Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) in GSM Phase 2 provides means to carry

textual information between a mobile and an application in the network. This functionality can be seen as a tool to implement operator-specific services which require communication with the mobile subscriber. USSD can also be used to invoke certain supplementary services from the MS which does not support the supplementary service in question. The USSD transfer can be initiated by the mobile subscriber or by the application in the network. The Phase 2 USSD uses the same alphabet as the Short Message Service (SMS). The USSD is independent from the teleservices defined for the subscriber. Once a Mobile Subscriber International ISDN Number (MSISDN) was added into the Home Location Register (HLR) database, the subscriber is able to use the USSD services.

When SCP (USSDC) is directly connected to MSC/VLRi then this feature makes it possible that subscriber s IMSI, MSISDN and Routing category are sent to SCP from MSC/VLRi via MAP interface. The following figure indicates the network elements involved in USSD:

Note: Connection to the USSD center are done via the MAP 5 interface.

o USSD functionalities USSD provides the following functionalities: 1. Operator-defined service support functions of USSD 2. USSD supplementary service management functions 1. Operator-defined service support functions of USSD 2. Subscribers can use services with the help of USSD. One service can be, for example, that subscribers pay their parking bills with a mobile phone. When using services, subscribers send text strings called 'USSD strings' to the network and receive strings from the network. These kinds of services are performed by applications called 'USSD applications' in the External Node (EN). The EN can be either a Service Control Point (SCP) or a USSDC (USSD Centre). The USSD applications can also start services to

the subscribers. This is useful for example in cases when parking payment is required in advance. Then the USSD application can remind the subscriber when the time is running out. In case the MSC forwards the string to the HLR, the same services can always be available to subscribers, because the address of their own EN is stored in the HLR. Operators can provide the subscribers with more services because ENs are available to perform services through the HLR. Moreover, ENs are also available directly from the MSC without using the HLR. This means that the operator can have services available to all subscribers currently being in the network (for example, short information about the traffic jams of that specific area). The operator can allow or restrict the usage of certain services within certain location areas. This functionality affects USSD as well. For more information, see Feature 805: Regional Roaming (Zone Codes), Feature Description. The operator can bar incoming or outgoing calls, or roaming or the supplementary service (including USSD) access of a subscriber. For more information, see Feature 220: Operator Determined Barring, Feature Description. Furthermore, the operator can prevent the subscriber from roaming outside their Home PLMN and making expensive international phone calls and can also prevent the use of USSD. This functionality requires the activation of the Operator Determined Barring feature.
The operator can connect the Nokia Siemens Networks USSDC with the Nokia Siemens Networks DX MSC besides the HLR. The Nokia Siemens Networks USSDC uses the MSISDN instead of the IMSI as the identifier of the subscriber. Depending on the applied USSDC, either the IMSI or the MSISDN, or both the IMSI and the MSISDN of subscriber A are transferred on the MAP interface between the HLR or MSC and the USSDC

Using the MSISDN to identify the A-subscriber proves to be really effective for the operators since this way they can more easily define subscriber specific service profiles. For example, if a prepaid subscriber is not able to make a phone call in roaming situation because the charging is not solved, he can utilise the Call Back functionality by sending a USSD string. As a result, the network establishes the call by connecting subscriber A and B. Thus, the charging of the roamer can be solved with the aid of USSD. 3. USSD supplementary service management functions USSD strings can also be used to invoke operations (activation, deactivation, interrogation) related to ECT, MidCall, and CCBS. The operator can also define USSD strings as response messages to be displayed on the users' mobile stations. Explicit Call Transfer Subscribers can invoke Explicit Call Transfer (ECT) with USSD. ECT is handled locally in the MSC, and is not forwarded to the HLR. When the subscriber activates ECT by using a USSD string, the subscriber gets a response text indicating whether the ECT was successful or not. These texts can be defined in MMI in the MSC and only one of them appears on the screen of the MS, depending on the success of the supplementary service execution. The possible types of response strings are the following:
y y y y

successful case for phase 1 MS unsuccessful case for phase 1 MS successful case for phase 2 MS unsuccessful case for phase 2 MS

o MidCall Subscribers can use services in the middle of a call. This is called MidCall and described in the corresponding feature description. MidCall allows both the calling and the called subscriber to interact with the service through a user-network interface during the active call phase. It means that the user can start a new service logic or interact with the existing service logic to request some service. MidCall can also be invoked with USSD. MidCall USSD arms the MidCall detection point in Call Control. The operator can define four strings to be displayed on the users' mobile stations according to the USSD string analysis o Completion of Calls to Busy Subscribers The CCBS supplementary service enables the served user to have the network monitor the busy target user and to have the call completed without having to make a new call attempt. When a CCBS request is running in the network, the subscriber can deactivate or interrogate the originating request by sending a USSD string to the MSC, which either analyses and maps it into the correct CCBS MAPprocedure, or forwards the string to the HLR for analysis. The operator can define textual strings sent to the subcriber indicating the result of deactivation or interrogation request. However, as opposed to the four available strings in the case of ECT and MidCall, the operator can separately define four strings for deactivation and four strings for interrogation messages. USSD can also be used to deny accidental CCBS activation, which can happen when the user types the CCBS activation string and pushes the SEND button at the wrong time.
y y y y

APH1 = acknowledgement to phase 1 MS NPH1 = negative acknowledgement to phase 1 MS APH2 = acknowledgement to phase 2 MS NPH2 = negative acknowledgement to phase 2 MS

o Follow Me With the follow me service, a subscriber can activate call forwarding from a remote MS. The service enables a subscriber using MS A to activate the Call Forwarding Unconditional (CFU) Suppplementary Service (SS) for MS B, so that after the activation of the service, all subsequent calls to MS B are forwarded to MS A. Subscribers, who for some reason cannot access their own MS, can use this service to be reached by their own number on any MS that is at hand. The subscriber can register, erase, and interrogate the follow me service using a USSD string. The FM service supervisor can also erase and interrogate the service with the USSD string. o Sequential and Parallel Alerting Sequential alerting and parallel alerting enable the members of the so-called ringing group to receive a call with the common MSISDN in a user definable sequential order or to be alerted simultaneously. The subscriber can modify and interrogate the hunting order with a Mobile-Initiated USSD (MI-USSD) string if the member record and the group record are in the same HLR. Primary member interrogation and call divert interrogation are supported too. For more information related to sequential and parallel alerting, see Feature 1545&1576: Sequential and Parallel Alerting, Feature Description. Result record types
y y y y

RGINT = ringing group interrogation RGMOD = ringing group modification PMINT = primary member interrogation CDINT = call divert interrogation

o USSD barring It is possible to apply operator-controlled barring for USSD based on a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN)-specific SS code. SS code 253 (0xFD) can be used for USSD barring. If the operator defines this SS code for a subscriber, the network refuses all mobile-initiated USSD attempts in the visited MSC or in the HLR. The HLR permanently stores supplementary service information on USSD barring. The PLMN-specific SS code 253 (0xFD) is transferred from the HLR to the MSC/VLR through the Mobile Application Part (MAP) interface in the InsertSubscriberData message during the following operations:
y y y

location update standalone InsertSubscriberData standalone DeleteSubscriberData

The A-interface application makes a VLR inquiry in the MSC/VLR, and it checks whether the PLMNspecific SS code 253 is assigned to the subscriber or not. If the SS code is found in the subscriber data, the A-interface application rejects the mobile-initiated USSD attempt and the 'Call Barred' indication is sent back to the Mobile Station (MS) as a response. In an outbound roaming case, the MAP application reads the USSD barring information from the HLR database and prevents the USSD service for the subscriber if barring is set