Top Business Risks for Telco Operators

 A while ago, my colleague Franklin Flint blogged about the top 5 challenges emerging for the carriers and service providers. Along those lines I’m taking this opportunity to share some of the business risks Telecom Operators may be facing (pulled from Ernst and Young 2012 report top 10 risks in Telecommunications) and how Dell OEM Solutions provides elements to support Operators facing these challenges.

Failure to shift the business model from minutes to bytes

More and more mobile phone users value access to data over voice, involuntarily contributing to the rise of over-the-top providers. As value shifts from minutes of usage to volumes of data, operators need to move away from their legacy strategies, On top of delivering commoditized voice and data, Operators will need to target revenues from monetizing new services such as video on demand, HD video conferencing etc.

Disengagement from the changing customer mindset

Technology brands are top of mind for consumers today and technology cycles quickening. Operators will need to gain access to better business intelligence for helping them understand customer changes before their competitors. Innovation in user applications and the service delivery model could be used to build brand loyalty.

A more efficient and flexible approach to the way applications and services are delivered is a logical step to take. Operators can benefit from running Virtualized Appliances on a Carrier Ready Cloud Infrastructure with the required SLA’s

Lack of confidence in return on investment

It is an increasingly though job for Operators to maintain their commitment to investing in growth opportunities, while tracking technology and consumer developments closely. Control over CapEx is getting tighter and so they need to ensure their financial investments are targeted at the right areas at the right time. Some major investments are pending in developing LTE networks. Focusing on industry standards, x86 computing, flat networking, fresh air coolingetc, operators can potentially lower the costs of investments and operations thus contributing to CapEx control.

Lack of regulatory certainty on new market structures

Uncertainty over regulators’ approaches to new market structures is undermining operators’ willingness to invest. It is increasingly crucial for governments and regulators to adopt pro-investment policies to sustain the sector’s momentum and for operators to form workable stances on a range of issues, including the increasing relationship between fixed and mobile policies. At the same time, all these groups must work together to achieve greater clarity over regulatory approaches.

Failure to capitalize on new types of connectivity

New types of connectivity such as machine-to-machine (M2M) are redefining the concept of connectivity, requiring operators to adopt new strategies. M2M is a very specific new concept as instead of continuing to think in human interactions, operators need to develop new understandings of connectivity. Effectively Operators may need to expand their capabilities or seek a partner to outsource. My colleague Anthony Sayers has written a number articles on Dell’s Mobility Strategieswhich are interesting in this space.

Dell OEM Solutions

Dedicated teams within Dell OEM Solutions have been working hard in the Telecommunications market supporting customers with Carrier Grade Products, Cloud Infrastructure, Services, Consultancy and other deliverables to support market specific requirements. Read more on www.dell.com/telco

used source: Ernst and Young 2012 report top 10 risks in Telecommunications

About the Author: Marcel Moelands