It will take more than slick marketing and positive statements to get business to trust telecommunications operators as information and communication technology (ICT) service providers says Ernst & Young.
The UK-based consultant advisor has released a…
It will take more than slick marketing and positive statements to get business to trust telecommunications operators as information and communication technology (ICT) service providers says Ernst & Young.
The UK-based consultant advisor has released a report: ‘Beyond connectivity: can telecoms operators offer new services to business customers?’ which questions the inroads that telcos are making into the provision of cloud solutions.
Fifty-six percent of the respondents who participated in the joint E&Y and Economist Intelligence Unit research thought that telcos should stick to their knitting and concentrate on their core business provisions, rather than try to move into new, rapidly-evolving markets like ICT.
E&Y surveyed of over 350 senior IT and procurement managers across industries and geographies and concluded that telcos will face an uphill task positioning themselves in certain areas of ICT, with only 15% and 20% of enterprise customers respectively saying they would consider taking cloud computing and business consulting services from operators over the next 12 months.
Nevertheless, operators have made considerable headway with select services. Over one third of businesses worldwide are now purchasing web hosting (41%), network security (40%), conferencing (39%) and network installation and maintenance services (36%) from their telecoms supplier.
Adrian Baschnonga, senior analyst telecoms for E&Y said: “We see the telecoms companies looking for IT partners to help them take advantage of this new space. Some of the telcos might seek small bolt-on acquisitions in specific areas that are a long way from their core-competencies, but partnership seems the way ahead.”
The report emphasised the need for existing telcos to tread warily into new markets and choose a strong tech-savvy partner. That said, ICT could well be a huge growth areas for traditional telecommunications operators in the future. Baschnonga concluded: “There will be a mix between organic and acquisitive growth by the telcos in this sector. The SME market looks a great opportunity for expansion, as this area has been traditionally under-served, but there could also be a great opportunity for tie-ups with other utility providers.”
