WILMINGTON, Del., June 13, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- While carriers are keen to play a leading role in the Internet of Things (IoT) and smart cities markets, they may be bypassed by other market players if they do not act. And while a new white paper from ABI Research urges carriers to adopt new strategies to establish their position within the IoT and remain competitive, one conclusion is highlighted: in order to deliver higher-value strategies beyond simple connectivity, the adoption of industry-wide standards is a must.
According to the white paper: “The deployment of open standards-based platforms, solutions, and approaches is the only way to unlock more value faster from IoT markets and, at the same time, allows adopting new business models, opening up new roles for carriers, such as aggregators and orchestrators of IoT ecosystems and market places.”
The report, ‘Role of carriers in smart cities and IoT,’ which was commissioned by InterDigital on behalf of its Smart Cities-focused business, ChordantÔ, outlines the core strategies for carriers to successfully maximize the opportunities presented by the IoT and smart cities. For over a decade, carriers have been exploring the opportunities that exist for them in these markets and the role they can play beyond connectivity services. But there are questions around the carriers’ expertise, capabilities and operational flexibility.
One of the key decisions for carriers is whether to develop IoT and smart cities platform capabilities in-house, or whether to source them from specialized vendors. According to ABI Research, there are four strategies that carriers can adopt:
There are a number of factors that will influence the strategies that carriers decide to adopt. These include international footprint, scale, operational flexibility, time to market, resources, as well as market conditions.
“The advent of 5G makes the IoT and smart cities a reality – which means carriers need to re-think their approach beyond just providing connectivity services,” said Jim Nolan, Executive Vice President, Products, InterDigital. “Carriers are in a good position to maximize the opportunities presented by the IoT – they are trusted brands who play a core central role as connectivity enablers. But to remain relevant, they need to do more. And choosing whether to make or buy their technology, or taking on an ‘UnTelco’ role and providing end-to-end vertical services, will play a key role in their future success.”
The ABI Research report concludes that successful carriers will take one of the following roles:
There is a big question as to whether there is a future for carriers beyond connectivity, and whether they can go the ‘UnTelco’ role alone. And while some carriers are pursuing vertical integration strategies, these companies should be seen as exceptions, and an open-ended, standards-based approach will be much more relevant. Ultimately, in the future, no single brand or supplier will be able to control and manage the end-to-end value and supply chain in IoT and smart cities environment.
“The future role of carriers in the transformative IoT and smart cities markets remains controversial. While carriers have long aspired to moving up the value chain, they are now facing hard choices with the arrival of 5G which will fundamentally disrupt connectivity paradigms across verticals,” said Dominique Bonte, Vice Presidents Verticals, ABI Research. “Mobile operators will need to adapt fast to capture value in an increasingly complex IoT ecosystem dominated by new collaborative business models ”
The ABI Research report, ‘Role of carriers in smart cities and IoT’, is available to download here.
About InterDigital®
InterDigital develops mobile technologies that are at the core of devices, networks, and services worldwide. We solve many of the industry's most critical and complex technical challenges, inventing solutions for more efficient broadband networks and a richer multimedia experience years ahead of market deployment. InterDigital has licenses and strategic relationships with many of the world's leading wireless companies. Founded in 1972, InterDigital is listed on NASDAQ and is included in the S&P MidCap 400® index.
InterDigital is a registered trademark of InterDigital, Inc. Chordant is a trademark of InterDigital.
For more information, visit: www.interdigital.com.
About Chordant™
Chordant, an InterDigital business, is part of a global company passionate about innovation and a standards-based approach that stimulates thriving global ecosystems. Solutions powered by the Chordant platform address the fundamental challenges in Smart City deployments. Like a perfect chord of musical notes, the Chordant platform brings harmony to diverse devices, data and services. We have created one of the largest Smart City deployments, integrating hundreds of transport data sources into a transport data marketplace. Our Smart City solutions have also been recognized by leading analyst firms and organizations. For more information, visit: www.chordant.io.
InterDigital Contact: | |
Patrick Van de Wille | |
Email: patrick.vandewille@interdigital.com | |
+1 (858) 210-4814 |