While most Tier 1 service providers have started down the pathway to creating their own digital ecosystems, bigger disruptions are needed for them to become digital service providers.
In order to play a larger role in digital ecosystems, today's service providers need to transform beyond operating transport networks, according to a report by Technology Business Research Inc. (TBR) that was commissioned by Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.
Instead of just providing connectivity, digital service providers (DSPs) can increase their revenues from two sources, according to the report. The first, enabled services, includes providing all of or part of the elements that are needed in a digital ecosystem to support consumer or business user experiences. Embedded services would include the creation of digital content, providing marketing around it, building consumer and engagement interfaces, fulfillment and support of the content requirements and analyzing the transactions.
The second source of potential revenue for DSPs was enabled services, which includes providing the necessary services to enable transport of the digital services at the right time, in the right place and in the right manner. The report said that with advanced user expectations and technology innovations, both of which should be in place by 2020, enabled services will need to provide data in real time in order to achieve network scale, security and dynamic quality of service.
Here's a look at the digital ecosystem and the platform requirements that telcos will need to turn themselves into DSPs:
— Mike Robuck, Editor, Telco Transformation