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Business support system
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<p>Business support systems (BSS) are the components that a <a href="/facts/Telecommunications_service_provider/jrWc1YHE">telecommunications service provider</a> (or <a href="/facts/Telephone_company/zvrL88NE">telco</a>) uses to run its business operations towards customers. </p><p>Together with <a href="/facts/Operations_support_system/TebDJQc9">operations support systems</a> (OSS), they are used to support various end-to-end telecommunication services (e.g., telephone services). BSS and OSS have their own data and service responsibilities. The two systems together are abbreviated in various ways, such as OSS/BSS, BSS/OSS, B/OSS, BSSOSS, OSSBSS or BOSS. Some commentators and analysts take a network-up approach to these systems (hence OSS/BSS) and others take a business-down approach (hence BSS/OSS). </p><p>The initialism BSS is also used in a singular form to refer to all the business support systems, viewed as a whole <a href="/facts/System/hmqQ4ASX">system</a>. </p>