ATM network efficiency is on revise

[img_assist|nid=7602|title=|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=65]A survey on the ATM networks efficiency was conducted recently. The survey shows that about 25 percent of European banks are going to pay scrupulous attention to the problem of ATM downtime in the following 12-18 months. This demonstrates that banks are bearing pressure on account of ongoing maintenance of their ATMs. The banks are called to put their technologies in order to better manage and control their networks.

On the score of recent changes to the network such as the shift to the Windows operating system and multi-vendor ATM software launch, which was made to work across mixed ATM estates, networks are working with errors. The survey reveals that 22 percent of respondents find the issue of ATM downtime to be of a high priority. Banks are experiencing adverse consequences of unreliable network functioning which can result in a huge revenue and customer loyalty decrease.

"Talk within the ATM industry has focused on visionary multi-vendor strategies and the role of the ATM in multi-channel banking, which we fully support, but our delegate survey highlights the real problem that banks face today with regards to their ATM networks. Banks are still struggling to get their basics right; if they can't successfully tackle ATM network availability, they will find it increasingly difficult to introduce any new revenue-generating services that will retain and attract new customers. It's time for banks to get their ducks in a row with regards to their ATM network, which still remain key a customer touch point," stated Ian Kerr, CEO of Level Four Software, a leading supplier of open standards-based ATM software.

"There is a pressing need to monitor and control all elements of ATM networks more closely to increase network reliability. Banks should implement pro-active intelligent monitoring at ATM terminals, rather than the outdated reactive central monitoring approach that is still in use today. Using this modern approach to ATM monitoring, software faults can be diagnosed and rectified remotely, and downtime due to hardware faults can be minimised through remote diagnosis and predictive maintenance. This will help protect banks from lost revenues, promote brand loyalty and customer retention, and provide a solid platform for future multi-channel activities."