OSS through Java becomes first realization of TMF’s NGOSS initiative

Software developers aligning themselves with the TeleManagement Forum’s New Generation Operations Systems and Software (NGOSS) framework now have an implementation option for Java and Web services technology thanks to a formal relationship formed this week between the TMF and the OSS through Java initiative.

The joint working relationship also settles some misperceptions, mainly in the media according to OSS/J representatives, that the two groups’ approaches were at odds.

"This will help make sure the industry understands there is no divergence between NGOSS and OSS/J," said Alain Lemoine, chief technology group at Eftia.

Lemoine said that some people saw the groups as competitors. However, both groups look at the same problem, but from different perspectives. "The TMF focus on the business problem; OSS/J on the technology problems," Lemoine said.

Colin Ashford, senior architect at Nortel Networks and editor of a white paper on OSS/J as an implementation of NGOSS said historically, "Executives bought into NGOSS because it solved their business problems and engineers bought into OSS/J because it solved their technology issues."

Lemoine added that typically the same vendors were involved on both sides, and consequently never were of two different minds.

OSS/J now offers the first implementation that aligns in full with the NGOSS framework. The joint working team has now validated alignment, which maps OSS/J application interfaces with NGOSS and the forum’s Enhanced Telecom Operation’s Map (eTOM) and Shared Information and Data (SID) models.

The OSS/J is a collaborative working group of industry leaders within Sun Microsystem’s Java Community Process who develop standard OSS application interfaces that are J2EE extensions that promote interoperability among OSS components.

The group’s mission is to provide developers an implementable framework for building Java and Web services interface technologies based on J2EE.

The OSS/J APIs consist of free public specifications, reference implementations available in source code, and compatibility test suites for certification. Participants expect a new breed of OS solutions to emerge as a result of proving—at least on paper—the alignment of these initiatives.

Also contributing to the white paper were representatives from Alcatel, BT, Motorola, MetaSolv, Telecom Italia and Nokia.

Ashford said in the white paper that this alignment is a prerequisite for closer collaboration.

It also will provide the blueprint for proving that the alignment really works in a live implementation.

Last week, OSS/J formed a service provider advisory council that will share business and operational experiences, shape the strategic direction of the OSS/J initiative and help align standards approaches in ways that accelerate industry adoption of OSS/J technology. The effort was led by Vodafone, BT and QinetiQ.