 provisioning and configuration module sends a status comple- tion message to service provisioning and the configuration module once a confirmation is received from the test management module that the network has been properly configured. The service provisioning module now performs any service level configuration required and activates the service. 9. The network provisioning module also updates the inventory management module with information on the status of the allocated resources. 10. Service provisioning and the configuration module now informs the order management system to update the status of the order. The order management system sets the order status as completed. 11. The order management system will then inform the assurance solution to start collecting reports on the services offered as part of the completed order and the billing solution to start billing the customer as per the SLA associated with the order. 12. Finally the order management system will directly update the customer (12A) or inform the customer through sales (12B) about the activation of the service package requested by the customer when placing the order. Before we move from fulfillment to assurance, let us look into the key vendors providing solutions for fulfillment process. Telcordia would probably top the list Fundamentals of EMS, NMS and OSS/BSS with solutions for order management, inventory management, and provisioning. Telcordia is one of the major market leaders in network inventory management solution. Amdocs has fulfillment, assurance, and billing solutions. Cramer, which was the major competitor for Telcordia in network inventory management, was acquired by Amdocs. The huge market share of Telcordia can be attributed to its acquisition of Granite Systems. Metasolv and NetCracker are two other key vendors that have products on order management, provisioning, and inventory manage- ment. Some other popular vendors in network inventory management are Incatel, Viziqor, Axiom, and Syndesis. Sigma Systems and ADC are well known f