Most Successful Cloud Computing Use Cases in Telcos 

The application of cloud computing is unfettered and powerful in any sector, especially telecommunications. At its core, cloud computing is a set of hardware, networks, storage, services, and interfaces enabling the delivery of computing as a service. In addition, these services offer software, infrastructure, and storage delivery through the internet. Its characteristics can be summed up in five basic ones: elasticity, Self-service provisioning, automatic de-provisioning, application programming interfaces (APIs), and a pay-as-you-go model. Cloud Computing use cases are spreading far and wide.  

Cloud Computing Use Cases and the Telecoms Industry 

The history of cloud computing use cases in the telecom industry began after the switch from traditional networking to software defined networking. Additionally, this software defined infrastructure’s main objective is to allow business owners to store and process data in its processing centers remotely.  

The Power in Cloud Computing for Telecoms 

• Business Scalability: Businesses can plan strategically for when and how to ramp up or scale back operations activity and dynamically adapt them to the workload. 
• Ecosystem Connectivity: Carriers with a forward-thinking mindset may create vast ecosystems and grasp more lucrative opportunities by leveraging the agility and reach that the cloud enables. 
• Context-driven Variability: Telcos can use features like location, individual qualities, and analytics to personalize services and products and to provide more user-centric experiences. 
• Masked Complexity: It hides some operational intricacies from end users. For example, maintenance works and upgrades. 
• Market Adaptability: Driven by shifting customer demands, telcos quickly respond to varying consumer needs. This aspect of cloud computing has become a key differentiator for businesses. 
• Cost Flexibility: Businesses can rent and pay for just the resources they require by employing a network of distant servers, which drastically lowers overhead costs for things like software and hardware updates, backup systems, data storage, and more. 

Cloud Computing Use Cases for Telecom Businesses 

There are three prominent cloud use cases on which the telecoms industry relies: 

• Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS): IaaS cloud providers offer essential computing, storage, and networking resources on demand, on a pay-as-you-go basis.  
• Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS): PaaS cloud providers enable the delivery of everything from simple cloud-based apps to sophisticated, cloud-enabled enterprise applications. 
• Software-as-a-Service (SaaS): SaaS cloud providers provide a complete software solution purchasable from a cloud service provider on a pay-as-you-go basis.  

Implementing Cloud Computing Operating Systems 

The three most common implementations of Cloud Computing Operating Systems are: 

• Cloud-native Network Functions (CNFs) perform network duties in software instead of purpose-built hardware. Routers, firewalls, virtual switches, and virtual private network gateways are prime examples of CNFs. The best parts of CNFs are their independence from specialized appliance hardware and improved scalability in large, distributed networks, etc. In addition, they offer microservices architecture enabling a more straightforward application programming interface (API),
•  Hybrid Cloud is a mix of private and public clouds that offer the best of both for companies. Utilizing a hybrid cloud makes the software highly compatible, adaptable, and horizontally portable. Furthermore, it increases data security.
• Edge Computing is a distributed computing model bringing computation and data storage closer to the data sources. Consequently, this paradigm improves network performance, increases bandwidth, and offloads data, thus reducing latency. 

Successful Cloud Computing Use Cases in Telecoms 

Many Telcos tried the successful application of cloud computing into their paradigms. Some managed to be quite successful, while others were unfortunate with their endeavors.  

Telefonica O2 Ireland 

“With one supplier, a single end-to-end SLA, and a dedicated point of contact to deal with, there’s less for you to worry about.” (Unified Communications and voice services: Voice and UC: O2 business) 

In 2016, Telefonica O2 Ireland released its new hosted IP telephony service, O2 Unified Communications.  Large businesses and public sector organizations benefit from the platform by having fixed and mobile telephones, voice mail, instant messaging, and videoconferencing in a single managed cloud-based service.  

This example is one of the cloud computing use cases in which the telco is an optimizer telco that efficiently performs business through the cloud by raising the customer value proposition. A telecom cloud optimizer offers public cloud solutions, fulfills data-sharing requirements, and adopts a single cloud-based solution for effective operations. 

Verizon Digital Media Services 

Verizon Digital Media Services aims to enhance cybersecurity and protect web solutions. Consequently, it launched a cloud-based web application firewall (WAF) in 2014 that set a new standard for reaction time to attacks. This technology improves the end-user experience by loading content (dynamic, static, and video) more quickly and efficiently. Content, delivered in real-time in response to user behavior, is provided dynamically (non-static). 

Such companies are referred to as disruptors. They create different value propositions and new products, services, and customer needs by leveraging the most valuable resource and unique customer data and then analyzing and merging it with other distinctive technology assets. In layperson’s terms, a telecom cloud-based disruptor ensures end-to-end quality service, analyzes customer insights, aggregates expertise, and fulfills local telecom presence. 

AT&T Healthcare Community Online 

AT&T Healthcare Community Online aims to help healthcare organizations improve operational efficiencies and streamline patient care by leveraging the cloud to provide flexible and highly secure storage for sensitive health data. Subsequently, experts integrated patient data from various sources. As a result, healthcare professionals have a unified patient view and real-time access to patient information. Subsequently, they provide faster and more accurate diagnosis. 

This instance is an example of cloud use cases as innovators. They deal tap into the cloud’s potential to expand any business value proposition and create new revenue streams. Therefore, telecom cloud-based innovators concern themselves with offering tailored customer experience to users and increasing sales by ad placements. Moreover, they enhance workflow management and gain rapid insights into performance across multiple channels.  

Final Thoughts 

As technology keeps advancing, everything around us is scrambling to catch up. The power in cloud computing lies in it being the answer to many challenges faced by the telecoms industry for years. Cloud computing operating system providers are generally split into three: IaaS cloud providers, PaaS cloud providers, and SaaS cloud providers. As a result, telcos worldwide are taking up one of three roles in cloud computing: optimizers, disruptors, or innovators. Furthermore, the mentioned cloud computing use cases from Telefonica O2, Verizon, and AT&T prove cloud computing is a successful answer to the novel needs of the digital world. As the years go by, we will see more telcos following in their footsteps with hopefully as much success. 

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