The 2025 tech evolution places the telecom industry at a critical turning point, offering telcos significant growth opportunities. The future of telecom industry is expected to witness an unprecedented positive shift, not witnessed before.
After investing over $1 trillion in upgrading the 5G network, the telcos are now required to shift focus to improving this investment. Consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, highlighted three segments that contain the keys to unleashing solid growth: AI in telecom industry, Mobile Virtual Network Enablers (MVNEs), and Application Programming Interface (API) monetization.
Future of AI in Telecom Industry
Agentic AI, a more advanced form of GenAI, is transforming telecom industries and how they operate. Unlike other non-agentic AI tools, agentic AI has the ability to make independent, real-time decisions and learn from its actions.
AI will transform telecom business support systems (BSS) to deliver:
- Automation to streamline processes for rapid and effective operation.
- Customer personalized experiences
- Enhanced decision-making
- Faster innovation and continuous competition
- Sales and operational efficiency
With the inclusion of agentic AI in their BSS, telcos will be able to minimize operational expenditures, consolidate IT infrastructures, and foster dynamic innovation, which will ultimately enhance market awareness as well as customer satisfaction.
Expansion of MVNOs and MNOs
The global Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) market has exploded, and it’s worth will be $169.7 billion by 2033.
MVNOs, who assume rent networks from Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), can bring services in a matter of weeks without huge investments in infrastructure. The demand for Mobile Virtual Network Enablers (MVNEs) has grown, facilitating MVNOs in regulatory requirements, technical assistance, and obtaining access to a network.
The expenditure of 5G technology is paving the way for greater opportunities for MNOs and MVNEs to benefit from new high-bandwidth applications like IoT, smart cities, and autonomous vehicles.
In parallel, eSIM technology is also spreading, letting MVNOs target new markets like retail, banking and media. AI and GenAI empowering MVNEs will enhance customer experience, making it part of the growth of MVNOs and the 5G ecosystem.
API Monetization
With 5G investments shaping telecom industry trends, API monetization is emerging as a key growth driver. By opening network data to third-party developers through APIs, telecoms enable new applications, enhancing network capabilities but also creating new avenues for revenue.
The network API market is expected to reach $100-$300 billion in the coming years. With APIs, telecoms will get access to leverage real-time data, along with GenAI, to offer smarter and customized services. Further, BSS systems will be instrumental in processing and supporting API transactions for smooth and scalable monetization strategies leading to changes in telecom industry.
Future of Telecom Industry
Despite the challenges faced by telecom industry over the years, the industry now has entered a pivotal phase. Through embracing agentic AI, MVNEs, and API monetization that will be the base in making the future of telecom industry successful.
However, concerns arise over the potential of having monopolistic ecosystems where only telcos dominate the market and curb innovation for a long time. Will this concentration of power ultimately hinder the growth and diversity of the telecom industry?
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