If data is a business’s biggest asset, than mobile and telco providers are poised for unprecedented growth – so long as they have the ability to analyze and act on data in real-time. Making the most of vast streams of data from subscribers’ devices (think clicks, impressions, and purchases) and machine-to-machine interactions, requires a new approach to managing and extracting value from data as it enters the data pipeline.
The market opportunity is staggering: Analysis from 451 Research predicts the number of cellular-connected devices worldwide will grow at 6% CAGR between 2017 and 2021. The number of existing connections – now some seven billion – is near the globe’s total population. More than 46 percent of mobile subscriptions are for smartphones.
As Smart Devices Proliferate So Does Data
The 2016 Ericsson Mobility Report points to strong growth in mobile data traffic, with projections indicating growth from 120 Exabytes of data traffic to 1,600 Exabytes of traffic by 2021.
But telcos and mobile operators face a significant threat from OTT providers such as Skype, Facebook Instagram and Google. In the report, Utilizing Real-Time Analytics to Drive Real-Time Decisions for Operators, Ovum analyst Adaora Okeleke notes, “OTT services are not only cannibalizing traditionally lucrative voice and SMS services, but are also increasing the volume of traffic within the network. Additionally, subscribers consuming these services are placing a high demand on operators for improved service delivery and customer experience.”
Ovum’s OTT Messaging Forecast: 2016–20 predicts that “the strong growth in OTT messaging app (e.g. chat apps) users and traffic will continue over the next five years, as the network effect of these apps takes hold across the globe. Total mobile OTT messaging traffic (i.e. text, photo, and video) will more than double from 30.99 trillion messages in 2015 to 68.81 trillion messages in 2020. This growth will cause severe congestion on operator networks.”
To fight back against the revenue and subscriber drain of OTT, telcos and CSPs must focus on developing new applications, and modernizing existing OSS/BSS stacks. This will allow telcos to keep pace with consumer demand for better service levels and increased interaction and personalization.
New Approaches
New approaches to manage and extract value from the vast streams of data from connected devices are necessary. Streaming offerings and NoSQL databases offer partial solutions, but fail to deliver the speed, functionality and flexibility of Volt Active Data.
Volt Active Data is a scale-out, SQL, relational operational database which can ingest fast streams of data; transact on thousands to millions of data events per second, delivering real-time analytics and real-time decision making; and provide rapid data export to Hadoop and OLAP data warehouses. Used by mobile application developers, telco providers and CSPs worldwide, Volt Active Data enables providers to offer applications that deliver real-time interactions and personalization to improve loyalty, reduce churn and increase average revenue per user (ARPU).
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Check out our infographic for more information, and download our telco strategy kit today!
