Summary Bullets:

• Since October 2023, there have been few public announcements of new private wireless services or enhanced capabilities of existing services from key mobile operators in the US and Europe.

• However, operators have announced interesting new trials or commercial launches of private 5G, expanding use cases in verticals that ranged from automotive to retail, heavy industry, event venues, universities, ports, and utilities.

Recent PCN Announcements

Summary Bullets:

• Although IoT services are growing in numbers of deployments and connections, there are not generally many new service announcements from operators.

• Over the last six months, there was a lot of news centered mainly on technology trials, solution partners, and new customer deals.

In H2 2023, there was news on IoT from US and European operators, but it centered mainly on technology trials, new solution partners, and new customer deals that feature other technologies such as private networks that may include IoT elements.

Summary Bullets:

• Verizon discloses progress in business FWA (LTE/5G business internet) every quarter and has added 133,000 business subscribers in Q3 2023.

• AT&T and T-Mobile tout consumer FWA progress but do not disclose business FWA stats. Can the market be so different for these three service providers?

FWA is considered a growth market for US operators, and on the consumer side, it is already threatening cable operators that are determined to maintain their broadband advantage while potentially dabbling in their own FWA initiatives.

Summary Bullets:

• Operator announcements since Q2 2023 have not yet proven that private wireless networks are taking the world by storm as US and European operators have only touted a sprinkling of new deals.

• Operators anticipate substantial future revenues for 4G/5G private and hybrid private/public connectivity as well as for advanced beyond-connectivity services, but traction remains spotty. Most recent announcements are on technology advancements or partnerships.

The past six months haven’t quite proven that private wireless networks are taking the world by storm as US and European operators only touted a sprinkling of new deals. However, they still anticipate substantial future revenues for 4G/5G private and hybrid private/public connectivity as well as for advanced services for private network design, testing, PoC, integration, application enablement, edge computing, and ongoing management. Technology enhancements and partnerships made up the bulk of announcements.

Summary Bullets:

• Many regional telcos serve MNCs headquartered outside their network footprint but need to communicate globally.

• Vodafone Business International is a successful example of this, offering SD-WANs, IoT, and device lifecycle management in addition to connectivity services to 400 businesses.

Communications service providers (CSPs) often derive revenues from multi-national companies (MNCs) that are headquartered outside the CSPs’ footprint. They may provide fixed or mobile connections that originate or terminate on their network. Target companies have facilities, customers, or supply chain partners in countries where they do business or need to frequently communicate with but where they do not have their headquarters location. Simple roaming relationships for mobile communications can provide global or near-global access for basic voice, data, and internet access; however, more complex, secure, reliable, ‘always-on’ communications are often required. For example, The FreeMove Alliance, a mobile telecommunications alliance between Deutsche Telekom, Orange, TIM, and Telia, serves as a mobile services hub that helps the top 500 MNCs in Europe optimize their investment in mobile connectivity by offering them global access to reliable networks through a central point of provisioning, management, and support.

Summary Bullets:

• While IoT services and connections are growing, GlobalData forecasts that connectivity revenue growth (five-year CAGR of 6%) is lower than other aspects of IoT growth (five-year CAGR of 10%). This is partly due to lower ARPU as IoT connectivity (e.g., for LP-WANs) becomes less expensive.

• To expand services and add revenue, operators are partnering with vertical industry experts, adding technology enhancements to improve operations and customer ease of use, and offering edge services and private networks that complement IoT solutions.

Over the last six months, IoT announcements from AT&T, Verizon, Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, Vodafone, Tata Communications, and Telstra included the following: