ore functions to other runtime entities and represents the unit of binding. NGOSS announcement: This is an invocation initiated by a client compo- nent instance. The innovation will result in the conveyance of information from the client component instance to the server component instance. It can be a request to the server component instance to perform a function on its instance. NGOSS announcement signature: This defines the name of the invocation and the parameter types. NGOSS interface: The interfaces represent functionality provided by man- aged software elements that reside in a component. NGOSS interface signature: The interface signature is a set of announcement and interrogation signatures for each operation type in the interface. NGOSS operation: Operation involves interaction through a contract invocation. Operation happens between a client component and a server component that is either an interrogation or an announcement. NGOSS interrogation: Interrogation is similar to an operation, except that it consists of two interactions, one initiated by a client component instance and the second initiated by the server component instance. NGOSS application: This is a container artifact that provides an encapsu- lation of the requirements, specifications, and implementations. The arti- facts define desired functionality from the perspective of service providers that is needed to support a specific business goal within their operating environments. NGOSS service: An NGOSS service can be either a customer facing service or a resource facing service. An NGOSS service is created, deployed, man- aged, and torn down by one or more NGOSS contract operations. 21.8 TAM The telecom applications map is a reference framework on the set of applications that enable and automate operational processes within a telecom operator. TAM is mainly intended to address the need for a common language for information exchange between operators and system suppliers in developing OSS applications. Having common map component standardizati