LinkedIn USSD Question Still Gathers Answers!

Was it a surprise to get an answer to my old USSD question on LinkedIn about USSD!

Here is the answer from Tom Gleason

Ivan,
Sorry I took so long to reply. I have been very busy.
I have developed both a distributed messaging platform (GSM/SMSC, IS41/SMSC, SMPP, SMTP, HTTP/SOAP, SNPP, USSD, WAP-Push etc) and also a CAMEL SCP that houses a USSDgateway. If I understand your question correctly, the addition of new USSD services is straightforward and highly extensible. Basically the PLMN operator must provision USSD services (by service number *nnn#xxxxx) in HLR which routes mobile originated requests to my USSDgateway which in-turn relays these requests (in XML) to an application. This allows the services application to be written most languages (Java, Python, C#, Perl, C/C++, …) In addition to mobile-originated requests, USSD allows your application to “push” notifications and requests to the phone (like pushing an alert message or sending a menu and reading the user response). USSD can also be used to push a web link – the user clicks, it starts up the browser. Or a WAP push can be performed to launch the browser. Whats great about USSD is it supports roaming and it’s free (if so provisioned in HLR). USSD can also be used to trigger voicecalls from the switch (MSC) to the mobile (call-backs). Basically you can instrument applications/services that generate revenue for the operator of the network.
Hope this helps.
Tom