Partnerships and analytics are called out as key for companies looking to gain a competitive foothold in the IoT space
This is the final article in a three-part series examining the opportunity, challenges and course of action for service providers as they tackle the “internet of things.”
Every industry segment is being touched by some aspect of the “internet of things” and it will continue to permeate into homes, businesses and society moving forward. From smart homes to smart cities to smart agriculture to smart energy, IoT devices will connect billions of devices globally. Telecom service providers are at the center of this change, owning the networks over which these IoT services travel.
However, monetization is still elusive to many providers because they’re relying on tactical, ad-hoc activities and not a strategic plan. Let’s be clear – dipping toes into the water in the IoT is fine and it’s a good way to get started for many service providers. The problems arise when the provider dips here, another group within the organization dips there, a third one comes along and suddenly they are trying to swim in the deep end without developing a holistic IoT strategy.
To find true long-term success, service providers need to develop a sustainable IoT-centric strategy that takes into consideration the business, technology and operational challenges they’ll face and maps out a course of action that fits into their overall business goals.
So, while that sounds good on paper, how can they get this done? By focusing on two key areas and developing a comprehensive strategy and underlying platform to drive adoption for both internal and third-party IoT services. These two key areas for profitability include:
Partnerships
The IoT market is simply too big for service providers to find success by going at it alone, especially while business models are in flux. Partnerships can help them spread the risk and test solutions and strategies without making full-scale investments. Vertical partnerships can help enhance service capabilities and create new business models that better suit the emerging market. By creating partnerships on two fronts, they will be able to respond better and quicker to opportunities and emerge with a robust offering.
Partnerships with mobile network operators, mobile virtual network operators, satellite providers, companies with low-power wide-area solutions, solutions integrators and others will allow them to present more robust, seamless connectivity options to their customers. These types of coverage partnerships can help fill in the gaps in a provider’s strategy, supporting, for example, the IoT requirements of multinational organizations that seek to deploy machine-to-machine/IoT solutions across regional networks.
Bilateral relationships with module and device makers will help service providers industrialize IoT and stabilize profitability. By recognizing customers’ needs and providing an end-to-end solution to their customers – with connectivity as the foundation – they will be able to grow their base and see a quicker return on their IoT investments. A great example of this is service providers’ entry into the home security market. Providers have the relationship with the customer and literally a line into the home. By partnering with tier-one device manufacturers, they are able to deliver a new, value-added service to their customers. What other smart home opportunities can they capitalize on through the right partnerships?
Big data plus IoT analytics
The service provider network is a pipeline over which trillions of pieces of data travel, but service providers also need to use IoT technologies to improve their own businesses. By gathering, analyzing and distributing the vast amount of data collected by their solutions, service providers can develop marketing and sales strategies that leverage analytics, monitoring and real-time reporting to help them differentiate their offering through customized programs and drive new revenues.
Underscoring all of this, however, is the need for flexible platforms and optimized infrastructure that can meet the demands of today’s IoT-driven world. IoT is made up of billions of real-time micro-transactions and legacy back-office systems are not equipped to handle the volume, the instantaneous nature or the nonstandardized nature of IoT data. IoT data is coming from thousands of different channels and avenues and a key part of finding success in the IoT is finding the right solutions that offer the flexibility the IoT requires.
The IoT holds enormous potential and service providers who position themselves correctly – and choose the right partners – are poised to capture significant reward. They will be forced, however, to take a long, hard look at their business, technology and operational strengths, overcome the challenges in these areas, and implement a IoT-centric business strategy that provides the flexibility they need to grow both today and in the future.
James Comfort is the manager of service delivery at Excelacom. Comfort has seven years of experience in the information technology consulting and telecommunications industries and is PMP certified. He has held various roles during his tenure at Excelacom, including project management, deployment and strategic planning of delivery systems. Comfort’s responsibilities include working with onshore and offshore resources to identify and implement quality solutions, as well as maintaining effective relationships with clients and supporting their business and operational needs. Comfort earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Language and International Trade from Clemson University in South Carolina.
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