Telecommunications firms have stepped up to the enormous challenges of Covid-19, with some operators experiencing up to a 60 per cent surge in internet traffic compared to before the crisis. Broadband networks have become more critical than ever, as typically face-to-face activities, including teaching, conferences and meetings, suddenly migrated online.
Despite this, the market forces influencing the industry haven’t abated. Pre-Covid, traditional telecoms companies, or telcos, offering voice, messaging and data services were increasingly besieged by challenges from over-the-top suppliers and IT services firms. The pandemic has merely accelerated these trends, meaning telcos are under renewed pressure to innovate in order to maintain market dominance. To retain relevance in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, telcos have to build on the opportunities created by Covid-19 with investment in next-era technologies.
There are great opportunities for telcos on the horizon. Multiple industries are in the process of digitising and migrating assets to the cloud. This, combined with surging demand for both automation and AI services, presents a huge opportunity for untapped growth.
To harness this exponential upsurge in demand, traditional communication service providers (CSPs) must supercharge their digital offering. This is especially true in the age of 5G. The Internet of Things and an explosion in connected devices not only offer an unparalleled opportunity for telcos, but also prompt the need to revitalise core business operations from the network level up.
How an investment bank boosted its financial performance through automation
By Hexaware TechnologiesWidespread adoption of 5G will oversee an explosion in connected devices and data, combined with novel, unique network requirements. This will make automation in telecom networks indispensable. In fact, automation in operation and network management will be a cornerstone of the transformation of traditional operators into digital-facing service providers.
One of the biggest roadblocks to telcos embracing digital transformation and 5G is existing systems and structures – especially the reliance of most telcos on legacy infrastructure and proprietary hardware systems. This restricts the opportunity to reap the benefits of new software applications and limits the capacity for innovation.
For more information about Hexaware’s TensaiTM suite for telecoms organisations, download the white paper.
A comprehensive automation solution like Hexaware’s TensaiTM suite will be crucial for companies looking to trade in an ageing, insufficiently functioning stack for a slick, cloud-first solution, where disparate systems are looped back under one control centre. Hexaware can help telcos disrupt the data and streamline operational silos typical of the traditional CSP operating model and tap into the vast growth potential for the next era of communications and connectivity.
Hexaware’s TensaiTM solution enables multiple software platforms to communicate with one another and interfaces using the application programming interfaces (APIs) to deliver services through its platform. It supports the seamless interfacing between analytics engines, industry-specific applications, network platforms, back-end legacy systems and unstructured external data. Its advanced analytics can boost business intelligence, permitting better transparency and rapid decision-making – crucial to a 5G roll-out.
Telcos that don’t want to be left behind are investing in automation and its underlying technologies, such as machine learning and network virtualisation. Consequently, 63.5 per cent of telecoms companies are currently investing in AI to improve their network infrastructure, according to research from market intelligence firm IDC. Tractica/Ovum data predicts that global telecom industry investment in AI software, hardware and services will reach $36.7bn by 2025.
Despite the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, now is the right time to take action. McKinsey research demonstrates that organisations that seize the opportunity to restructure and adapt during times of crisis will come out ahead in the next decade.
The next generation of telcos will be defined by decisive leaders, who grasp this moment to tap into new, uncharted growth. The pandemic intensified the urgency of accelerated transformation, while rapidly shifting mindsets boost the need for a future-facing operating model. The Covid-19 crisis placed telcos front and centre, but to cement this position, firms must make bold choices to reinvigorate their business formula.
For more information about Hexaware’s TensaiTM suite for telecoms organisations, download the white paper.
Related
