Telkomsel's Live System Overhaul Offers a Blueprint for Global Telecom Modernization

JAKARTA, Indonesia and SINGAPORE – February 26, 2026 – In a move that could provide a roadmap for telecommunications giants worldwide, Telkomsel, Southeast Asia's largest operator, has successfully modernized the core platform of its digital brand, by.U, in partnership with global telco technology firm Circles. The project represents a significant feat in the industry: a large-scale “brownfield” transformation executed on a live system serving millions of customers across Indonesia without service interruption.

Announced today, the launch of the new Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform replaces a complex web of legacy systems with a single, cloud-native solution. This initiative tackles one of the most persistent and high-stakes challenges facing established telecom operators: how to innovate and shed outdated technology without risking the stability of a massive, active subscriber base. The successful deployment offers a compelling case study for an industry often hamstrung by the complexity of its own infrastructure.

Cracking the Brownfield Challenge

For decades, major telecommunications companies have been built on layers of complex, often proprietary, Business Support Systems (BSS) and orchestration tools. While functional, these legacy systems are notoriously rigid, making it slow and costly to launch new products, adjust pricing, or improve the digital customer experience. The alternative, a complete “rip and replace” overhaul, is fraught with risk, threatening service blackouts and customer churn.

This is the “brownfield” dilemma: upgrading a mature, operational environment as opposed to building a new “greenfield” network from scratch. The Telkomsel and Circles partnership confronted this challenge head-on. The project consolidated multiple legacy BSS, orchestration, and digital experience systems for the by.U brand into a unified, configurable, and vertically integrated SaaS platform. This transformation was performed in a live environment, a delicate operation akin to swapping out the engine of a plane while it's in mid-flight.

Executing this required a meticulous strategy involving deep integration with Telkomsel's existing infrastructure and structured change management to ensure service continuity. Unlike smaller digital pilots, this was a full-scale modernization of a nationally active brand, demonstrating that such ambitious projects are not only possible but can be executed responsibly.

A New Engine for Agility and Performance

The immediate impact of the new platform is a series of tangible improvements in both business operations and the end-user experience. By moving to a modern, cloud-native architecture, Telkomsel has unlocked significant gains in performance and agility for its by.U brand. The company reports measurable reductions in transaction and journey latency for key customer interactions, such as product checkouts and service activations, resulting in a more responsive and seamless digital experience.

Beyond customer-facing improvements, the platform provides a critical boost to business agility. Its end-to-end configurability allows Telkomsel’s teams to design, test, and launch new products, pricing structures, and marketing campaigns with far greater speed. This capability is crucial in the fast-paced telecom market, where operators must constantly adapt to competitive pressures and evolving consumer demands.

“The platform's configurability enables our teams to respond more effectively to market dynamics,” said Joyce Shia, Director of Information Technology at Telkomsel. “This transformation strengthens our ability to innovate at speed, while maintaining operational discipline and service reliability.”

This modernization also addresses the persistent problem of technical debt. By consolidating disparate systems into a single, modular, API-first architecture, Telkomsel has reduced operational complexity and created a more resilient and scalable foundation designed to support its large subscriber base reliably.

Setting a Global Precedent for Legacy Modernization

The challenges faced by Telkomsel are not unique. Tier-1 operators from North America to Europe and Asia are grappling with similar legacy constraints. The competitive landscape for telco IT solutions is fierce, with major players like Amdocs, Ericsson, and Oracle all offering pathways to modernization. However, successful, large-scale brownfield case studies remain relatively scarce, making the by.U project a significant reference point for the entire industry.

“This collaboration with Telkomsel demonstrates how large-scale brownfield transformations can be executed responsibly in live environments,” stated Sanjay Kaul, Chief Revenue Officer at Circles. “Together with Telkomsel and by.U, we've shown that Tier–1 operators can modernize critical platforms at scale, supported by purpose–built telecom SaaS capabilities and deep operational expertise. The result is a repeatable blueprint for sustainable innovation and operational stability.”

This project solidifies Circles' position as a key enabler of digital transformation for incumbent operators. The company, which already partners with major players like KDDI in Japan, Etisalat Group (e&) in the Middle East, and AT&T in the United States, can now point to the Telkomsel project as definitive proof of its ability to handle one of the most complex transformation scenarios in the sector. For other operators watching from the sidelines, it provides a viable model for escaping the legacy trap.

Beyond the Upgrade: Paving the Way for an AI-Powered Future

Perhaps the most forward-looking aspect of this transformation is the creation of what the companies call an “AI-ready foundation.” This is more than a marketing buzzword; it refers to the fundamental architectural shift required to effectively leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning in future operations. Legacy systems, with their siloed data and rigid processes, are a major barrier to implementing advanced AI use cases.

The new unified platform, with its modern data and orchestration architecture, creates a clean, accessible data environment. This foundation is essential for developing future capabilities such as hyper-personalized marketing, predictive customer care, autonomous network operations, and new forms of digital monetization. For Telkomsel, this aligns with its broader strategy to evolve beyond a traditional connectivity provider and become a leading digital technology company in Indonesia's burgeoning digital economy.

As the telecommunications industry continues its shift toward cloud-native principles and intelligent automation, the foundational work of platform modernization becomes paramount. The partnership between by.U and Circles shows that this difficult but necessary work can be done, providing a clear and scalable path for established operators to not only catch up with digital-native competitors but also build a resilient foundation for the next generation of telecommunication services.