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Author: Sandeep Banga

  • How CSPs Are Prioritizing Sustainability with On-Site Renewable Energy Solutions

    How CSPs Are Prioritizing Sustainability with On-Site Renewable Energy Solutions

    As the telecommunications sector expands, so will its energy usage. According to Ericsson, mobile networks consume 0.6% of the world’s electricity, with estimates indicating that operators spend more than $25 billion on energy expenditures each year. As a result, for Communication Service Providers, energy efficiency and sustainability are becoming more essential problems (CSPs).

    Many CSPs are investigating on-site renewable energy options to solve these problems. By 2025, 60% of CSPs are expected to prioritise on-site renewable energy, up from less than 10% in 2022. Cell sites, data centres, and other energy-intensive places can be powered by on-site renewables, decreasing CSPs’ dependency on non-renewable energy sources.

    Several CSPs have already begun to investigate on-site renewables, with Deutsche Telekom working with Ericsson to explore solar and wind-powered cell sites, Telenor Group investigating solar and wind-based energy solutions for cell sites, and Telefónica implementing a Smart Site model for mobile site design that incorporates renewable energy sources.

    In addition to lowering the carbon footprint of CSPs, on-site renewables can assist to lower energy prices. As energy prices rise, CSPs are focusing more on energy efficiency to save money. CSPs can minimise their dependency on nonrenewable energy sources and cut their energy expenses by installing on-site renewables and energy efficiency efforts.

    CSPs and tower companies should bear in mind that various sites may require different solutions based on weather conditions and power demands as they investigate on-site renewable energy alternatives. Because of the number of bands, urban cell sites may require more power than rural or suburban sites, and solar power may not be possible in these places with today’s methods.

    CSPs should create a roadmap including network planning and operations, sustainability teams, procurement, and finance to successfully integrate on-site renewables into their networks. They should also work with vendor partners to harmonise roadmaps and objectives/targets for renewable energy usage.

    AI has the potential to significantly assist CSPs in optimising their energy use and reducing their dependency on nonrenewable energy sources. AI can help by offering predictive analytics and real-time monitoring of energy consumption. This can assist CSPs in identifying areas where energy consumption can be lowered and optimising operations to be more energy-efficient.

    Moreover, AI-powered algorithms can assist CSPs in optimising renewable energy systems such as solar panels or wind turbines to maximise energy output. AI, for example, may evaluate meteorological data to forecast the quantity of solar radiation or wind speed, which can assist CSPs in determining the best position for renewable energy systems and adjusting their output accordingly.

    Furthermore, AI may assist CSPs in identifying prospective places for on-site renewables installation by identifying sites with high energy demand and high potential for renewable energy solutions using data-driven insights. CSPs may simulate numerous scenarios and decide the most efficient solution for a specific location using AI-powered simulations, taking into consideration aspects such as weather patterns, power consumption, and cost-effectiveness.

    Another method AI may assist CSPs in reducing their carbon footprint is through optimization of Radio Access Network (RAN) operations. The RAN is the component of the mobile network in charge of connecting user devices to the network and handling data transfer. RAN is a substantial contribution to mobile network energy usage, and improving RAN operations may result in considerable savings in power consumption and carbon emissions.

    Real-time RAN data may be analysed by AI-powered algorithms to discover locations where power consumption can be lowered without affecting network performance. For example, AI may monitor traffic patterns and alter the power settings of RAN equipment in real-time to decrease power consumption while satisfying performance requirements.

    AI may also be used to improve RAN equipment placement, ensuring that the equipment is placed in the most energy-efficient areas and eliminating the need for more equipment. CSPs may dramatically cut their power usage, lower their carbon footprint, and increase network performance by improving RAN operations.

    Overall, artificial intelligence may assist CSPs in making educated decisions about energy use and the installation of renewable energy solutions. CSPs may lower their carbon footprint and contribute to a more sustainable future by employing AI to optimise their energy use and maximise the use of renewable energy.

    Finally, on-site renewable energy solutions provide various advantages for CSPs, including a lower carbon footprint, cheaper energy costs, and enhanced dependability during extreme weather events. CSPs may progress towards a more sustainable and lucrative future by emphasising on-site renewables and adopting energy efficiency programmes.

    Telco Sector Can Be a Gamechanger for Sustainability using AI/ML

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  • How AI can accelerate telecom Net Zero initiatives

    How AI can accelerate telecom Net Zero initiatives

    Introduction:

    The telecommunications industry has seen significant changes over the past decade, with a shift towards a customer-centric approach that puts the user experience first. With the growing demand for seamless connectivity, telcos are investing heavily in new technologies such as AI. The industry is now at a critical junction, where it’s essential for companies to understand the role of technology in accelerating their initiatives. This is especially true as telecom companies face increasing pressure to meet their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals. According to a recent survey by Deloitte, 90% of telecommunications companies have ESG initiatives in place, and 84% of them have set specific ESG targets. In addition, rising fuel prices are driving the need for telecoms to reduce energy costs and adopt more sustainable practices.

    The telecommunications industry consumes a significant amount of energy, accounting for 2% of the global energy consumption. The industry’s carbon footprint is also growing, with greenhouse gas emissions expected to reach 9.5 gigatons by 2040. To meet their ESG goals and reduce energy costs, telecom companies must turn to innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI).

    AI can help accelerate telecom companies’ Net Zero initiatives in several ways:

    Reducing Carbon Emissions from Assets: AI technology can be used to optimize asset performance and predict and prevent failures, reducing downtime and the cost of maintenance. This can help reduce carbon emissions by making sure that the right equipment is purchased at the right time and reducing energy consumption and CO2 production during the manufacturing or production processes.

    Optimizing Power Consumption: AI can help identify areas of the network where there is a high energy demand and then optimize those areas to reduce power consumption, reducing costs on a global scale and accelerating Net Zero initiatives.

    Developing New Services: AI has the potential to significantly impact telecom operations, not just technically but also in terms of business. For example, AI-powered predictive maintenance software could be developed to identify patterns of failure before they happen and prevent them from occurring.

    The potential impact of AI on telecoms is massive. It has the potential to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions from telecom assets, which could have a significant impact on climate change. AI has also been shown to be able to optimize operations across all industries, helping companies identify critical gaps in their value chain and fill those gaps by developing solutions that are tailored according to specific needs. In many cases, this type of innovation requires no new technology – tapping into existing data sets can result in significant savings for businesses worldwide.

    For example, the global power grid consumes more than 100 terawatt hours per year (TWh/year), which is more electricity than all humans use globally every year. To ensure a sustainable future for the telecommunications industry, solutions must be developed that enable companies to save these resources and prevent them from being wasted or potentially becoming harmful due to liability issues associated with misuse by others.

    Conclusion:

    Artificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionize the telecommunications industry, transforming everything from how networks are operated to how assets are managed. The future of telecoms will be driven by innovation, and AI is the next big step in this evolution. As the telecommunications industry faces increasing pressure to meet ESG goals and reduce energy costs, AI technology offers a promising solution to these challenges.

    Take the Leap towards Net-Zero Emission

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  • 5 ways to select the best asset maintenance software for optimal performance

    5 ways to select the best asset maintenance software for optimal performance

    Simplifying operations by working towards the right tools and technologies is a fundamental priority for all business owners. Choosing the right enterprise asset management software is a critical aspect of this endeavor: a robust asset management system can help you maximize the life of assets through preventive care, improve software and asset utilization and reduce unnecessary costs.

    No matter what you’re tracking, monitoring enterprise asset health and maintenance is vital to improving productivity. However, companies today have an overwhelming variety of enterprise asset management options to choose from.

    Choosing the right enterprise asset management tool for your business can be exhausting, especially if you are unaware of what to look for. In this blog, we’ll run you through some important points you should consider before purchasing asset management software.

    1. Know your business requirements in regards to user-level and technical requirements

    Business requirements include the volume of assets there are in your business, their efficiency and performance, and why do you want to track assets. In selecting enterprise asset management tools, it is implied that you look for cutting-edge usability improvements that will streamline the adoption of the software in the company and offer enhanced decision and managerial support in presenting which management tasks are most urgent at a given time.

    2. Facilitate a centralized repository for all users to access

    The enterprise asset management solution requires a centralized repository that consolidates relevant information about each asset. Other valuable capabilities are analytics and dashboards, which give a complete picture of how assets perform, and automated workflows for engineers to orchestrate networks automatically. This repository will ensure real-time monitoring that supports ‘asset analytics’, i.e., using asset KPIs to create reports that help CTOs and CFOs prioritize operations to achieve business goals.

    3. Ensure holistic visibility of your asset workflows

    Technical prerequisites contain how you plan to host the software, and what security and backup procedures you want. Also, by incorporating both your technical requirements and user-level requirements you can achieve more than the expected benefits. Analyze the standing and experience of developing the asset software of the vendor. A well-known asset tracking and management software provider is more likely to be able to offer continuing support.

    4. Reporting and analytics

    Concentrating all your assets in one location isn’t just about efficiency. It also provides you with a better summary of your asset library. Robust reporting and analytics offer insights into how your assets are being used. If you’re obtaining a lot more return out of certain assets, you might want to create more like them. You can track if valuable assets are being underutilized or spot other patterns to refine your content strategy. Management software systems also help safeguard assets from misuse by keeping a track of downloads and access.

    5. Ensure Accessibility

    You should find a fine balance between ease of use and the requirement of expertise a software requires, less training and easy to use software would save costs in operation. Your software provider should also readily provide the required training to your staff. They should also provide the support and quick interpretation of problems and solutions needed once the software is implemented. For an asset management library to serve a whole organization, administrators must be able to regulate who can access what.

    Enterprise Asset management software provides a holistic view of an enterprise asset’s lifecycle—from its procurement and implementation through its renewal and disposal. While a business could use a simple spreadsheet to track its assets, using AMS enables it to analyze data specific to each asset, enabling it to make more informed decisions about managing its assets, so choose wisely.

    To understand more about Subex’s Network Asset Management solution

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  • What are the five most asked features of Enterprise Asset Management Software?

    What are the five most asked features of Enterprise Asset Management Software?

    The telecommunications industry is evolving rapidly and witnesses unique challenges compared to other sectors. The telecom industry stands out by way of its requirements for massive capital investment over a wide geographical spread. This requirement also extends itself to the network assets operators need, which have to be refreshed more frequently than any other industry.

    With growing changes in technologies and ever decreasing technology cycles, the telecom industry is under immense pressure to make smart Capex investments to stay competitive in today’s market. Add the auditory, regulatory requirements, and transformation from legacy to next-gen technologies, it becomes imperative for the operators to know the rate of change in their network when it comes to:

    • Rolling out new networks
    • Optimizing investments made in existing assets while ensuring seamless migration to newer technologies
    • Decommissioning and monetizing end-of-life assets

    Of course, Enterprise Asset Management software has a role to play in terms of handling network assets in the right way, to ensure Capex and Opex are kept in check. At the same time, regulatory and audit compliance is adhered to. However, operators have several asset management solutions to choose from, making it difficult to choose the right solution within the plethora of offerings.

    In such a scenario, it would be easier for CSPs to understand what features are key to their operations as a guide for choosing the right telecom asset management solution. Below is an indicative list of the top 5 features every CSP must look for within their Enterprise Asset Management software.

    1. Centralized Asset View

    With the proliferation of new technologies and service offerings, many assets are being onboarded on the network. The network and finance teams require a comprehensive view of the assets, their lifecycles, and cross-functional data.

    CSPs need a solution that can provide them with a 360o view of their assets, encompassing asset information across finance, supply chain, network planning, network operations, historical events, contract summary, licenses & security information. Such a feature also needs to provide cross-functional asset information, which is stitched into a seamless view and made easily accessible through a user-friendly UI. This will provide users the flexibility to access other functional asset data in the same place for a single, federated view of assets.

    2. Asset Tracking

    Asset Tracking during site deployments, daily operations, or decommissioning is critical for operations managers. Performing audits and highlighting process deviations are essential to fix process issues and identify operational gaps.

    CSPs need a solution that can perform electronic audits on the network to automatically identify the addition/movements/removals of assets in the enterprise and sends alerts to users if these changes are deviations from tracked workflows. This information can also be used to suggest process improvements.

    3. AI-based Contract Management

    Managing contracts in a telecom environment is a complex activity covering a broad spectrum of contract documents to be handled. It is increasingly vital for telco teams to have comprehensive contract management with automation and AI capabilities.

    Operators need a Contract Management modules that can ingest contract information from any data source, including ERP systems, map each contract to applicable network assets, and notify specific users or teams on expiry and cover contract line items. By Applying Artificial intelligence to the contract ingestion mechanism, heightened efficiencies and accuracy levels can be achieved.

    4. Spare Management

    Operator teams see a strong need to forecast the spare assets based on operational data and make data-driven decisions.

    An ideal Spare Management module can track spare assets across the network and provide spare asset information and spare levels (min, max) and spare classifications. It should also provide users with the option to initiate workflows to move spare assets for excess returns, repair and fault replacement requests. A spare management module also needs to leverage predictive analytics to compute every network site’s exact spare levels, based on historical fault data.

    5. FAR Reconciliation

    Misalignment of inventory system data and the actual network can cause operational issues that lead to poor customer experience. Similarly, mismatches between Fixed Asset Records (FAR) and the actual network can cause regulatory non-compliance and financial cost leakages.

    Operators can leverage a FAR Reconciliation module to identify discrepancies between asset data recorded within the Fixed Asset Register (FAR) and actual assets in the network. By syncing FAR records and actual assets, operators can witness better regulatory compliance that ultimately helps better assess insurance costs and reduce tax liabilities.

    Leverage end-to-end Business Intelligence across the enterprise asset lifecycle to yield significant network savings.

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  • Software License Management: The 8 key ingredients for managing software licenses for the telecom industry

    Software License Management: The 8 key ingredients for managing software licenses for the telecom industry

    In today’s telecom world, organizations are heavily reliant on software solutions for numerous functions, including task-critical ones. As a result, software licensing can be a significant budget entity for many organizations. Effective license management is essential to preventing inaccurate tracking of software licenses and usage measurement issues that can cause budget discrepancies.

    In almost all cases, the software is sold by licensing, whether it be a perpetual license to use the software or a subscription settled monthly or yearly that must be renewed continually. To ensure that you are utilizing every penny spent out of your software assets, the first thing to do is to understand the types of licensing agreements and plan the license management accordingly.

    This is where Software license management (SLM) comes in. Software license management refers to all organizational aspects of deploying and maintaining your organization’s software assets. It is a part of the broader software asset management category.

    Given the large share spent on software licenses, an exceptional benefit of SLM is the revenue it can save you by identifying unnecessary or unused/underused software. Paying for such software can stack up to a sizable sum for each user or device covered by an unused solution. SLM enables you to track all software purchases and audit their usage, or lack thereof, in the case of unused paid subscriptions.

    Another benefit of SLM that can help in even more significant financial savings is that it enables enforcing compliance with End-User License Agreements (EULA). Any device running unlicensed software reveals you to potential financial penalties and legal issues in most circumstances.

    When following your software licenses, it is vital to know how the latest technology impacts software usage and policies. With 5G and, thereby, artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), machine learning (ML), and the Internet of Things (IoT) picking up pace in recent years, software licensing has had to adjust to the advancements introduced by these developments.

    The extensive use of automation powered by AI and ML has impacted SLM by enabling the automatic functioning of many of the processes. This includes overlooking what programs are being used, how they are being used, and setting up control protocols to limit their usage to authorized individuals and roles. These tools can also be used in the maintenance of software to make it easier to detect violations of EULA.

    IoT devices are now present at all business and consumer levels and functions, including telecom. Observably, the SLM implications of these devices can be tricky, and the software underlying them can be challenging to manage using traditional SLM tools and procedures. It’s important to track new processes for applying SLM techniques to IoT devices to optimize your ability to utilize them. Proactive SLM allows the improvement of your IT efforts. It provides the possibility to lower costs and boost your ability to react to changing business conditions by drawing the maximum advantage of the capabilities of your software rapidly.

    As we have seen, managing your software licenses is essential to avoid the negative results associated with non-compliance. The following are points to help your telecom business to manage software licenses:

    Document software management policies

    SLM records and stores your software management policies to manage and serve when required to avoid costly surprises come audit time.

    Usage governance procedures

    Establishing controls for managing software usage across the organization and groups of workspaces is a breeze with SLM. It also ensures that only authorized users can download and use the software they are authorized to use. These management controls are critical in an era where users can effortlessly access the software at work or home on various devices. The procedures of usage of software policies in all telecom spaces should be tied to your usage governance utility to effectively onboard and offboard employees via provisioning automation.

    Software lifecycle management

    Special care must be undertaken to manage all aspects of the software lifecycle, including renewing licenses, updating information, and communicating usage parameters to employees. With SLM, it can be done efficiently.

    Usage monitoring

    It is necessary to constantly monitor which programs are present on your network, how they are being used, and who is using them to ensure that your authorization policies are working as planned and that the correct solutions are being applied for desired purposes. With SLM integrated, it is still possible to use automated and manual auditing when needed.

    Automated updating checks

    Automated discovery of software versions is available with SLM, enabling you to operate on the most recent version of any installed programs consistently.

    Reclaiming procedures

    Regularly uninstalling software that has been idle for a certain prescribed period and return it to stock for future reuse or cancellation if suitable.

    Track contracts

    SLM analyzes contract databases and procurement records to enable easy compliance with contractual conditions and viewing important contract data such as license type, number of authorized users, and expiration dates with fewer steps than manually looking through them.

    Employ license management automation

    Software License Management solutions can help optimize your license management by developing vendor licensing profiles you can use to automate the process of moderating your license status to installed software. This can help the efficiency of license management, especially in preparing for a true-up or other large-scale audits.

    Establish and track software management objectives

    To measure the effectiveness of your SLM efforts or select licenses for cost-saving objectives and track your performance about goals over time that can be achieved with proper SLM.

    With a substantial portion of software costs resulting from inadequate software management, the case for software licensing management is a strong one. According to research from Gartner, many organizations can ameliorate software spending by as much as 30% via software license optimization via best practices. Besides revenue optimization, effective SLM can generate revenue, and there are also efficiency gains to be experienced by making better use of the software your organization has acquired.

    SLM can benefit telecom organizations by helping them effectively use their software to quickly react and adapt to changing market conditions, optimize operations, and stay in compliance with EULA. At a minimum, SLM can help you track and optimize your software policies to help your managers acquire and use the tools at the right time.

    Why is Network License Management crucial for Telecom Operators?

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    References:

    https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/37782291/software-licensing-in-telecom-industry-an-analysis-softsummit

    https://www.bmc.com/blogs/software-license-management/

    https://www.dell.com/en-us/blog/a-fundamental-shift-in-how-telecom-networks-are-built/

    https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260591298_Licensing_Models_and_their_Impact_on_the_Telecom_Software_Industry

    https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/buy/enterprise-agreement/resources/what-is-software-license-management.html#~conclusion

  • The 5G Series: Broadband for All – Disrupting Broadband Connectivity with 5G FWA

    The 5G Series: Broadband for All – Disrupting Broadband Connectivity with 5G FWA

    The challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have increased digitization in our lives and our reliance on high-speed internet like never before. With the emergence of 5G technology, home internet connections are now at the cusp of a new transformation – one that is wireless and promises unparalleled high-speed network connectivity. In this blog, I want to explore how 5G FWA (Fixed Wireless Access) will enable broadband connections of the future.

    What is 5G FWA and how does it benefit operators?

    5G FWA (Fixed Wireless Access) is an enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) use case of 5G in the hybrid (high/mid/low) electromagnetic spectrum bands for wireless communication. 5G FWA can be used to deliver a superior customer experience quickly and economically. It can be a strong alternative to wired broadband. In the millimeter wavelengths (mmWave), 5G FWA can provide ultra-high bandwidth to deliver heavy content at significantly faster speeds.

    5G FWA (Fixed Wireless Access) allows telecom operators to deliver broadband internet services in areas where fiber or fixed internet lines are absent. The technology relies on mobile components to deliver internet services to customers. Even today, many households do not have a fixed broadband connection. Operators can use this technology to expand their revenue stream by catering to residential markets in rural and remote areas where it is hard to maintain fixed internet lines.

    5G FWA: An exciting new opportunity for telco revenue 

    Over the last decade, total global telecom operator service revenues have been quite flat, and operators have been under tremendous margin pressure. Many operators are struggling to find top-line growth. With the rise in the usage of high-speed applications, gigabit speeds have become a new benchmark for consumers. 5G FWA provides operators a unique growth opportunity to capture new revenue while improving their 5G business case with bundled services. As per GSA’s latest report on FWA (end of 2020), fixed wireless access broadband based on LTE is already available worldwide. CSPs clearly realize the potential.

    Let us look at the below numbers:

    • 423 operators in 166 countries are offering FWA services based on LTE (up by 5.5% as compared to their last report, published around mid of 2020)
    • Out of 120 telecom operators announcing 5G launches worldwide (till the end of 2020), around 44 announced the launch of 5G FWA broadband services (up by 42% as compared to their last report)
    • From a device or more precise CPE (Customer Premise Equipment) perspective, 31 commercially available indoor and outdoor 5G FWA CPE devices are available (up from nine as compared to their last report).

    These stats clearly establish that FWA is by no means a new phenomenon anymore.

    Why is 5G FWA gaining momentum in the telecom industry? 

    1. Capacity

    Capacity is one of the fundamental and critical aspects for operators to digitize the mobile wireless ecosystem. 5G FWA in its current form will gain significant momentum as mmWave spectrum auction in various geographies by respective regulatory is executed. Operators will acquire their respective purchases of this massive bandwidth spectrum. The actual densification exercise will then accelerate, and the state of 5G FWA deployments will revolutionize the way consumers access broadband services.

    2. Performance

    In the ongoing pandemic, the pressure on traditional broadband service providers significantly increased to maintain consistent network performance. Simultaneously, the growing global popularity of online gaming and video streaming has increased the demand for high-performance broadband services. This demand cannot be alone met with legacy xDSL or cable. 5G FWA is destined to make this landscape increasingly competitive. This is just the beginning, as the change in consumer behavior witnessed during the pandemic will lead to introducing new types of 5G services. FWA is seen as a good opportunity for additional revenue streams.

    3. Cost

    With the massive bandwidth of mmWave and superior spectral efficiency of 5G, the network cost (cost per/bit/hertz) can be dropped immensely, provided the 5G FWA rollout is planned accurately to enable superior customer experience and new business cases. Cost efficiency will help CSPs deliver OTT services such as TV/video streaming today to households and AR/VR services in the future. This will not only enable CSPs to capture new revenue but will also help them improve margins.

    Strategies to launch 5G FWA

    In the past, those who have had a not-so-successful experience of deploying FWA based on WiMAX or earlier technologies may have some questions, like, what is different this time? And why 5G FWA could be a game-changer? Here are the key aspects to consider from a network and a business perspective.

    – From a network perspective, spectrum assessment (in the low band, mid-band, and mmWave band) with respect to cost vs. capacity in the targeted FWA area calls for an intelligent approach. If planned accurately, it can ease out the capacity challenges and cost of FWA rollout. Key considerations in this direction are:

    • Precise understanding of the current state of the network in terms of capacity utilization, installed licenses and software, spectrum availability, and current system load.
    • Accurate forecasting and understanding of future demand and a priority-based rollout plan to add new small cells, macro-cells, carriers, etc.
    • mmWave, massive MIMO, and beamforming will be the integral factors of 5G FWA to boost capacity and speed, but the radio propagation characteristic will pose many planning challenges. Operators will need domain-based data science models to simulate and perform multiple iterations and extensive tests before the final deployment.

    – From a business perspective, there are three main opportunities for mobile-led operators to boost their financial performance:

    • Enterprise – A new revenue stream:
      • 5G FWA in mmWave spectrum boosts the enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) capabilities. Once enhanced and seamless services on 5G FWA have been delivered to consumers, Operators can leverage the critical best practices to extend the technology to the enterprise segment. The huge potential enterprise coverage will prove a great opportunity for operators to generate a new revenue stream on top of their existing broadband offerings for consumers.
    • Fixed Broadband vs. Wireless Broadband – A new battleground for CSPs: 
      • For mobile-led operators, household broadband is, to a large extent, an unaddressed market. By targeting this market with FWA, these operators can tap into a considerable pool of residential spending. The additional revenue streams that can be targeted are highly dependent on the operator strategy being pursued. Business-driven 5G FWA planning would be quintessential to compete with fixed broadband service providers.
    • Tapping the ocean of unconnected broadband ecosystems
      • With more than 50% unconnected households, a market that is extremely challenging for a traditional broadband service provider to serve mainly due to cost associated with last-mile connectivity opens a huge opportunity for 5G FWA deployments by mobile-led CSPs. In the current pandemic situation, the need for connecting rural areas has become more critical than ever before.

    Key takeaways

    5G FWA will not just be related to the network alone; it will need comprehensive and robust analytical capabilities related to planning, optimization, customer experience, and most importantly, business. As more operators upgrade their network to LTE-Advanced, and more 5G networks are deployed globally along with more CPE devices (mainly 5G) that are commercialized, it will just be a matter of time that the number of FWA services will rise.

    5G FWA holds the potential to solve the problem of revenue growth for all CSPs. More importantly, 5G FWA brings in a unique capability to provide economic broadband services to everyone, a requirement that has now become a necessity or a commodity in every citizen’s life.

    To know more about how your organization can plan for 5G with improved accuracy and efficiency

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  • How to enhance accuracy and efficiency of Network Analytics for 5G

    How to enhance accuracy and efficiency of Network Analytics for 5G

    As 5G gains traction, CSPs will look to unearth its potential benefits. However, what 5G will also bring in is a compound effect of the challenges that CSPs face already.

    The Three Challenges CSPs face

    The first of these challenges pertains to the increasing capex intensity which is plaguing the telecom industry, which currently stands at 16%, the highest among any other sector in the world. The second challenge comes from the growing network complexity which is quickly as CSPs continue to pursue network-wide densification and virtualization. The final challenge comes from the fact that customer expectations, as it historically has, is rising in multiples, and with the number of connected devices and subscribers being added to the mix increasing, and leading to the an increase in data volumes, the expectations of customers is rising manifold.

    The above challenges are ones CSPs need to deal with in a 4G environment, and the 5G landscape is only set to accelerate these trends further.

    How will 5G change things

    One of the better-known advantages that come with 5G is the fact that it opens up CSPs to operator in a new arena beyond the usual consumer space: Enterprises. With 5G CSPs will play an integral instrument for driving newer use cases around IoT, industrial automation, smart cities, autonomous vehicles, robotic surgery and a lot more. What this means is that, for CSPs, 5G use cases will now bring in 3 larger use cases:

    1. eMBB (Enhanced Mobile Broadband) – which is designed for better user experiences on consumer devices, providing extreme network speeds and capacity

    2. mMTC (Massive Machine-type Communication) – which aims to provide connectivity to a huge number of devices whose traffic profile is typically a small amount of data (spread) sporadically.

    3. URLLC (Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Services) – which focusses on low latency, high reliability and high availability aspects

    With a focus around these three overarching use cases, 5G promises to deliver superior experience to not just subscribers but enterprises also. From a consumer angle, for close to 60% of smartphone users, the highest expectation for 5G is to deliver speeds faster than current mobile networks. Across the globe, data consumption is increasing by more than 40 percent every year. Video in particular will account for 75 percent of network traffic by 2024, up from 55 percent today. Networks will need to adapt from Standard and High Definition video resolution to 2K and 4K, placing higher requirements on speed and quality. Further into the future, services like AR/VR applications will put even higher requirements on network performance. This demand for better customer experience means that operators must continuously adapt and expand network capacity.

    From an Enterprise standpoint, with 5G having the capability to reduce latency to sub-milliseconds, businesses can start to consider the nexus between cloud, mobile and enterprise applications. More features and functionality can be extended to the mobile fleet and frontline employees. The use cases for ultralow latency apps can be vertical specific. This can include the financial services for high-frequency trading, as well as mining and energy companies rolling out autonomous fleets that are highly responsive to their environments. Moreover, 5G complements other emerging technologies such as AI/ML, robotics and IoT to further drive enterprise digital transformation both internally within an organization as well as externally in customer engagements.  Of course, at the end of the day, 5G is a telecom technology, and hence CSPs will be at the heart of driving 5G within the enterprise. However, this will also mean a new area where CSPs will need to direct capacity.

    What all the above add to is the need to build Superior experiences, which will be the main driver to generate new revenue stream in 5G era.

    The Need for Intelligent Capacity Management

    The main enabler to provide a superior experience will be an   approach based on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. With capacity as the main enabler for raising speed to the 10x Gbps mark an Intelligent Capacity Management approach will in-turn help to meet the future growth requirements of massive device volumes.

    In line with this, an accurate capacity management process will help CSPs to differentiate themselves from the competition. Why Accuracy? Accuracy is key in any capacity management process as it directly impacts the Capex and ROI. An Intelligent Capacity Management solution built on Intelligent Data Management, Advanced Automation, and Domain-Driven Data Science, can help network planners achieve accuracy in each phase of capacity management process of Assessing, Planning and Optimizing capacity augmentations.

    Intelligent Capacity Management for Better Network Planning

    To succeed in the 5G journey, CSPs will need to make the right investments to gain competitive advantage and enhance end-user experience. However, such investments are highly cost intensive, both in terms of Capex and Opex. Any inaccuracies in the overall network investment planning can lead to unintended impacts on company financials and can create significant network inefficiencies. Hence, an Intelligent Capacity Management can help ensure accuracy to make the right Network Investment Plans.

    Intelligent Capacity Management for Better Customer Experience

    5G will also enable CSPs to increase revenues due to its potential of not only transforming mobile communications, but also completely replacing broadband internet. Considering most 5G deployments are focusing on FWA (Fixed Wireless Access) as the first use case, this is clearly the intent among most telecom operators. However, this will demand a dramatically broader capacity than CSPs are generally used to providing. This can only be achieved through an Intelligent approach to Capacity Management.

    Business Benefits of Intelligent Capacity Management

    An Intelligent Capacity Management Approach can bring about a:

    • 70%+ Increase in Accuracy
    • 80%+ Increase in Operational Efficiency
    • 7%+ Increase in Capex Efficiency
    • 10%+ Increase in ROI

    Read a case study on how we helped a Tier-I telcos increase their revenues by over 12% through intelligent network investment planning.

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  • Planificación de capacidad de red inteligente para 5G

    Planificación de capacidad de red inteligente para 5G

    A medida que 5G gane tracción, los CSP buscarán descubrir sus beneficios potenciales. Sin embargo, lo que 5G también traerá es un efecto compuesto de los desafíos que ya enfrentan los CSP.

    Los tres desafíos que enfrentan los CSP

    El primero de estos desafíos se relaciona con la creciente intensidad de gasto de capital que está afectando a la industria de las telecomunicaciones, que actualmente es del 16%, la más alta entre cualquier otro sector del mundo. El segundo desafío proviene de la creciente complejidad de la red que se produce rápidamente a medida que los CSP continúan buscando la densificación y virtualización en toda la red. El desafío final proviene del hecho de que las expectativas de los clientes, como históricamente lo han hecho, están aumentando en múltiplos, y con el aumento de la cantidad de dispositivos conectados y suscriptores que se agregan a la combinación, lo que lleva a un aumento en los volúmenes de datos, las expectativas de los clientes se multiplican.

    Los desafíos anteriores son los que los CSP deben enfrentar en un entorno 4G, y el panorama 5G solo está configurado para acelerar aún más estas tendencias.

    ¿Cómo cambiará las cosas el 5G?

    Una de las ventajas más conocidas que vienen con 5G es el hecho de que abre los CSP al operador en una nueva arena más allá del espacio habitual del consumidor: las empresas. Con 5G, los CSP serán un instrumento integral para impulsar nuevos casos de uso en torno a IoT, automatización industrial, ciudades inteligentes, vehículos autónomos, cirugía robótica y mucho más. Lo que esto significa es que, para los CSP, los casos de uso de 5G ahora traerán 3 casos de uso más grandes:

    1. eMBB (banda ancha móvil mejorada): que está diseñada para mejorar la experiencia del usuario en los dispositivos de los consumidores, proporcionando velocidades y capacidad de red extremas
    2. mMTC (comunicación masiva de tipo máquina): tiene como objetivo proporcionar conectividad a una gran cantidad de dispositivos cuyo perfil de tráfico suele ser una pequeña cantidad de datos (propagación) de forma esporádica.
    3. URLLC (servicios de baja latencia ultra fiables), que se centra en aspectos de baja latencia, alta fiabilidad y alta disponibilidad.

    Con un enfoque en estos tres casos de uso generales, 5G promete brindar una experiencia superior no solo a los suscriptores sino también a las empresas. Desde el punto de vista del consumidor, para cerca del 60% de los usuarios de teléfonos inteligentes, la mayor expectativa de 5G es ofrecer velocidades más rápidas que las redes móviles actuales. En todo el mundo, el consumo de datos aumenta en más del 40 por ciento cada año. El video en particular representará el 75 por ciento del tráfico de red para 2024, frente al 55 por ciento actual. Las redes deberán adaptarse de la resolución de video estándar y de alta definición a 2K y 4K, lo que exige mayores requisitos de velocidad y calidad. En el futuro, los servicios como las aplicaciones AR / VR impondrán requisitos aún mayores en el rendimiento de la red. Esta demanda de una mejor experiencia del cliente significa que los operadores deben adaptarse y expandir continuamente la capacidad de la red.

    Desde el punto de vista empresarial, dado que 5G tiene la capacidad de reducir la latencia a menos de milisegundos, las empresas pueden comenzar a considerar el nexo entre la nube, las aplicaciones móviles y empresariales. Se pueden extender más características y funcionalidades a la flota móvil y a los empleados de primera línea. Los casos de uso de aplicaciones de latencia ultrabaja pueden ser verticales específicos. Esto puede incluir los servicios financieros para el comercio de alta frecuencia, así como las empresas mineras y energéticas que despliegan flotas autónomas que responden en gran medida a sus entornos. Además, 5G complementa otras tecnologías emergentes como IA / ML, IoT y robótica para impulsar aún más la transformación digital empresarial tanto internamente dentro de una organización como externamente en los compromisos con los clientes. Por supuesto, al final del día, 5G es una tecnología de telecomunicaciones y, por lo tanto, los CSP estarán en el corazón de la conducción de 5G dentro de la empresa. Sin embargo, esto también significará una nueva área en la que los CSP necesitarán dirigir la capacidad.

    Todo lo anterior se suma a la necesidad de crear experiencias superiores, que serán el principal motor para generar una nueva fuente de ingresos en la era 5G.

    La necesidad de una gestión de capacidad inteligente

    El principal habilitador para brindar una experiencia superior será un enfoque basado en Inteligencia Artificial y Aprendizaje Automático (IA / ML). Con la capacidad como el principal habilitador para aumentar la velocidad a la marca de 10x Gbps, un enfoque de gestión de capacidad inteligente ayudará a su vez a cumplir con los requisitos de crecimiento futuro de los volúmenes masivos de dispositivos.

    En línea con esto, un proceso de gestión de capacidad preciso ayudará a los CSP a diferenciarse de la competencia. ¿Por qué precisión? La precisión es clave en cualquier proceso de gestión de la capacidad, ya que impacta directamente en el Capex y el ROI. Una solución de gestión de capacidad inteligente basada en la gestión de datos inteligente, la automatización avanzada y la ciencia de datos basada en dominios puede ayudar a los planificadores de red a lograr precisión en cada fase del proceso de gestión de la capacidad de evaluación, planificación y optimización de los aumentos de capacidad.

    Gestión de capacidad inteligente para una mejor planificación de la red

    Para tener éxito en el viaje de 5G, los CSP deberán realizar las inversiones adecuadas para obtener una ventaja competitiva y mejorar la experiencia del usuario final. Sin embargo, estas inversiones son muy costosas, tanto en términos de Capex como de Opex. Cualquier inexactitud en la planificación general de la inversión en la red puede generar impactos no deseados en las finanzas de la empresa y puede crear importantes ineficiencias en la red. Por lo tanto, una gestión de capacidad inteligente puede ayudar a garantizar la precisión para realizar los planes de inversión de red correctos.

    Gestión de capacidad inteligente para una mejor experiencia del cliente

    5G también permitirá a los CSP aumentar los ingresos debido a su potencial no solo de transformar las comunicaciones móviles, sino también de reemplazar por completo la Internet de banda ancha. Teniendo en cuenta que la mayoría de las implementaciones de 5G se centran en FWA (acceso inalámbrico fijo) como el primer caso de uso, esta es claramente la intención entre la mayoría de los operadores de telecomunicaciones. Sin embargo, esto exigirá una capacidad mucho más amplia que la que suelen proporcionar los CSP. Esto solo se puede lograr mediante un enfoque inteligente de la gestión de la capacidad.

    Beneficios comerciales de la gestión inteligente de la capacidad

    Un enfoque de gestión de capacidad inteligente puede generar:

    • 70% + Aumento de la precisión
    • Más del 80% de aumento en la eficiencia operativa
    • 7% + aumento en la eficiencia de Capex
    • 10% + Aumento del ROI

    Lea un estudio de caso sobre cómo ayudamos a las empresas de telecomunicaciones de nivel 1 a aumentar sus ingresos en más del 12% mediante la planificación inteligente de inversiones en redes.

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  • ¿Cuáles son las cinco características más solicitadas del software de gestión de activos de telecomunicaciones?

    ¿Cuáles son las cinco características más solicitadas del software de gestión de activos de telecomunicaciones?

    La industria de las telecomunicaciones está evolucionando rápidamente y es testigo de desafíos únicos en comparación con otros sectores. La industria de las telecomunicaciones se destaca por sus requisitos de inversión masiva de capital en una amplia extensión geográfica. Este requisito también se extiende a los activos de red que necesitan los operadores, que deben actualizarse con más frecuencia que cualquier otra industria.

    Con los crecientes cambios en las tecnologías y los ciclos tecnológicos cada vez menores, la industria de las telecomunicaciones se encuentra bajo una inmensa presión para realizar inversiones de Capex inteligentes para seguir siendo competitiva en el mercado actual. Agregue los requisitos auditivos, regulatorios y la transformación de tecnologías heredadas a tecnologías de próxima generación, se vuelve imperativo para los operadores conocer la tasa de cambio en su red cuando se trata de:

    • Implementación de nuevas redes
    • Optimización de las inversiones realizadas en activos existentes al tiempo que se garantiza una migración perfecta a tecnologías más nuevas.
    • Desmantelamiento y monetización de activos al final de su vida útil

    Por supuesto, el software de gestión de activos de telecomunicaciones tiene un papel que desempeñar en términos de manejar los activos de la red de la manera correcta, para garantizar que el Capex y el Opex se mantengan bajo control. Al mismo tiempo, se respeta el cumplimiento normativo y de auditoría. Sin embargo, los operadores tienen varias soluciones de gestión de activos de telecomunicaciones para elegir, lo que dificulta elegir la solución adecuada dentro de la gran cantidad de ofertas.

    En tal escenario, sería más fácil para los CSP comprender qué características son clave para sus operaciones como guía para elegir la solución de gestión de activos de telecomunicaciones adecuada. A continuación, se muestra una lista indicativa de las 5 características principales que todo CSP debe buscar en su software de gestión de activos de telecomunicaciones.

    1. Vista de activos centralizada

    Con la proliferación de nuevas tecnologías y ofertas de servicios, muchos activos se están incorporando a la red. Los equipos de redes y finanzas requieren una visión integral de los activos, sus ciclos de vida y datos multifuncionales.

    Los CSP necesitan una solución que les pueda proporcionar una vista de 360 de sus activos, que abarque la información de los activos en finanzas, cadena de suministro, planificación de redes, operaciones de red, eventos históricos, resumen de contratos, licencias e información de seguridad. Dicha característica también debe proporcionar información de activos multifuncional, que se une en una vista perfecta y se hace fácilmente accesible a través de una interfaz de usuario fácil de usar. Esto brindará a los usuarios la flexibilidad de acceder a otros datos de activos funcionales en el mismo lugar para obtener una vista única y federada de los activos.

    2. Seguimiento de activos

    El seguimiento de activos durante las implementaciones del sitio, las operaciones diarias o el desmantelamiento es fundamental para los gerentes de operaciones. Realizar auditorías y resaltar las desviaciones del proceso es esencial para solucionar los problemas del proceso e identificar las brechas operativas.

    Los CSP necesitan una solución que pueda realizar auditorías electrónicas en la red para identificar automáticamente las adiciones / movimientos / eliminaciones de activos en la red y envía alertas a los usuarios si estos cambios son desviaciones de los flujos de trabajo rastreados. Esta información también se puede utilizar para sugerir mejoras de procesos.

    3. Gestión de contratos basada en inteligencia artificial

    La gestión de contratos en un entorno de telecomunicaciones es una actividad compleja que cubre un amplio espectro de documentos contractuales a gestionar. Es cada vez más vital para los equipos de telecomunicaciones tener una gestión de contratos integral con capacidades de automatización e inteligencia artificial.

    Los operadores necesitan un módulo de gestión de contratos que pueda ingerir información de contratos de cualquier fuente de datos, incluidos los sistemas ERP, asignar cada contrato a los activos de red aplicables y notificar a los usuarios o equipos específicos sobre el vencimiento y cubrir los artículos de línea del contrato. Al aplicar la inteligencia artificial al mecanismo de ingestión por contrato, se pueden lograr mayores niveles de eficiencia y precisión.

    4. Gestión de repuestos

    Los equipos de operadores ven una gran necesidad de pronosticar los activos de repuesto basándose en datos operativos y tomar decisiones basadas en datos.

    Un módulo de gestión de repuestos ideal puede rastrear activos de repuesto en la red y proporcionar información de activos de repuesto y niveles de repuesto (mínimo, máximo) y clasificaciones de repuesto. También debe proporcionar a los usuarios la opción de iniciar flujos de trabajo para mover activos de repuesto para solicitudes de devolución, reparación y reemplazo de fallas en exceso. Un módulo de gestión de repuesto también necesita aprovechar el análisis predictivo para calcular los niveles de repuesto exactos de cada sitio de la red, basándose en datos históricos de fallas.

    5. Reconciliación FAR

    La desalineación de los datos del sistema de inventario y la red real puede causar problemas operativos que conducen a una mala experiencia del cliente. De manera similar, los desajustes entre los registros de activos fijos (FAR) y la red real pueden causar incumplimiento de las regulaciones y fugas de costos financieros.

    Los operadores pueden aprovechar un módulo de reconciliación FAR para identificar discrepancias entre los datos de activos registrados en el Registro de activos fijos (FAR) y los activos reales en la red. Al sincronizar los registros FAR y los activos reales, los operadores pueden presenciar un mejor cumplimiento normativo que, en última instancia, ayuda a evaluar mejor los costos de seguros y reducir las obligaciones fiscales.

    Aproveche la inteligencia empresarial de extremo a extremo a lo largo del ciclo de vida de los activos para generar ahorros de red significativos.

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  • Capacity Planning for 4G Networks

    Capacity Planning for 4G Networks

    As the telecom industry prepares to move to the 5G, it will look forward to the benefits that come with the technology such as faster speeds, low latencies, seamless connectivity, besides the possibilities of opening new business revenue streams for CSPs. 5G will bring with more unique use cases in areas beyond the consumer realm, with enterprise being a key focus area and a new point of entry for CSPs. However, while 5G does hold this promise leading to CSPs gearing up for this new technology, are they getting 4G right? Are their existing tools for 4G Capacity Planning and Network Capacity Optimization helping them make the most out of their 4G network investments done in the past?

    Most CSPs may not have a standard 4G Network Capacity Management tool in the first place, and those that do, may not be able to realize the return on their network investments recommendations generated in the past. One potential reason could be the limitations that come with their existing tool to ingest, process, and correlate data flowing from different domains.

    Another could be their current Network Capacity Management Process does not offer flexibility to network planners to run multiple iterations and simulations before zeroing on a final plan. Along with it, network capacity planning best practices often get lost because of lack of capability of a network planning tool to take feedback from past actions and record it for future usage.

    Traditionally, network capacity management metrics focus on technical KPIs as the only set of parameters used for network capacity planning. Though the approach worked fine a few years back, the drawback of this method is that the network capacity planning process outcome only generates a list of network elements required for capacity upgrade and augmentation. It doesn’t provide any priority-based investment decisions which can help a CSP invest in the areas capable of generating quick revenue while ensuring the customer experience is not compromised. All this can be achieved only with advanced analytics-driven network capacity and performance management systems built on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Such systems would be capable of providing meaningful insights from not just technical KPIs but millions of records flowing in the form of business and customer experience metrics, which otherwise gets missed.

    To know more about how advanced analytics can redefine what is network capacity Management for the 4G era.

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