How service providers can capture the amazing fiber opportunity in 2024
How service providers can capture the amazing fiber opportunity in 2024
Fiber isn’t just another broadband technology. It’s the best broadband technology out there.
With multi-gigabit symmetrical speeds, ultra-low latency, and unlimited bandwidth, it’s enabling unprecedented new use cases ranging from the 5G backbone to immersive experiences and content creation, among many others that are right around the corner.
In fact, it’s the key to ushering in a new era of immersiveness, interactiveness, digital, virtual, and augmented. What’s more, it’s the sorely needed answer to bridging the digital divide and a very green technology as well.
This tectonic-shifting power of fiber is also what makes it the fuel for new revenue models that propel business growth for service providers.
The bottom line is that the opportunity is nothing less than phenomenal. And now is the time to harness this momentum, as a strong push from federal programs is accelerating.
There is no time like the present for service providers to take the leap and the lead.
Why now?
Consumers and businesses expect to be hyper-connected and to have access to disruptive new services and new ways of interaction and consumption.
Demand is growing and will continue to skyrocket.
However, until recently, delivering such services and experiences seemed to entail the formidable and costly task of deploying a new or expanding fiber network.
The good news is that today, it doesn’t have to be this way, because:
- Governments worldwide, particularly in the US, are funding billions of dollars to incentivize fiber deployments.
- New tools are available that can reduce costs, simplify, and fast-track fiber planning, deployment, and monetization.
- We can already support the freestyle model for purchasing, consuming, and paying for services.
All aboard!
Service providers and governments are doing a lot right now to bring fiber to the fore.
For example, Liberty Global’s Virgin Media unit, Telefonica, and InfraVia have entered a joint venture to actuate a massive fiber deployment in the UK. In Germany, Vodafone and Altice also recently created a fiber joint venture to connect approximately seven million homes in unserved locations.
In the US, to help accelerate the proliferation of fiber, the Biden administration established the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program (BEAD).
Through this program, a whopping $42.45 billion in funding has been set aside for fiber planning, infrastructure deployment, and adoption so that anyone, anywhere in the country, can access high-quality, high-speed, and affordable internet service.
In Asia, fiber coverage is being expanded to remote areas in Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Vietnam. Also, there are plans to sell prepaid fiber-to-home packages to expedite take-up in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
"The window of opportunity to capture market share won’t stay open for long."
The fiber challenge
With superior performance, a more sustainable footprint, and cost-efficient operations, the long-term outlook for fiber providers couldn’t be brighter.
That’s why tremendous pressure exists to step up and not be left behind. And this pressure is all the more acute considering the leadership role of the cable market thus far, which service providers can’t afford to ignore.
But becoming a fiber player and leader is no simple endeavor:
- Designing and deploying new fiber networks requires expertise, time, investment, and speed, with time to market being critical.
- Building out the fiber footprint is typically beset by complexities, such as identifying the optimal routes for deployment.
Nevertheless, as we have seen, service providers are moving ahead with the requisite investments. Other new entrants are also moving ahead, often engaging with private equity firms to accelerate the journey to acquiring and growing a fiber customer base.
Regardless of the funding source, the one truth common to all – is that the approach to building and monetizing a fiber infrastructure needs to be practical, fast, and scalable.
The window of opportunity to capture market share won’t stay open for long. It won’t be more than two to three years before the need for the benefits that only fiber can deliver will have grown exponentially. And it is only the service providers who will be able to address this need with a fiber connectivity offering who will gain a competitive edge.
How Amdocs makes fiber amazing
At Amdocs, we understand the growing need for service providers to deploy fiber throughout the network rapidly and cost-effectively so they can meet the demand for hyper-fast connectivity that unleashes innovative customer experiences.
Achieving this goal requires:
- Deploying as many home passes as fast as possible for being able to bridge to the digital divide.
- Turning as many home passes into paying customersas fast as possible for growing revenues.
- Delivering amazing customer experiences for driving adoption and ensuring retention.
Towards this end, we offer a complete offering of services that address the needs of fiber newcomers and incumbent players seeking to expand their footprint.
These services include:
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Advisory
IT blueprint and ecosystem recommendations: guidance on operating and structuring business processes, and a jump-start kit for newcomers.
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Consulting
Project management, business process design, and defining the customer experience and user journey.
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BSS & OSS
Managed services, network operating center, migration, quality engineering, and more.
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Network
Construction management, fiber design, deployment, and assurance, among others.
In conclusion
All over the world, numerous incentives and initiatives are underway to extend the reach of fiber. In the US alone, federal funding for broadband has increased sevenfold since 2019 (source: Fiber Broadband Association).
Yes, planning, building, and expanding fiber networks quickly and efficiently can be challenging, but Amdocs is here to help. For newcomers and existing players, we provide either an end-to-end approach or a set of stand-alone services that supports both Amdocs and non-Amdocs environments. We offer a practical and scalable approach to fiber, so any service provider can harness the momentum and capture the amazing fiber opportunity
