How do the tier-1 telecommunications carriers fit into cloud?
The large telecommunication service providers or carriers might seem well-positioned to provide and benefit from the cloud computing model. The tier-1 carriers (e.g. AT&T, France Telecom, NTT Docomo, Vodafone) have the infrastructure, enterprise customer base, and the geographic reach to provide cloud services over great distances. Additionally, they are well-versed in multi-tenancy; all I have to do is look at my monthly communications bill to get a glimpse in the detailed reporting of my mobile roaming and texting use.
However, though in a good position, these carriers need to add new proficiencies to their core competencies to meet the demands of the different size organizations that comprise their potential customer base for cloud computing services. Much like the late 1990s when deregulation in the telecommunications industry and the shift of voice services to the Internet and the emergence of new data services, carriers need to navigate the changes to offset declining revenues in some of their traditional services with new cloud-based offerings. Continue reading
