services operating company (ies) in India or its promoter(s).
e) The company should not be a licensed service provider to provide basic services/ cellular services/ Internet services/ Unified access services/ NLD/ ILD services anywhere in India.
5. PROPOSALS FROM THE COMPANIES TO CONTAIN DETAILS OF
a) Time frame for implementing the project showing breakup of activities involved
b) Similar projects executed for other Cellular Operators and indicate the switch technology which has been interfaced with along with proof of certification from the concerned operator
c) Proposed solution architecture along with details of the various components to be provided and the connectivity requirements for connecting to BSNL’s network
d) Confirmation that the proposed solution has all the minimum functionalities listed under 2.2 above
e) Various limitations of the solution in respect of services / features / parameters / architecture, etc
f) Additional service(s) that can be provided exploiting the above planned architecture
g) Ultimate scalability of the solution along with the increments/ slabs in which it scales
h) Service availability (on monthly basis) & reliability commitments and how the committed service availability & reliability will be achieved
i) Functional behavior of the Voice SMS in various call scenarios, clearly listing such scenarios for calls coming from PSTN/GSM/CDMA subscribers, the called subscriber being prepaid or postpaid, in home or in roaming, in various conditions like busy/ out of coverage area/ call forward / no answer / switched off, etc.
j) Support network of the Company in India to provide support anywhere in the zone once the service is launched. The details of existing support facilities in India should be provided as it exists on the date of submission of proposal.
k) REVENUE SHARE PROPOSAL:
The proposed revenue share of the solution provider should be quoted in the following format:
· BSNL network Voice SMS charges (including Voice SMS deposited and reply generated by BSNL subscribers): This should be quoted in Indian rupees on per VSMS basis and not in percentage terms.
· International network Voice SMS charges (including Voice SMS deposited and reply generated by BSNL subscribers) per Voice SMS; This should be quoted in Indian rupees on per VSMS basis and not in percentage terms
· Listen receipt notification charges: This should be quoted in Indian rupees on per VSMS basis and not in percentage terms and shall be subject to BSNL's decision to levy any such charges from its subscribers. The BSNL decision in this regard shall be final.
· VSMS retrieval charges: This should be quoted in Indian rupees on per VSMS basis and not in percentage terms and shall be subject to BSNL's decision to levy any such charges from its subscribers. The BSNL decision in this regard shall be final.
The above revenue share figures should be quote for following two scenarios:
(i) Marketing /Promotion of the services by BSNL at its own cost
(ii) Marketing /Promotion of the services by solution provider at its own cost
The financial proposal containing the proposed revenue sharing as above, should be submitted in a separate sealed cover, clearly marked as “Financial Proposal”
l) Apart from the above, following documents shall be submitted as part of the proposal: -
i. Copy of the Articles of Association & Memorandum of Association of the Company
ii. Latest Annual Report of the Company
iii. List of Directors on the Board of the Company with their address(es), contact telephone numbers, etc
iv. Board’s resolution in favor of authorized signatory
v. Attestation of the signatures of the authorized signatory by the Company’s bankers
vi. Certificate from the operator concerned showing the experience as required under the eligibility criteria
vii. Certified true copy of the legal agreement between the company and its partner, if any, whose experience has been furnished in context of fulfillment of the clause 4(b) of the eligibility criteria. Such agreement should clearly outline the responsibilities and the deliverables of each party agreed upon in context of the Voice SMS solution and should have validity for a period of minimum three years as on the date of submission of the proposal under this EOI
viii. Turnover certificate from the Company’s Auditors/ CA mentioning the turnover in context of fulfillment of the clause 4(c) of the eligibility criteria
ix. Certificate in respect of the Company and its partner, if any, in support of fulfillment of clause 4(d) & 4(e) of the eligibility criteria mentioned above
(Any paper, which is a photocopy and submitted, as part of the proposal has to be certified by the Company's CS/ CA.)
6. EVALUATION OF THE PROPOSALS
(a) The evaluation of the proposals will be in three stages:
I. Initially screening on the basis of the eligibility criteria
II. Evaluation of the proposals from the eligible companies on the basis of the technical requirements as asked for hereinabove. The eligible Companies may be called for to give the presentations on their technical proposals.
III. Evaluation of the proposals from the eligible companies on the basis of the financial parameter (revenue sharing)
(b) If a company provides/submits incomplete/ misleading/ ambiguous information on any of the factor(s), it shall be awarded lowest possible score against that factor for the evaluation purpose.
(c) Any factor used in evaluation will have a maximum score of ten points. The overall evaluation score will the total of the scores in the context of the technical evaluation and the financial evaluation. However the technical and financial evaluation will have a weightage of 70% and 30% respectively.
(d) The work will be awarded based upon the total evaluation score of an eligible company.
(e) The agreement will be signed with the finally short-listed company(ies). The solution provider(s) so identified will have the initial term of three years, which could later be extended on mutually agreed basis.
7. GENERAL CONDITIONS
BSNL reserves the right to accept or reject any proposal or to annul the EOI process and reject all proposals, at any time prior to finalization of the solution provider(s) without assigning any reason whatsoever and without thereby assigning any liability to the affected EOI participant on the ground of BSNL's action(s).
BSNL reserves the right to provide the Voice SMS services in any one zone using infrastructure of any of other zone(s), if the need so arises.
BSNL reserves the right to discontinue the commercial provisioning of the services any time in future, depending upon its network conditions or market scenario or directives from the regulator/ licensor or due to change in its own license conditions or upon directions from the competent government authorities.
BSNL reserves the right to blacklist a participant for a suitable period (as deemed fit by BSNL) in case it fails to honour its proposal in totality.
Any effort by a company to influence the proposal comparison/evaluation/ work award decision by way of overt/covert canvassing shall result in non-consideration / rejection of its proposal.
8. SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS
The proposals from the interested eligible companies shall be accepted at the following address up to 1600 hrs of 7th February 2007:
Last date for receipt of proposals has been extended Details>>
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O/o DDG (NS)
BHARAT SANCHAR NIGAM LIMITED
(CORPORATE OFFICE/ NEW SERVICES UNIT)
10th floor West wing, Chandralok building
36, Janpath, New Delhi 110001
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