At Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this year, there was a panel discussion around whether private wireless is a real growth opportunity or is overhyped. That’s a very interesting question and I think it is worth exploring. So, let’s peel the layers of the onion back and take a closer look at this rapidly growing sector of the wireless industry.
At MWC23, the three panelists were Shahid Ahmed, group EVP of new ventures and innovation at NTT, Caroline Chan, general manager of the 5G Infrastructure Division in Intel’s Network Platform Group and Divya Ghai Wakankar, executive vice president of enterprise business & marketing at BICS.
Based on their points of view, private wireless is a sector which is suddenly getting lots of attention. The good news is they also say this is a real, growth opportunity.
I agree, and would add, this is a real growth opportunity for certain companies in the wireless industry. And it will be for years to come. The question, as always is determining which companies will benefit the most. Which to work with as a customer, work for as an employee or invest in.
Success in private wireless depends on technology and marketing
However, the noise level is so high it makes it difficult for companies to be found and heard. That’s a challenge every CEO needs to deal with and overcome in order to win.
Remember, while everyone seems to be jumping into private wireless these days, not all will be successful at the same level. Some will have an edge and others will struggle.
Let’s face it, over time some competitors will be more successful than others. This always happens.
The level of success depends on the services they offer, the quality, the reliability, the level of innovation, customer care, cost and so on.
Success in private wireless will also depend on the quality of the marketing. Remember, there are many companies jumping into this space. Some will be more successful than others.
Companies need to punch their way through the noise onto the map
That means the noise level in the industry is at high volume and intensity. This makes it more difficult for companies to punch their way through that noise level to be noticed, seen and heard.
It is important to recognize that there are different levels of private wireless service. That means all competitors are not created equally.
So, enterprise customers need to be fully aware of the depth of services they are buying, installing and will work with.
Only some solutions are complete. The choice enterprise customers make will determine the level of work they will have to do, the number of employees they will have to put in place, the investment they have to make and so on.
Wireless is the way of the future. Enterprise customers will both use wireless and wire line networks, but private wireless is growing and is the current challenge.
The need for private wireless networks come from the fact that companies, over time, typically install layers of confusing and complex technologies that don’t always work well together.
Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, Kore Wireless and more in private wireless
Enterprise customers often use a patchwork of technologies like public wireless, wi-fi, Bluetooth and more.
Public wireless networks are companies like Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, AT&T Mobility, Kore Wireless and others.
The good news is public wireless carriers are starting to offer private wireless services. This can give enterprise customers some of what they want but are missing on the public side.
The problem is often that service choices are set up by the wireless companies and don’t offer the kind of flexibility and control that many companies want or need.
You see, while public wireless networks are great for the masses, and offer service from coast to coast, they don’t offer the level of flexibility, control or security that enterprise customers need.
That’s where private wireless gives enterprise customers increased control and security that is needed. It is important to realize there are different levels of private wireless.
Qualcomm, Betacom, Cradlepoint, NTT, Jupiter Networks, Huawei, ZTE
There are a growing number of top companies in the private wireless space. These companies provide different levels of services, so enterprise customers can get just what they need.
Some of them include Qualcomm who recently partnered with Betacom to offer a powerful experience for enterprise customers. They offer high levels of control and security, which is just what many enterprise customers both want and need.
Other players in this space include NTT, Intel, Jupiter Networks, Ericsson, Cradlepoint, Huawei, ZTE, China Mobile, Nokia, Celona, AWS, Samsung and more.
Before private wireless, companies were a patchwork quilt of different technologies installed separately, which do not work together smoothly.
This can have a negative impact on revenues and earnings. It can impede building strong customer relationships. It can get in the way of having workers share and distribute information easily and effectively.
This lack of control also creates bottlenecks of less important communications keeping senior executives from being able to communicate easily and share information.
This can also create real exposure for confidential company information.
Companies need to punch through the noise in the industry to be found
As you can see, there are many reasons why private wireless networks are not only wanted but needed by enterprise customers of all sizes.
That’s why I believe private wireless is on a solid growth track and that will continue going forward.
The big challenge for players in the space is to be found in an increasingly noisy marketplace.
Players need to be able to punch their way through all the noise and be seen and heard if they want to be successful in this space going forward.
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