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As the telecommunications industry accelerates toward 5G and cloud-native architectures, Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) face a significant challenge: maintaining legacy Intelligent Network (IN) systems while embracing modern, scalable technologies.

For decades, these legacy platforms have powered crucial services, such as emergency calls and prepaid functions. However, built on older technologies like SS7, these systems are becoming costly to maintain as vendor support dwindles, and expertise in the technology becomes increasingly scarce. Operators must maintain the reliability of these systems 24/7, whether to support regulatory requirements like emergency services or customer-driven needs, such as free-to-call numbers. Many were built by vendors who no longer support them, making the process expensive and risky. MNOs must either invest in incremental updates that only maintain the status quo or pursue more innovative solutions that integrate both legacy and modern systems.

Navigating the complexity of legacy and modern systems

Transitioning from legacy IN systems to cloud-native environments presents complex challenges. The “rip and replace” strategy, which involves entirely discarding legacy systems, is often not feasible due to high costs and the operational risks of service disruptions. Moreover, operators need to enable secure access for external developers and partners, which necessitates maintaining high performance and compliance with regulatory standards. The good news is making the transition need not be painful, furthermore if done with jtendo it will open up fresh opportunities for new services and new lines of revenue.

jNEF, developed by jtendo, can be deployed to address immediate business needs and also foster long-term innovation by integrating seamlessly with new services, technologies, and ecosystems. Built upon 3GPP 5G Network Exposure Function specification, GSMA Open API recommendations and innovations from the CAMARA project, jNEF allows MNOs to expose both legacy and modern network functions securely via standardized APIs. This enables operators to integrate new services while maintaining legacy systems, reducing both cost and complexity.

Implementing jNEF empowers MNOs to accelerate innovation by adopting best practices from open environments. This approach enables any developer or partner to create telco services using Web Services. MNOs can thus bring new services to market fast. Furthermore, jNEF’s architecture is flexible, with loosely coupled components that allow the system to scale both horizontally and vertically, enabling virtually limitless growth in response to increasing demands.

Unlike a complete replacement of legacy systems, jNEF overlays existing infrastructure, removing the requirement for full-scale migrations. Beyond integration, jNEF is an integral part of modern architecture itself, designed to coexist and evolve with emerging technologies. It not only supports modern environments but also actively drives innovation within them, positioning operators to fully leverage the benefits of next-generation networks.

Monetising network functions with jNEF

By exposing core network functions through an Open API framework, jNEF enables operators to turn essential services into revenue-generating assets. For example, jNEF enables MNOs to integrate location-based services (LBS) directly into applications, such as ride-hailing, where operators can charge for each location query. Similarly, by offering messaging capabilities to businesses, operators can support customer notifications, enhancing service delivery while generating new revenue streams.

Beyond direct monetisation, jNEF fosters partnerships with third-party developers, expanding growth opportunities in areas such as IoT, smart cities, and edge computing—sectors where network exposure is increasingly in demand. By enabling external developers to create innovative solutions on top of MNO networks, operators can create new channels for growth while diversifying their service portfolios.

In the context of roaming, the platform can assist in managing complex roaming agreements and ensuring smooth handovers between networks, which is especially beneficial for operators with regional or global coverage. Its SS7 and Diameter stacks enable precise location management and seamless handoffs, while its Diameter-based billing and charging solutions support both Online and Offline Charging Systems (OCS and OFCS), enabling accurate, real-time billing across diverse services. This enables MNOs to offer complex, customised pricing models for premium services while maintaining accuracy and operational efficiency.

To maintain high service quality, jNEF supports Quality of Service (QoS) monitoring, particularly for high-value or premium customers. Its GTP stack can manage data sessions in real-time, while its Diameter stack enforces policy control and charging rules that ensure QoS parameters are met. This is especially useful for operators offering premium services where maintaining a high standard is essential to customer satisfaction.

Additionally, jNEF supports Authentication, Authorisation, and Accounting (AAA) services, providing a secure framework for managing device identities and user authentication, a critical requirement in IoT deployments where reliable security is paramount. The platform’s data session management for IoT devices ensures scalable connectivity across LTE, 5G, and other access technologies, facilitating efficient data transmission and reliable connectivity for the growing number of IoT devices.

Another transformative feature is jNEF’s ability to migrate legacy IN services, like “Who Called,” VPN, and prepaid billing, to modern, IP-based infrastructures. These services are often tightly integrated with traditional SS7 network architectures and migrating them to scalable, future-ready platforms presents a challenge for MNOs. jNEF streamlines this migration, ensuring that operators can modernise their networks without sacrificing critical services.

jNEF can be deployed as modules or in its entirety in any environment, whether on physical hardware, private cloud, or public cloud. The modular platform architecture, with loosely coupled components, makes it easier for operators to extend services as necessary. This ensures that jNEF grows alongside operators’ infrastructure needs, making it suitable not only for 5G but also for future advancements like 6G.

When it comes to security, jtendo meets rigorous global standards, including ISO 9001, ISO 27001, and ISO 22301 certifications. jtendo ensures that jNEF complies with strict security protocols during deployment, with particular emphasis on regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). In one recent implementation, jtendo needed to meet over 800 security requirements for a single operator. This focus on security ensures that MNOs can maintain customer trust and safeguard their networks, while regular audits help keep vulnerabilities at bay.

Taking a phased implementation approach

A phased implementation approach for a jNEF-based solution allows for a carefully managed transition, balancing new capabilities with existing infrastructure and minimising operational risk. Beginning with a comprehensive design phase, the project team develops both high- and low-level designs, IP plans, and hardware specifications.

This initial stage is crucial to meet both functional and technical requirements, ensuring a seamless fit with the existing network and minimal impact on external systems. For projects involving system upgrades, this phase may include reverse engineering to understand legacy functionalities and planning for enhancements, such as shifting from SS7 to SIP signaling, while maintaining backward compatibility.

Following design, the development phase focuses on customisation and implementation of microservices, designed to meet specific needs for each deployment. This phase also generates standardised documentation, such as OpenAPI or Swagger, facilitating clear and efficient communication of API functionalities. The development process is supported by CI/CD practices to ensure rapid deployment, testing, and re-testing of fixes, essential for maintaining quality and reliability across the project lifecycle.

Once development is complete, internal testing is conducted within a dedicated lab environment, using automated testing tools to validate system functionality and performance. Custom generators and mocks are implemented as needed to simulate integration interfaces, replicating real-world conditions for thorough validation. The CI/CD pipeline allows for quick iteration and adjustment as issues are identified and resolved, providing a robust foundation before installation and integration in the live environment.

The installation and integration phase deploys application components, often using containerisation and automation tools like Ansible to standardise the deployment process and reduce human error. Integration testing is performed across all interfaces and features, ensuring each component works seamlessly within the broader ecosystem. At this stage, platform and administrative guides are prepared, covering both lab/reference and production environments and integrating OSS systems for monitoring and backup.

As the solution is prepared for client testing, comprehensive test cases are developed for User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and Operational Acceptance Testing (OAT), with active support for test execution and bug tracking. This collaborative stage ensures that the client’s operational teams become comfortable with the new system and any last-minute issues are resolved quickly.

Client training is an essential step, with a focus on preparing operational teams to manage and support the solution independently. Training is followed by the migration or “go-live” phase, during which traffic is transitioned to the jNEF-based solution in a series of controlled stages, including pilot and final cutover stages. Rollback procedures are in place to prevent any service interruptions, allowing for a smooth and flexible transition.

The implementation concludes with a monitoring period known as “babysitting,” where the system is actively observed for a few weeks to detect and address any latent issues before they can affect end users. This stage solidifies operational stability and assures the client of jNEF’s seamless integration with existing systems. This structured, phased approach helps telecom operators maintain service quality, limit disruption, and realize the full potential of their upgraded network environment.

Future-proofing telecom infrastructure

No two telecom operators have identical infrastructures, which is why jNEF’s design is highly customisable. jtendo tailors each implementation to the operator’s specific needs. Furthermore, jNEF’s design ensures that MNOs are well-positioned to capitalise on future technological advancements, including 5G and even 6G. Its loosely coupled architecture allows for easy integration of new technologies, while its flexibility ensures that operators can continue to innovate and expand their services.

As the telecom industry continues to evolve, operators using jNEF will be equipped to meet the demands of a rapidly changing market, offering cutting-edge services without sacrificing the reliability of their legacy systems.

By enabling seamless integration of legacy and modern network functions, jNEF provides a future-proof platform that meets the operational, technical, and financial needs of MNOs. Its flexibility, security, and monetisation potential make it an essential tool for telecom operators looking to modernise their infrastructure while minimising risk. As the industry continues its journey toward 5G and beyond, jNEF will play a pivotal role in shaping the telecom networks of tomorrow.