New types of subscriptions for CERN GSM

A recent renegotiation of our commercial conditions with our mobile telephony operator allows us today to deploy new GSM mobile services, reduce communication costs, as well as put in place a new subscription system.
First of all, the "email to SMS" service has already been extended to all Swiss numbers. This service allows you to send SMS messages (Short Message Service) to any Swiss mobile telephone from your CERN e-mail account.

For further details, please refer to the web site http://cern.ch/sms.

The sending of MMS messages (Multi-media Message Service) will be activated by default on all CERN subscriptions by the end of March 2010. This service allows users to attach to a text message an image, a video or an audio recording. All the necessary details for configuring this new service on CERN mobile phones will be published on the web site http://cern.ch/mms.
Concerning mobile service costs, new rates have been put in place since 1st January 2010. All tariffs have dramatically decreased and can be found online from the following website https://cern.ch/gsm/tariffs
In order to simplify the understanding of mobile communication costs and follow the evolution of industry standards, a new CERN GSM subscription system will be put in place in March 2010. The different combinations of the current subscriptions and options will be redefined according to three professional, and one private, subscription types: BASIC, BASIC+, FULL and PRIVATE.

The different functionalities of these subscriptions are summarized on the following link:

https://gsm.web.cern.ch/gsm/telecom/types_subscr.htm

Within this new system, please note:
  • Data transfer services (GPRS/EDGE/UMTS) will be enabled on all CERN subscriptions;
  • There is only one type of subscription (FULL) with international roaming rights;
  • There is a new private subscription for which access conditions are restricted to users paid by CERN and who were granted a GSM phone for professional use. It is not possible to obtain a PRIVATE subscription if a user does not have a professional subscription beforehand;
In order to visualize all communication costs and access rights, the CET and HRT reports will be updated so that they reflect the changes:
An automatic email alert system will be put in place in order to warn budget code managers and the concerned users when a subscription generates too much expense compared to the CERN's average costs.
On the other hand, the ageing technology of our current SIM card generation causes trouble with the activation of some new services on our operator’s network. We have also noticed that there is an increasing rate of mechanical failures due to the deterioration of SIM card electrical contacts.Therefore, it is necessary to undergo a general SIM card replacement campaign. This operation will take place in March 2010, and it will be the occasion to deploy the new services and to complete the current subscription conversion to the new system (BASIC, BASIC+, FULL and PRIVATE).

February, the 15th:
Each GSM user will receive an email indicating where he/she will be able to pick up his/her new SIM card. In general, the new SIM cards will be delivered by the secretariats. The email will also contain the user’s new subscription type. If the user has already private rights, he/she will have to confirm, via a web interface, that he/she accepts the conditions of the new PRIVATE subscription.
In parallel, all departmental DPOs (Department Planning Officers) will be invited to validate the subscriptions' conversion to the new system. Conversion rules will be applied by default. DPOs will only have to update the subscription type for which they judge the default conversion rules not to be appropriate.
In order to avoid any confusion, the Telecom Lab won’t accept any subscription modifications on the old system from February, the 15th. However, it will be always possible to request a new subscription under the new system.

From 1st to 15th of March:
Users will have to pick up their SIM cards from the place indicated on the email received on the 15th of February. Their secretariat will provide them with instructions in order to proceed with the SIM card's replacement and they will be asked whether they need assistance to transfer data from one SIM card to the other, and if the GSM number is part of a rapid response unit service. In these cases, the Telecom Lab will make an appointment with the concerned users.

From 23rd to 26th of March:
SIM cards will be migrated every night by batches of 1500 cards between the 23rd and 26th of March. Users will receive an email two days before the migration of their SIM card in order to warn them about the exact day of this migration. A last alert will be sent by SMS on the day of the migration. GSM numbers for “piquet” services will be migrated individually outside this period of time. In case of any problem, users will be invited to contact immediately the Telecom Lab.

March, the 30th:
The Telecom Lab will resume its normal activities. Please note that the Telecom Lab's opening hours have already been extended from 8:00 to 18:00 every weekday (labo.telecom@cern.ch / tel. 72480 / Bat 58 R-017). On the other hand, the Telecom Lab's team will be reinforced during this transition phase to answer questions raised by users.

CS Group

by IT Department