So , there is a move to adaptable / DIY packages – where customers can ‘ build ’ their own package with dynamic pricing and modular product bundles . Self-creation and assisted-care tools ( CRM / CPQ ) are key for this , as well as the move from static to dynamic monetisation . If the partner process is onerous , lacks transparency and controls – they will partner with another operator . Full lifecycle automation of partner engagement and products are important within BSS solutions .”
“ In a world where content providers have global scale , the days of operators generating revenue from aggregating content and services are gone ,” notes Ronan Kelly , CTO EMEA & APAC Regions at Adtran . “ However , the ability to deliver Gigabit or multi-Gigabit speeds throughout the household and with very low-cost WiFi and unmanaged WiFi solutions is proving problematic , which creates a great opportunity for operators to step in and address that shortfall by offering – as a value-added premium service – whole home WiFi coverage with a connected home service support wrap . People expect broadband to the home as much as they expect electricity and water . The problem is , are all the taps working ? That ’ s where the service differentiation comes in .”
According to Calvi ’ s Vos , 5G and 6G ( and all future Gs ) all have one thing in common : the flexibility , resilience , agility , and speed they bring allows for products and services no-one has thought of before , probably with a much shorter lifecycle , and most definitely built from multiple parts that are delivered by a range of suppliers . “ From the customer ’ s perspective , the change may be imperceptible ,” he suggests . “ But from the bill issuer ’ s perspective things are about to get a lot more complicated . Sharing the revenue from these complex services must be fast , accurate and fully transparent . There ’ s a huge opportunity for the CSP to take on the role of bill issuer to support these new supply chains but doing so requires them to have systems and processes that are sufficiently flexible and agile , and to be able to process these payments cost-effectively .” He says that with basic connectivity increasingly commoditised , the real value today is in customer-facing services , such as supplying a film at HD quality for $ 5 . PARTNERS . “ This is not about CSPs creating their own version of OTT services , but in becoming great partners and providing the underlying infrastructure ( both networks and business support systems ) to maximise their success . This type of open innovation plays on the strengths of both parties – CSPs have the customer base and the monetisation systems ; partners have the novel services that customers ’ desire .” “ A big revenue blocker is the time it takes for legacy billing systems to add support for a new product or supplier . This is partly to do with inflexible legacy technology and partly to do with legal and contractual requirements that make it hard to onboard third-party offerings ,” he advises , adding that future billing solutions should be able to add a new product or offer in days , even when that product has an entirely new pricing model .” “ Another blocker is flexibility in billing cycles . CSPs traditionally send out bills at set times – such as once per month . But in future , CSPs will require the ability to send out bills when required - which could be in real-time , daily , weekly , upon project completion , etc – as required by the product or service . Billing systems must be able to handle this and proactively respond ,” he asserts . BARRIERS . “ Often the biggest barriers can be company culture and legacy business practices ,” notes Smith . “ Multi-play CSPs have for too long been focused on trying sell their customers a full triple-play / quad-play bundle , rather than offering more flexible mix-andmatch packages to suit the customer need . This has resulted in a complete disconnect between the price of the bundle and the value delivered - for example it is often cheaper to take a quad-play bundle and not use the fixed / cable phone line , rather than trying to get a broadband / TV bundle only . I ’ ve even heard of people signing up for a quad-play package when they don ’ t have a TV , because they can still get a better deal that way . This leads to artificial representations of subscriber counts and service revenue by including customers who are notionally paying for a service that in reality they don ’ t ever use . And worse still , rather than creating customer loyalty through the perceived value of a quad-play bundle , they risk creating animosity amongst customers who see they are paying for something they don ’ t actually use . A more open and flexible approach to market is needed , focusing on customer needs and delivering value ,” he suggests .
“ Legacy BSS / OSS systems and the resulting data silos are responsible for much of the lack of commercial agility ,” says Cottam . “ The rest is down to siloed mindsets that are struggling to reimagine the telco business . Using data and AI to understand customers better , as well as to optimise pricing strategies , is a real game changer . The ability to support choice and change , and to roll out new offers quickly and reliably are all key to maximising future revenues .” HOLISTIC . “ Mindset is usually the largest blocker to increasing revenue ,” suggests Giere . “ Everything comes down to connectivity and content . Unless you have a holistic view of how people are really using connectivity and consuming content , you can get a myopic view of who your competition is . For example , you
“ Bill communications has been overlooked .” - Gráinne Magfhloinn , Soft-ex .
can miss that TikTok and YouTube might be your real competition and instead assume that your traditional fixed-line rival is who you have to worry about . As technology and social interactions evolve , rich veins of opportunity are available . You have to keep projecting your business ahead and be willing to experiment to find the right opportunities ,” he advises .
“ The other perennial blocker is customer experience . Excellent customer service reputation is clearly viral now , especially in our review-obsessed culture . It takes a coordinated and thoughtful approach , ideally using the best software to enable self-service and seamless billing across all your services , especially if they involve third parties .”
According to van den Broek , a major blocker to increasing revenue is a bad customer experience . “ If providers don ’ t build trust among their subscriber base and attain a high level of customer satisfaction then customers will inevitably churn . This is why it is so important to focus first on building loyalty by moving to an experience platform with new and more innovative bundles . Data also shows that customers are less sticky and more likely to churn as the number of services offered decreases . It is therefore imperative to address “ experience issues ” first , and then build new services at a rate that will satisfy their customers . By leveraging data , big tech companies such as Google , Apple and Netflix have prioritised personalisation and customer experience from the very beginning – it is part of their ethos . Service providers need to move fast to meet the new demands and expectations of customers ,” he advises . EXPECTATIONS . “ The biggest blocker CSPs face in increasing household spend is ensuring customers receive an experience that meets their expectations and drives loyalty and engagement without massively inflating the cost of support and increasing the burden on call centres ,” says Edwall . “ Currently support is still largely reactive to customer complaints and information that is provided proactively ( such as notifications of planned engineering ) is often not even relevant to many customers because it ’ s too generic ,” he adds . “ At the same time , customers ’ support expectations are evolving . According to Subtonomy ’ s research , what ’ s needed to support tomorrow ’ s multiplay services is adaptive , efficient omnichannel support … providing real-time , accurate data to each and every support channel is just one challenge CSPs face . Others include aligning support to the CSP ’ s business model and being able to support the increasingly complex mix of network types ( 2G , 3G , 4G , 5G SA , fibre or fixed line ) the
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