Framework to achieve multi-domain service management

An ongoing trend within the telecommunications industry has been toward providing end-to-end (E2E) IP based services. Accordingly, the associated management perspective has shifted from management of services within a single service provider domain towards a multi-domain paradigm supporting an E2E service view in which relationships among service providers, suppliers and customers and the related service level agreements (SLAs) take on major significance. In order to achieve multi-domain management, it is essential that a service management framework be put in place that supports planning, fulfilling, and assuring E2E services, including management of Service Requests, Service Assurance, and SLAs. The collecting and fusing of information from multiple sources, many external to the service provider's domain, to support the required E2E perspective has become an essential process.