 functionality, the service provider can create an ordering portal equipped with a catalogue for its customers. A service provider or carrier can then offer these capabilities to its resellers and agents so that they can offer them to their customers. This provides a strategic advantage for the resellers of services, which of course greatly helps the provider at the head of the chain (or the top of the pyramid). We have touched on a wide range of specialist COTS OSS solutions. It is hardly feasible for a service provider to spend the time developing advanced software Unified management, as enabled by integrated OSS systems, is a kind of telecom-specific ERP which has delivered real benefits. Similarly, MRP-II was well received and delivered quanitifable benefits in the manufacturing industry. 6 Service Provisioning and Activation functionality for each of customer acquisition, contract management, service order- ing, circuit provisioning, customer support, billing, trouble ticketing and other network operations. At least, it would not be economically justifiable to do so when it might be possible to find a specialist ("best-in-breed") OSS software vendor that has focused on one of these functions and implemented the functionality in software. 6.7 Service Provisioning for xDSL and IP-VPNs The strong ties between operators and end users have evolved into more complex relationships. In the traditional telecommunications world, one type of access (PSTN) supported one service supplied by the service provider (telephony). Now a subscriber logs in to an ISP and can use services - such as e-mail, video and music download - that are independent of the ISP. While providing access can still be a profitable business, it is increasingly a commodity game. The important thing is to provide as many profitable services as possible over the network as long as that net- work is adequate for the services that are currently saleable. Service provisioning solutions assist in this by: simplifying installation and activation processes r