Telco 2.0™ Research

The last few years have seen attempts by many leading telecoms operators to refresh their business model and generate new sources of growth and value. Now many digital initiatives are being scaled back. Telefonica and Telenor, two companies in the vanguard of the ‘drive to digital’ have both disbanded their digital organisations. In the first of two reports, STL Partners explores why efforts to yoke platform and product innovation businesses to a traditional infrastructure business have proved so difficult. The financial and operational constraints associated with traditional telecoms – particularly the need for long investment cycles in ‘one-function’ infrastructure – have made achieving the switch to ‘agile digital innovation’ all but impossible. But all that may be about to change and the future could be a little brighter. (Executive Briefing Service, January 2016)

Digital commerce continues to be held back by the lack of straightforward and consistent mechanisms for consumers to authenticate and identify themselves, share information and complete transactions with merchants. Telcos could address this fragmentation by creating a single framework through which individuals could interact with merchants, content companies and other service providers.  Such a move would shore up telcos’ relevance and could ultimately increase their revenues. We show how, and review case studies from Deutsche Telekom (DTAG), Vodafone and KDDI. (January 2016, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream)

There has never been a better time for telcos to establish a profitable role as a market enabler in the mobile advertising ecosystem. STL Partners analyses how 3 telcos – Sprint, Turkcell and SingTel – lead the way in leveraging permission-based subscriber data and highlights the role that each has chosen to perform. The report assesses each company’s strategy and execution, outlines the core reasons for their success, and identifies 6 ways in which telcos can accelerate time to market with advertising and marketing solutions. (December 2015, Foundation 2.0, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing With Disruption Stream, Telco 2.0 Transformation Stream.)

Customer experience is fast becoming the new mantra for operators across the globe.  But while improvements are being made in broadband speeds, customer experience and so forth, app latency and errors have largely gone ignored. This is despite the fact that both are important drivers of customer experience and of app developer profitability. Find out the relationship between latency and app errors and our analysis of those operators that are performing well and those that are ‘lagging’ behind. (November 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

Widespread use of open source software is an important enabler of agility and innovation in many of the world’s leading internet and IT players. Yet while many telcos say they crave agility, only a minority use open source to best effect. We examine the barriers and drivers, and outline six steps for telcos to safely embrace this key enabler of transformation and innovation. (November 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

Online entertainment is increasingly dominated by 5 big platforms but 6 forces are likely to shape the market going forward and could have profound effects on the dominant platforms.  We analyse the relative strengths and weaknesses of each player and explore the potential opportunities for telcos to compete and collaborate. (October 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

Huawei’s business performance in recent years has been impressive, based on sticking closely to what its customers wanted and making the results easy to buy. But fierce price competition will challenge near-term profit ambitions, and Huawei’s 5G vision is ahead of the market. So could things be about to change? (October 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

Our latest analysis shows staggering differences in 'app-lag' (the time it takes for an app to get a response over the Internet) across France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, and twenty mobile operators. This has significant consequences for customer data experiences, and potentially operator market performance too. Operators in France, particularly Bouygues and Free, are delivering a superior customer app experience while 3 in Italy and Movistar in Spain are European laggards. (October 2015, Foundation 2.0, Executive Briefing Service.)

Drawing insight from the experience of early adopters (including Telefonica, Singtel and DTAG) and exploring the technology options available to operators, we show how operators can best use their distinct advantage over other players in the $5bn location insights marketplace. (October 2015, Foundation 2.0, Executive Briefing Service.)

Over 5 years, BT Group's share price has more than tripled, outperforming Apple's and Google's, while its revenues have shrunk. Why, and what can other telcos learn from its success? (September 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

We believe that the global telecoms market is approaching a critical moment of change, as strategic drivers and enablers are combining to open the door to a fundamental shift in the industry. We show how and why with highlights of our recent research, and set the scene for a new vision for Telco 2.0 – what telcos should be in the future, and how to get there. (September 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

Seven predictions and four scenarios for how the industry might play out in Europe in the next 5 years: 'Digital Renaissance', 'Back to the Future', 'Commoditised Utility' and 'Telco Trainwreck'. Plus what are the take-outs for other markets? (July 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Telco 2.0 Transformation Stream.)

In the first of two reports, STL Partners evaluates how several powerful forces, within and beyond the control of telcos, look set to change the shape of the European market and considers the options for how these forces might develop going forward. (July 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Telco 2.0 Transformation Stream.)

How agile are telcos today, what are the barriers and opportunities, and what can be done to improve agility? We look in depth at the findings from the Telco 2.0 Agility Challenge, and identify some key steps for telcos and partners to take, including specific organisational strategies to be 'Agile by Design' and the need for an ‘information intensive’ culture. (July 2015, Executive Briefing Service.)

Mobile Authentication could be Telcos’ key asset in the digital economy, but they are in danger of losing out through insufficient action. There are good case studies and an excellent blueprint in the GSMA’s Mobile Connect initiative for how to monetise their assets and stay relevant. So why aren’t they getting on with it? (June 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

As several operators in Europe downsize their Telco 2.0 Digital Services activity, some are seeking to reframe the Piper strategy as a premium-priced differentiation play based on network quality. This report argues this is deluded and dangerous – a Piper strategy is viable but only by developing cost-leadership in a commodity market. (June 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

A primary benefit envisaged of 5G networks is that latency (i.e. delay times for users) will be massively reduced. This would deliver major benefits for many applications providing that the software for those cloud-based applications is located near enough to the users at the edge of the network. This is likely to drive a massive change in the architecture of the cloud and the network industries. This report outlines likely scenarios and identifies some early moves that are starting to play out now. (May 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Future of the Network Stream.) 

Cable operators are on the verge of a massive and remarkably easy capacity upgrade. Where it has begun, fixed incumbents are already being forced to deploy fibre. Gigabit WiFi is coming too, so mobile operators are very much concerned. (May 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Future of the Network Stream.) 

In Q4 2012 Verizon was No.1 in Strategic Business Services (SBS) and had just bought a huge data centre provider. In Q4 2014, AT&T had overtaken Verizon in revenues from this segment. What happened, and what are the lessons for other telcos in the Enterprise SBS market? (May 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Cloud & Enterprise ICT Stream.)

What is ‘agility’ and what makes it meaningful to operators? We explored the concept and characteristics of ‘operator agility’ through 29 interviews with telco senior executives, found three main barriers and five key opportunity areas, and identified some surprising and important conclusions about both what it means and the key steps needed to achieve it. (April 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

How will getting into the MVNO business help Google shore up its business model? We examine Google’s objectives, how it could price the service, and the implications for telcos and other players. (April 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream)

We outline our ‘proxy model’ for valuing Digital Services Businesses, based on current best practice, which has significant advantages over traditional approaches. This report, our second of two on valuation, gives a worked example of a telco’s digital business in Asia that is already worth $1bn, and includes an analysis of approaches being taken by some leading telcos today. (April 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Telco 2.0 Transformation Stream.)

A high-level analysis of the M2M market, including the strategies of Vodafone, AT&T and Telefonica, and the impact that the Internet of Things and new entrants such as Google and others will have with new business models. What are the implications for operators, and where is it all leading? (March 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

The network is one of telcos’ key assets. The case for investing in it was once straightforward: the bigger and faster the better. Yet today, many forces are combining to cloud that picture, such as virtualisation, regulation, the success of Internet services, network sharing, market consolidation and in some cases saturation, to name a few. To kick off our ‘Future of the Network’ research stream, we outline the key questions determining future investments in the network and our forthcoming work to address them. In Part 2, we’ll outline the key disruptive forces on the network. (February 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Future of the Network Stream.)

Netflix’s success in the US and in Western Europe has demonstrated that consumers are willing to change how they watch and pay for TV and movies.  As a result Netflix’s OTT proposition is challenging traditional pay TV models and changing how new broadband services are looking at content.  For some players Netflix is a threat and for others an opportunity.  So, how should content owners, channels, pay platforms and broadband providers respond? (February 2015 UPDATE, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

STL Partners' industry transformation analysis, including a recent global survey of telco executives, suggests operators' digital ambitions are rising fast but, given 9 substantial implementation challenges, too little is currently being done to engender successful industry-wide business model transformation. We also look at the lessons from NTT DoCoMo, one of the operators that has made the most overall progress towards a 'digital' model. (February 2015, Executive Briefing Service, Telco 2.0 Transformation Stream.)

BT's attempt to acquire EE in the UK presents the regulator and its competitors with choices that could re-frame the principles of regulation and competition in an era of consolidation, with consequences for many other markets. Will BT succeed, and if so, what will be the terms of the deal, and how will the market subsequently play out? (January 2015, Executive Briefing Service)

AT&T’s residential fixed operation is underperforming as faster cable connections take over. It would probably like to trim its footprint or get out, and invest in fibre and its content business model. Is that really an option, and what are the lessons for other telcos? (December 2014, Executive Briefing Service)

What is disruption, when is it a good idea, and what do you do when it happens to you? We illustrate five principles of disruptive strategy based on our analysis of the telecoms and adjacent markets over the past eight years. The analysis covers both principles of creating and defending against disruption. (November 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream)

Service providers need to grow new revenues. The cloud market looks potentially attractive, and is growing at about 30% CAGR, but it is dominated in many areas by Amazon, Google and Microsoft. So is Cloud part of the answer for telcos, and if so how? This report looks at the role of the service provider in the cloud market and products that service providers might offer in 2015. (November 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Cloud & Enterprise ICT Stream)

A small and surprising set of national operators are delivering outstanding performance in the challenging European market. Our analysis shows how they’re achieving differentiation with smart strategies that target the hottest customer need, and the considerable ramifications for the rest of the market.  (October 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Future of the Networks Stream).

The unveiling of Apple Pay and unravelling of Weve (the UK operators’ payments venture) looked like bad news for telcos’ ambitions in mobile payments in some markets, and highlighted challenges to Google and others’ models. Yet there are already successful telco models and favourable market trends that telcos should exploit. So what are the opportunities now? (September 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

Connected cars are set to revolutionise the automotive industry as we know it, turning the car into the ‘ultimate mobile device’ and driving the growth of M2M in a big way. With Apple, Google, telcos and many others in the chase, we analyse the growth drivers, value chain, and key battles for control of this increasingly complex ecosystem, and outline a new connected car services framework. (September 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

Free’s shock bid for T-Mobile USA will stretch its finances and management capacity to the limit. Can Free’s package of tactics, technology, and procedures work in the US context? (August 2014, Executiive Briefing Service, Future of the Networks Stream).

Since Google acquired Nest for $3.2bn, Apple and Samsung have also entered the complex battle for the connected home. We analyse in-depth why Google wanted Nest, the players’ goals and strategies, and what should telcos and others do to stay in the game? (August 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

Facing lockout from a growing chunk of the Internet and mounting competition from the Facebook-Microsoft alliance and Amazon, Google’s core business is under intense pressure. The search giant’s response is to innovate, offering consumers proactive recommendations, as well as reactive search results. Once an interesting sideline, Google Now has become fundamental to the Mountain View company’s future. Is the suggestion service good enough to maintain Google’s position as the world’s leading big data company?  (July 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Dealing with Disruption Stream.)

A launcher is a customizable home screen for an Android device that allows users to reorganize, customize and interact with their device. Launchers are gaining popularity, with Facebook, Google, Twitter and Yahoo all having either acquired or developed their own versions, but the market is fragmented with different launchers providing different functionality, services and monetization methods. Our latest analysis shows how telcos should seek to explore this area to help them establish more relevance in the digital ecosystem. (July 2014, Executive Briefing Service.)

T-Mobile USA’s ‘uncarrier’ strategy has delivered significant net additions, but is it a good strategy - and is the disruption promised by Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son already underway? We compare it to Free Mobile’s disruptive approach in France, and the results of its competitors’ responses. (June 2014, Executive Briefing Service.)

Digital transformation is now impacting every industry, and one of the hardest organisational challenges is developing small-scale innovations fast and managing them in large and mature organisations. Here are our recommendations and key findings from the OnFuture EMEA 2014 cross-industry brainstorm, including a summary of Facebook’s internal recipe for speedy success. (June 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Transformation Stream.)

Our new global research among enterprises and telcos shows that many telcos are ideally positioned, but underprepared, to exploit the fast emerging and evolving $50bn Enterprise Mobility opportunity. How can telcos address this gap? (May 2014, Foundation 2.0, Executive Briefing Service, Cloud & Enterprise ICT Stream.)

Verizon and Comcast have invested in high bandwidth fibre and cable networks, whereas AT&T has until recently focused on U-Verse, an IPTV play. Which strategy is winning out and why? The answer is surprising and may transform the US and other markets, and there are parallels with Apple and Samsung’s ‘deep value’ strategies of investing in assets that are hard to replicate. (May 2014, Executive Briefing Service, Future of the Networks Stream).

In this new report based on Telco 2.0 Transformation Index analysis we compare Vodafone’s competitive positioning with another European-centric multi-national, Telefonica.  The results are surprising and instructive, showing that Vodafone faces substantial challenges if it is to grow in the foreseeable future. (April 2014 Executive Briefing Service, Transformation Stream.)