A recent IBM survey reveals that communications service providers (CSPs) are looking to restructure their business models in a manner that would allow them to monetise 5G edge. The survey also highlighted how the leadership of telecom operators view their relationship with hyperscalers. CSPs are going through increasing pressure to avoid going through the same fate as legacy media companies. This comes after news of cloud hyperscalers claiming dominance over legacy media companies has been hitting the markets.
Telecom Operators Embrace Open Hybrid Cloud Platforms with Caution
Vice President for Global Telecom Industry at IBM, Craig Wilson, has provided more insights on the results of the survey by noting that around 75% of the telecom operators surveyed feel the need to work with hyperscalers. What pulls them back with caution is the fact that hyperscalers are the ones capturing a lot of the value with these partnerships. He added that telecom operators feel that this brings them to a critical decision-making point. He also noted that carriers are embracing open hybrid cloud platforms but with vigilance.
The survey results further showcase that almost 71% of surveyed telecom operators have stated that cloud computing is a core technology that will help deliver results in the next two to three years. 61% of the surveyed carriers feel that 5G would be able to deliver the same results in the next few years. Almost three-fourths of the highest performing CSPs have accepted that partnering with webscale companies for 5G enabled edge computing would benefit the web scales considerably more than the CSPs themselves. These webscalers also include hyperscalers.
5G is Monetised by Using Infrastructure, Not by Building it
The IBM report also pointed out that CSPs take over most of the burden of investing in infrastructure. Cloud companies like Amazon and Microsoft have benefited from the networks that CSPs spend money on to build out and upgrade. This further burdens the infrastructure as well.
The latest mobile network technology, 5G, follows the same trends as any other technology. CSPs have incurred huge costs preparing for 5G enabled Edge computing, but the fact of the matter is that 5G is monetised not by building its infrastructure but by using that infrastructure. The top-performing CSPs are thus moving to explore new revenue streams to drive profit.
