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Overview
Panaccess Cableview is a Conditional Access System (CAS) which provides Pay TV business solutions such as streaming of Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) based subscriptions.
CRM.COM provides a ready-made implementation of Panaccess Cableview Conditional Access (CA) using the Panaccess Cableview Services Provisioning module, which handles primarily the activation and deactivation of signals transmitted to devices as well as the communication to subscribers' devices.
The Panaccess Cableview implementation submits requests on Panaccess Cableview CAS asynchronously using WEB services. Panaccess Cableview CAS then replies to CRM.COM with the respective responses
Major features
- Integration to Panaccess Cableview Services
- Activation and deactivation of multiple subscriptions simultaneously
- Sending of messages to multiple subscribers simultaneously
- Usage of utilities to handle one subscription at a time; for example, send a message, or get information of the registered subscription at Panaccess
Using Panaccess Cableview Services
- Panaccess Cableview Services implementation submits requests on Panaccess system asynchronously using
- Subscription actions update subscription provisioning state.
- Provisioning Requests run identifies all subscriptions whose provisioning state must be updated in Panaccess and sends the requests
Setting Up Panaccess Cableview Services
Provisioning provider
The parameters that are necessary to access the CA/OTT platform and to map the CRM.COM services and physical goods to be provisioned can be supplied from Provisioning Provider Data Entry page.
Provider fields
The table describes the standard sections of a Provisioning Provider Data Entry page and explains how the fields in the page are used.
Mandatory
Configurable
| Main Information | |
|---|---|
| Provider Information |
|
Connection Parameters |
User Name, Password: Credentials used to login to the CA system. Character Set Encoding used by the web services (defaults to UTF-8). |
Distributors
| |
Distributors are used to associate the services and devices (installed items) of a subscription with the provisioning provider. Multiple distributors on a subscription represent separate viewing locations. Each device can offer different services. In a pay TV subscription, for example, two distributors can represent the decoder and channels available in a living room and bedroom. Create the distributors that can be provisioned through the provider. One or more provisioning distributors must be present for a provider to be 'Effective'. ADD a new distributor and supply the information required in the modal. | |
| Main Information |
|
| Allowed Services | Define the services available through the distributor. Once a distributor is selected, only the services defined as 'Allowed' will be available for selection when adding subscription services. Two options are supported:
The available services are filtered and validated against those defined in the 'Services' section, which can be provisioned by the associated provider. |
| Restrictions | Minimum/Maximum Optional/Mandatory service restrictions determine the number of services that can be added to the distributor. Restrictions per Service Type: Define the minimum and maximum number of services that can be added to the distributor, from specific Restrictions per Physical Good Type: Define the minimum and maximum number of installed items that can be added to the distributor, from specific |
| Dependencies | Define |
Services | |
One or more service mappings must be present for a provider to be 'Effective'.
An ID is not mandatory for a non-provisioning service (i.e. a service whose product type is not set as 'Used for Provisioning'). | |
Physical Goods | |
A list of devices that are necessary for provisioning through the provider. For example, a decoder and a smartcard, or only a decoder or only a modem. A specific device type may be mandatory for a certain provider. The Installed Item Alternative Code represents the ID of devices communicated to the CA/OTT platform. | |
Related configuration areas
Mandatory modules must be configured for the provisioning module to work.
| Manual Link | Area | Description | Configuration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Products |
| Configure the physical good and service types, and the physical goods and services that will be offered to subscriptions, by adding them to the provisioning provider. | Mandatory |
| Communications | Communication Queue External System | Set up the external system that will be used to handle mail messages created for the provider. | Optional |
Handling Subscriptions Through Batch Processes
Billing > Provisioning > Panaccess Cableview Services
Processing provisioning requests
Provisioning request runs are used to create and submit new provisioning requests when a modification to a subscription affects its activation status. When the process is executed, the system searches for subscriptions that meet the following criteria and sends the respective requests to the CA/OTT platform (so that the services, hardware and status of the subscriptions match on the two systems):
- Subscriptions have services that should be activated ('Active' in CRM and 'Inactive' in CA/OTT platform).
- Subscriptions have services that should be deactivated ('Inactive' in CRM and 'Active' in CA/OTT platform).
- Subscriptions have a set of installed items that are defined in CRM and not in CA/OTT platform.
The process also gathers and submits to the CA/OTT platform all requests that are pending in CRM.COM, which were created by one of the following (if supported by the provisioning provider):
- Web APIs
- Provisioning provider utilities that are not set to be executed immediately.
- Batch processes, such as mail runs or fingerprint runs, that are not set to be executed immediately.
Provisioning request runs are created when a provisioning request process run definition is submitted.
Sending OSM messages
Mail runs are used to send messages to subscriber devices. The messages can be displayed in the set-top box (STB) mailbox or directly on the screen (once or repeatedly).
Messages can be scheduled to appear as soon as they are sent or at a specific time.
The process run does not create the messages; the messages are created in the system as communications (through notifications) and remain 'Pending' in the communication queue until the mail run is executed. The mail run identifies the communications that should be handled by matching each entry in the communication queue 'Communication Queue External System' with one defined in the mail run.
The table describes the sections of OSM Run Definition Data Entry page, and explains how the fields in the page are used.
Mandatory
Configurable
| Main Information | |
|---|---|
Input Settings | |
Process Immediately: Determines if the request will be sent directly to Panaccess or created and processed subsequently by the provisioning request processing run |
Handling a subscription through a utility
Billing > Provisioning > Panaccess Cableview Services
Utilities used to handle specified subscriptions.
Get Cableview service information
Retrieves information on a specific subscription from the provider, such as which services and devices are active.
- When a change is executed in CRM.COM that requires a change in Panaccess, allow some time (approx. 2 minutes) before executing the "Get Information" command.
- The Utility does not create any Provisioning Requests since it only retrieves information regarding the Smartcard or STB, by directly calling Panaccess Web Services.
Provide either the smartcard or STB and SUBMIT the request. Using the returned information, you can decide whether synchronization is required. Panaccess is synchronized to CRM.COM. In such case click on SYNCHRONISE SERVICES action available from the Actions menu.
Send OSM messages
Sends on-screen or inbox messages to a subscriber device.
.Start by selecting whether the message is for all subscribers or a specific one. of text to be sent and provide the rest of the required information. Unlike Message Runs, no Communication is related to messages that are sent through the utility as the text to be included in the message is provided through the utility.
| Main Information |
|---|
Process Immediately: Determines if the request will be sent directly to Panaccess or created and processed subsequently by the provisioning request processing run |
Panaccess Cableview Services Requests
The table below displays the CRM.COM processes that trigger each the requests sent to Panaccess as well as the parameters sent for each request.
'Set Package' requests are not directly triggered by the execution of subscription actions. Once the Provisioning Request Processing Run Definition is executed, the system is checked against the logic available under the 'Trigger Logic' column, and the respective 'Panaccess Cableview command is created, provided the necessary conditions are met.
Requests | Usage | Triggered by | Trigger Logic | Parameters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Set Packages |
|
|
Every time a new service is added or an existing is removed all the services must be resent. |
|
| Send OSM | Sends a normal Mail Message to the customer's device, available in the inbox. |
|
|
|
| Get Information | Provides a list of the 'Active' Panaccess Cableview subscription services. |
|
|
|
1. 'Authorized' is a field kept in CRM.COM for every subscription service which represents its state at the provider.
- authorized = active (1)
- not authorized = inactive (0)
Provisioning Request Attributes
As Requests cannot be modified after they are created and do not have a Data Entry screen, the following information is available in the Provisioning Requests Summary screen:
Panaccess Cableview Services Business Examples
Subscription with multiple viewing points
Scenario 1
Company ZX offers to its customers the option to have multiple viewing points per subscription. This enables its customers to have a separate box and card in each of the rooms, and choose between having the same channels or different channels available through boxes. The maximum number of viewing points that can be added to a subscription is 4.
Solution
For each set of box and card that will be made available to subscribers, CRM.COM must have a different provisioning distributor available, in order to set the channel availability and restrictions per box.
In order to support this, the following distributors must be set up in the Provisioning Provider.
- Main
- TWIN1
- TWIN2
- TWIN3