As India ushers into a new digital era which will be backed by data networks of 4G and 5G, the telecom operator plays the crucial role of connecting the demand and supply. While it will have a significant role in creating demand by spreading awareness among consumers as well as making the value of an application visible to them, on the supply side, some of the applications will be created by an operator, and others will be provisioned through partnerships; a lot of them to be forged by an operator.<\/p>

India is at an infliction point with respect to Digital economy. The envisioned digital economy is impossible without the role that an operator has to play. While the solutions providers and the vendor community is upbeat about it and they are all beelining in the Indian market, their go-to-market partner, telecom operator, has still some issues to address.<\/p>

At the ET Telecom\u2019s India Mobile Conclave, 3rd Edition, two main operators were represented by their CTOs. These were airtel and Vodafone-idea. During their discourse, both of them gave a peep into the future of networks for which they are enthusiastic. But, at the same time these technology leaders also discussed about the issues they are facing at the moment. Technically, it might appear just a roadmap where they are putting in resources to augment the present with future proofing strategy, it is not just another upgrade. There is a complete paradigm shift required in the mindset of being a traditional telecom operator to becoming a digital enabler over which a lot of value will precipitate towards consumers.<\/p>

While the operators are addressing the existing networks, and meeting the rising expectations of consumers around data services, they have also to gear up the preparations for future networks. This all is happening in some hard realities. There is already an increasing cumulative debt in the sector, which has crossed 550 Lakh crores. The disruption created by Jio has kept the incumbent operators on tenterhooks. State owned BSNL has reached its lowest ebb, and there are many similar issues that the industry is grappling with.<\/p>

In all this, technology alone will not be the game changer. The technology has all the game-changing potential, but it will ultimately be the technology capsuled in an innovative business model and execution strategies that will decide the ultimate winner. This is where the incumbent operators are still struggling to a certain extent, which can be inferred from the series of actions it took since the market has been taken by the data disruption over the past few years.<\/p>

In the interests of the industry, the government might have to play larger than policy and structuring role. It might have to get into the picture to mediate between the incumbents and the disruptor operator to balance the competitive forces in the market so that all the operators are able to come to a level playing field as incumbents have a historical burden resulting in their inefficiencies for any step they take equivalent or greater in impact than of the disruptor operator.<\/p>

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This is a critical juncture for the Indian telecom where it needs all the requisite impetus as its role goes now beyond 6% contribution in GDP. In digital economy telecom has a much larger role to play which might not be always quantifiable. Telecom is becoming strategically important for the country and can be categorised as critical infrastructure which will propel growth and development contributing significantly in making India a super economy. The government has to integrate with the sector and mix up rather than standing just at the boundary and letting industry decide the future course, where they will only lose the resources without any returns. This will also hurt the consumers in the long run as no one can offer \u2018free lunch\u2019 for lifetime.<\/p>","blog_img":"","posted_date":"2019-03-20 13:17:14","modified_date":"2019-03-20 13:18:43","featured":"0","status":"Y","seo_title":"ETIMC Takeaway - Solution providers are upbeat, service providers balancing between the present and future","seo_url":"etimc-takeaway-solution-providers-are-upbeat-service-providers-balancing-between-the-present-and-future","url":"\/\/www.iser-br.com\/tele-talk\/etimc-takeaway-solution-providers-are-upbeat-service-providers-balancing-between-the-present-and-future\/3482","url_seo":"etimc-takeaway-solution-providers-are-upbeat-service-providers-balancing-between-the-present-and-future"},img_object:["","retail_files/author_1509706883_temp.jpg"],fromNewsletter:"",newsletterDate:"",ajaxParams:{action:"get_more_blogs"},pageTrackingKey:"Blog",author_list:"Faisal Kawoosa",complete_cat_name:"Blogs"});" data-jsinvoker_init="_override_history_url = "//www.iser-br.com/tele-talk/etimc-takeaway-solution-providers-are-upbeat-service-providers-balancing-between-the-present-and-future/3482";">