Friday 20 May 2016

Deployment of Telecom API Opens New Revenue Streams for Telecom Operators: Here’s how

The telecommunications industry is continuously advancing. Phone booths and cord phones have now become a rarity; the leap from voice transfer to 4G LTE networks for data exchange through mobile devices has brought a radical change in the telecom space. Today, mobile telephony is an indispensable part of the world’s economy and offers opportunities for telecom operators to build on this platform for innovative services. Moving into the future, application program interface (API) will be customarily used as a means to innovate telecom services as a new platform for value-added services. Due to this, the mobile telecom market will expand at a CAGR of 19.1% from 2015 to 2022, says Transparency Market Research.

How does API Work for Telecom?

Telecom operators are understanding the need to adopt API development as it leads to new revenue generation streams for business growth. The deployment of telecom APIs enables application developers to package services such as SMS, voice, payment, and WebRTC. This, in turn augments customer experience, leading to increased subscription of these applications and increased earnings in revenue per user. Telecom operators are making huge investments to set up proprietary API platform by partnering with service providers aggregators. This is owing to the fact that API platforms are a monetization and optimization software application at the end-to-end level.

What are telecom carriers adopting API platforms for?

Using telecom API, telecom operators can handle the competition they face from over-the-top (OTT) service providers for higher revenue returns. Telecom operators have understood the threat of OTT players and the rising competition from other mobile network operators (MNOs), which is favoring the adoption of API platforms as new revenue channels. OTT delivers film and TV content via the Internet, which does not require users to subscribe to satellite pay-TVs or traditional cable. Thus, telecom API offers an opportunity for telecom carriers to generate additional revenues by selling APIs to application developers around the world.

Are MNOs benefitting from the adoption of telecom API platform?

Yes. With digitization forming the basis of operations of consumers, enterprises, and government organizations, the unprecedented amount of data generated over several operator networks is forcing MNOs to adopt API platforms. Prior to the development of API, MNOs were the major providers of distribution channels and platforms for application developers, which created some lock-ins as well. With the emergence of centralized mobile app stores that are not operated by MNOs, the situation has changed seriously. New business models that are suitable within the complex space of mobile apps ecosystem have emerged.

What are the forces holding back the progression of the telecom API market?

In spite of the tangible benefits of API in the form of revenue generation, several telecom carriers have not yet embraced API for various financial, technological, and cultural reasons. The global market for telecom API is highly competitive with the presence of numerous local and global players. As not all service providers and aggregators offer bundled services for API, each company is seeking to establish itself as a vendor of niche API services.

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