Teching it up: Communications Service Providers Embrace Technologies to Meet Demand

As communications service providers (CSP) face their current situation – which includes economic challenges, declining voice and text revenue, and changing customer service expectations – they’re open to embracing new technologies, according to a new study, “Evolutionary Trends in the Operations of CSP Networks: How the Migration to Broadband Data Services is Shifting the Paradigm of Network Operations.”

Conducted by Accenture, the study surveyed 30 leading communications and media companies focusing on evolutionary trends in CSPs’ network operations.

Broadband and cable networking is still a tricky area for many. The survey found that most CSP executives (93 percent) see a need for new or improved tools to plan, design and track traffic on broadband or cable networks. Thirty-three percent admitted a need to revamp the tools they used for broadband deployment, while 60 percent voiced that they would consider adding new tools.

When the subject of technology investments came up, 75 percent of wireless operators and integrated services providers said they intend to implement long-term evolution (LTE), a standard for wireless communication of high-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals, in the next three to five years.

The adaptation would increase network capacity, enabling quicker data transmissions.

Wireline providers say that also within three to five years, they plan to swap all or part of the cable used to connect homes and businesses from copper to fiber optic.

One-hundred percent of the survey’s participants said they’ll invest in network analytics tools. Customer experience improvements were mentioned as the most primary reason for 53 percent of those interviewed. These tools are traditionally used to improve network service quality by analyzing network data alarms, performance measures, trouble tickets, and customer churn due to dropped calls.

Making these major technological transitions aren't free, and to reduce spending while acclimating, CSPs look to either manage the transformation internally (33 percent), outsource the transformation (27 percent), or both (40 percent).

Paolo Sidoti, global managing director of Accenture’s Network Business Services group, says he's not surprised that CPS are warming up to new technologies so adamantly, given that “traditional operating models cannot completely meet current CSP requirements.” 

The full report is available here.