Manage agents on your network

  • Carriers actively manage agents on their network by approving or rejecting them before they can send traffic.

  • Agents have fluid statuses, starting in Pending, moving to Launched if approved, and can be Rejected, Suspended, Reactivated, or Terminated.

  • You can review agent launches in the RBM Administration Console by assessing branding, use case, and billing category.

  • Agents can be suspended temporarily for erratic behavior or policy breaches and then reactivated or permanently terminated.

As a carrier managing agents on your network, you control which agents can send messages to your users. You can approve, reject, suspend, or terminate agents based on your operational needs and policy compliance.

An agent's status on your network is dynamic. All agents begin in a Pending status and move through the lifecycle based on how you manage them. The following statuses are available:

  • Pending: Agent is awaiting review before it can be launched on your network.
  • Launched: Agent has been approved and can now send messages to end users.
  • Rejected: Agent doesn't meet the review criteria and has been rejected. You can either work with the agent owner to resolve issues or remove the agent from your network in the console.
  • Suspended: Agent is temporarily blocked from sending traffic (for example, for behaving erratically, generating spam, or violating the policy). You can reactivate a suspended agent to return it to a Launched status.

When the issues that prompted suspension can't be resolved, you can terminate an agent to permanently remove it from the network. A terminated agent will no longer appear in the console or API calls.

Review agent launches

When you review an agent's launch request, you can either approve or reject it.

To review the agent before launch:

  1. Open the Administration Console and sign in with your RCS for Business Carrier Google Account.
  2. Select an agent with the Pending status.
  3. Review the agent's details against your launch criteria:
    • Navigate to the Agent information page and check that the agent's branding aligns with your standards.
    • Check that the agent's use case and billing category match the agent's intended behavior.
    • Navigate to the Launch page and check the launch details to confirm all requirements are met.

You can also view and change the agent status on the Overview page.

Approve an agent

When an agent meets your network's launch criteria, you can approve the agent launch. When approved, the agent can immediately start interacting with your end users.

To approve an agent for launch on your network:

  1. Open the Administration Console and sign in with your RCS for Business Carrier Google Account.
  2. In the Agents list, select your agent.
  3. On the Launch page, click Approve.
  4. In the confirmation dialog, click Approve.

Reject an agent

If an agent doesn't meet your network's launch criteria, you can reject its launch. When you reject an agent, you must provide a reason. Google shares this reason with the agent owners.

If you reject an agent, you can reach out to the agent owners to try to fix the issues you identified.

  • Find the agent's primary email on the Agent information page.
  • Find the email for the individual who submitted the launch request in the agent's launch questionnaire.

If you and the agent owner can resolve the issues, you can approve the agent launch. If the issues can't be resolved, you can remove the agent from the Administration Console.

To reject an agent launch on your network:

  1. Open the Administration Console and sign in with your RCS for Business Carrier Google Account.
  2. In the Agents list, select your agent.
  3. On the Launch page, click Reject.
  4. Provide a reason for rejecting the agent.
  5. Click Reject.

Suspend an agent

When an agent behaves erratically or breaks a contract, you can suspend the agent to temporarily pause its traffic on your network. Suspending an agent gives you the opportunity to investigate its recent behavior and reach out to the agent owner.

To suspend an agent:

  1. Open the Administration Console and sign in with your RCS for Business Carrier Google Account.
  2. In the Agents list, select the agent you want to suspend.
  3. On the Launch page, click Suspend.
  4. Provide a reason for suspending the agent. Google shares this reason with the agent owner.
  5. Click Suspend.

Reactivate a suspended agent

When you or an agent owner resolve issues with a suspended agent, you can reactivate the agent to re-enable its traffic on your network. When you reactivate an agent, it can immediately start communicating with your end users.

To reactivate a suspended agent:

  1. Open the Administration Console and sign in with your RCS for Business Carrier Google Account.
  2. In the Agents list, select the suspended agent.
  3. On the Launch page, click Reactivate.
  4. In the confirmation dialog, click Reactivate.

Terminate a suspended agent

If you suspend an agent, but neither you nor the agent owner can resolve the issue that prompted suspension, you can terminate the agent. Terminating an agent removes the agent from your network and from the Administration Console.

To terminate a suspended agent:

  1. Open the Administration Console and sign in with your RCS for Business Carrier Google Account.
  2. In the Agents list, select the suspended agent.
  3. On the Launch page, click Terminate.
  4. Provide a reason for terminating the agent. Google shares this reason with the agent owners.
  5. Click Terminate.

View an agent's launch history

The Administration Console provides a record of the changes to an agent's launch status, including what the change was, who made it, and when.

  • To view the most recent change to an agent's launch status, see Overview.
  • For a detailed list of changes to an agent's launch status, see Agent history.