As connectivity has become commoditised, launching new network technology can no longer be relied upon to generate operator growth. This report outlines eight guiding principles for operators seeking to move beyond connectivity into tailored vertical solutions.
The delivery of ‘mixed reality’ experiences through various forms of AR / VR ‘glasses’ is improving, and Apple may be planning to enter the fray alongside other heavyweight players such as Amazon and Google. We review the realistic timescales, and the opportunities for telcos.
Edge computing is a strategic opportunity for telcos. We examine the driving needs and applications for telco edge computing, describe the market and the options for telcos, discuss their partnerships with hyperscalers and recommend key actions.
What should telcos do to bridge the gaps between current hype, actual performance, and future promises on 5G? We argue that a data-driven and forensic approach to roll-out and marketing will be the key, particularly in the uncertain economic environment driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, and review the timelines for future applications.
Telcos in South Korea and China have seen strong early demand for new 5G services. Where else is 5G commercially available, and what are the key lessons from early movers on 5G investments and positioning?
New NFV/SDN deployments in North America are increasingly driven by 5G, with a striking role for open source and telco self-builds. Globally, our tracker includes details of nearly 500 NFV/SDN deployments between 2011 and May 2019.
What other telcos can learn from AT&T’s and Verizon’s rapidly diverging strategies in the digital advertising market.
After considerable hype and uncertainty, the near term developments for 5G are now much more apparent, including which nations will go first, chip and handset availability, and the use of different spectrum bands.
Mobile apps are at the heart of the modern digital economy. Although many telco-owned apps have struggled, some have broken the mould, achieving high levels of adoption and usage. How did they do it?
Recently, Orange passed 22 million homes, Telefónica 20 million, and AT&T is now reaching five million more every year. The Chinese have over 300 million FTTH connections. What does FTTH do for ARPU, churn, OPEX and 5G that makes it so compelling?
Telcos with a clear focus on what they are trying to achieve will do better at the risky business of M&A. So who’s buying what, and who’s doing well?
The US operator is an enthusiastic proponent and strong early backer of 5G. Why, what does it know that is different from the norm and what should other telcos do about it?
‘Network as a Service’ (NaaS) and ‘enterprise virtual CPE’ (vCPE) are the leading customer-facing applications in which NFV and SDN approaches are being applied. This report looks at 13 leading operators in North America, Europe and Asia, what they are doing, and what strategies are emerging.
STL Partners published the inaugural version of our Digital Investment Database in early July, and we’ve now issued our first update, including a brief overview of Softbank’s acquisition of ARM and Verizon’s purchases of Yahoo! and Fleetmatics.
STL Partners explores in detail how thirteen leading operators are addressing NFV and SDN. By exploring each management team’s vision for the technology and the current implementation activities, we have been able to identify six segments – from dynamic ‘NFV Business Model Transformation Pioneers’ to more prosaic ‘Utilitarian Adopters’. The report also outlines three major ‘best-practice’ recommendations for other players.
M&A and majority investment are key tools in building digital businesses. But are telcos actively investing? We look in detail at SingTel, Telstra and Verizon, which have committed significantly to digital investment to extend their businesses. We also discuss why most European operators lag their Asia-Pac and North American peers. Our analysis is based on the newly-developed STL Partners Digital Investment Database, which tracks investments by 22 leading service providers.
Our latest analysis identifies seven key barriers that have slowed NFV roll out across six operators (Deutsche Telekom, NTT, Verizon, Vodafone, Swisscom and Comcast), and the approaches being used to overcome them.
Our research focuses on how telcos and their partners can embrace industry disruption.
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