In recent years, enterprise-based offerings
have emerged as a strong component in operators’ service portfolios, with the
Indian telecom market moving away from being purely voice led to becoming data
oriented. This trend, coupled with the growing demand for communication
services and technology platforms from enterprises across various verticals,
has made a strong business case for operators, who have been struggling with
dwindling profits. The introduction and large-scale adoption of virtualisation,
cloud services, big data analytics and machine-to-machine (M2M) communications
have opened new windows of revenue and growth opportunities for operators.
The enterprise market in India is estimated
to grow at 10 per cent annually over the next five years. The contribution of
this segment to operators’ total revenues currently stands in the range of 8
per cent to 12 per cent. This number is set to grow manifold as contemporary
enterprise solutions such as cloud-based storage, data centre services and
managed services gain traction.
Operator
performance and strategies
Telecom operators have formulated various
strategies to leverage the enterprise advantage. Some have defined their focus
in terms of audience; Bharti Airtel, for instance, continues to stay focused on
small and medium businesses (SMBs) while BSNL and RCOM have a strong presence
in the government domain. Others have differentiated themselves on the basis of
service offerings. Videoconferencing has found favour across all industry
verticals. Enterprises are also shifting from traditional leased lines to
multiprotocol label switching solutions in a big way. In addition, operators
are investing significantly in the areas of integrated platforms and converged
services. The IP transition of enterprises is giving way to a greater
deployment of unified communications.
Key
trends
- Evolving managed services models: Managed services have become a
norm for large enterprises, which have been outsourcing their
communication needs to telecom and IT partners in a bid to focus better on
core areas. However, the scope and nature of managed services have evolved
significantly as operators have expanded their offerings from traditional
managed network or application services to managed videoconferencing,
managed security and managed cloud. Enterprises today demand network
optimisation, custom reports and regular auditing of networking
infrastructure in addition to network monitoring and uptime.
- New focus areas: With enterprises demanding applications that can
perform real-time tracking and capturing of meaningful data, cloud-based
services and big data analytics are witnessing increased uptake. Vodafone
India has announced its plans to start a cloud services marketplace to
widen its range of offerings to corporate and business customers. In
another instance, Tata Communications recently became an authorised
partner of Google Cloud Platform. Under the terms of this agreement,
Google’s new service, Google Cloud Interconnect, will connect with Tata
Communications’ IZO Public platform, which enables companies to set up
cloud computing facilities.
- Growing enterprise mobility market: The enterprise mobility market
has expanded significantly as enterprises move beyond emails to adopt
enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, supply
chain management, sales force automation, etc. Insurance, pharmaceuticals
and logistics companies have emerged as the biggest users of such
solutions, owing to a strong field sales force. In fact, several companies
are now planning to mobilise these solutions and make them accessible
through employee handsets. The bring-your-own-device concept is also
finding favour among several enterprises, though security remains a
concern. By mid-2015, the Indian enterprise mobility market is expected to
reach $1 billion, as per some industry estimates.
- M2M and the internet of things: The industry is optimistic about the
wide-scale adoption of M2M solutions across automotive, utility and retail
verticals in India. For instance, Vodafone India has put bar-coded SIM
cards in Mahindra Reva cars through which information like service
requirements, battery charge and remote instruction downloads for maps can
be retrieved on a real-time basis. Enterprises in the logistics,
manufacturing and transportation industries are also increasingly adopting
M2M services to automate processes.
Government
emerging as a key vertical
With the launch of its ambitious Digital
India programme, the government has opened new doors of opportunities for the
telecom and IT sectors. The programme requires creating digital identities,
making documents and certificates available on a cloud platform, making
government services available on online and mobile platforms on a real-time
basis, ensuring electronic and cashless financial transactions, and the
seamless integration of government departments. Government businesses are
already moving from e-governance to m-governance models, wherein most services
can be accessed through handsets.
The Rs 1,130 billion Digital India initiative
aims at transforming India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge
economy. This cannot be done without the active participation of the telecom
sector. Government departments will turn to operators in large numbers for the
deployment of cloud and storage solutions, big data analytics, etc.
The establishment of 100 smart cities, as
envisaged by the government, will also require significant support from telecom
operators in terms of M2M communications and converged platforms. A smart city
makes extensive use of information and communication technology (ICT) to
facilitate advanced communications infrastructure like back-end intelligent
systems to manage traffic flows, real-time monitoring and video surveillance to
ensure public safety, and the installation of utility meters and systems for
traffic information.
The
way forward
Owing to its potential for high revenues and
margins, the enterprise segment will attract significant attention from
operators in the coming years. Factors such as digitisation, ICT adoption by
government agencies, the upgrading of IT infrastructure by large and small
companies, the usage of enterprise mobility solutions and the adoption of cloud
services will drive growth in the segment, thereby promising a significant
revenue potential for cash-starved operators in the future.
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