Global messaging marketplace is growing at a rapid pace and is expected to reach $1.8 billion in 2010. Canvas^® USSD Service Center is helping wireless operators to address today's exploding demand by establishing a centralized service facility to provide subscribers with interactive browsing capabilities.

Canvas USSD Service Center enables wireless operators to offer fast and interactive messaging services through the USSD feature of the GSM networks.

The Canvas brand covers multiple solutions with key components that are optimal for future growth in the evolving next generation networks (3G/IMS). Each Canvas product offers not only a point solution, but also re-usable building blocks that seamlessly integrate with other Canvas products as well as with Telenity partner solutions.

Canvas USSD Service Center is a member of the Canvas Converged Messaging portfolio. It is a next generation, flexible Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) gateway and server combination specifically designed for service providers, MVNO's and wireless operators to offer USSD-based applications to both prepaid and postpaid mobile subscribers.

Canvas USSD Service Center features a network interface to send and receive USSD messages while maintaining application/service connectivity through the industry standard SMPP protocol. Through its intuitive service creation facilities, Canvas USSD Service Center also provides operators a graphical user interface to design and launch menu based services. It can also reduce customer care costs by allowing users to "self care", cutting down investment in call centers and preserving network resources for billable voice calls.

Ease of subscriber use. Subscribers can easily initiate USSD-based services through a short code that is entered directly to the handset. USSD-based applications sustain sessions for subscriber navigation and responses, meaning that a well-written application makes the interaction as simple as two or more key presses for each response for the subscriber.

Interactive communication. All messages exchanged between the subscriber and the application in the same interaction use the same signaling dialogue. This means that the subscriber can be offered interactive services with minimal delay between messages.

Speed of messaging. Message transfer between the subscriber and the application within a dialogue is end to end with no intermediate storage or delays due to set up of signaling links.

Roaming Support. USSD Service Center provides seamless and transparent roaming support. Because USSD commands are routed back to the home mobile network's Home Location Register (HLR), services based on USSD work just as well and in exactly the same way when users are roaming. In short, USSD is the cheapest medium to reach subscribers anytime, anywhere.

Wide terminal support. USSD works on nearly all-existing GSM mobile phones.

Unified VAS messaging architecture. Canvas USSD Service Center can work with any SMSC and other VAS application platforms through industry standards as well as established vendor-specific interconnection standards. USSD can be used as a trigger for value-added services; the requested information can be received in the form of an SMS, an MMS, or even an IVR session triggered by the USSD request.

Network efficiency. USSD technology consumes about one eighth of the resources of a voice signaling channel; and since it only uses the signaling channel, it opens up the traffic channel for voice. Carriers can then offload the customer care traffic to USSD and have radio resources available for chargeable phone calls.

Next generation network support. Canvas USSD Service Center supports next generation SIGTRAN-based networks, as well as, legacy SS7 networks.