Telecoms is no longer just about selling minutes and megabytes. The real question now is: where will the next wave of growth come from?
At the Qvantel Digital Leaders Summit in Dubai, a panel of senior executives tackled this head-on under the theme “Where should telcos place their bets?”. The answer was clear: the future lies beyond connectivity — and the biggest opportunity is in B2B.
The panel agreed on three points:
Why B2B Matters
The numbers back this up. McKinsey’s 2025 survey of 3,000 enterprise decision-makers found that over 80% want CSPs to do more than connectivity. They’re asking for ICT services such as IoT, cloud, analytics, cybersecurity, and AI.
The GSMA has estimated the size of the prize: CSPs could capture up to $406 billion of the $1.16 trillion enterprise tech services market. That’s not a side business — that’s a major growth engine.
Betting on Verticals
CSPs can’t go after every industry, so they’re betting on the ones where their assets — infrastructure, customer base, data, and trust — align with digital transformation needs.
The top industries? Transport & logistics, banking, healthcare, retail, manufacturing, energy & utilities, construction, and hospitality.
And the solutions are real:
These are complex ICT solutions — not just “connectivity plus.”
The Systems Behind the Shift
Chasing B2B revenues requires new tools. Traditional BSS wasn’t built for multi-product ICT deals. Now, CSPs need systems that can handle richer product catalogues, CPQ, partner management, and AI-driven sales and delivery.
BSS is becoming a critical enabler of this transformation.
Final Word
CSPs have already started their journey from connectivity providers to digital service companies. What stood out at the Digital Leaders Summit was the optimism — this shift is no longer a theory, it’s happening.
The only question now is: which industries will CSPs bet on, and how fast can they move?