Page 7 - SAMENA Trends - January 2022
P. 7

FEATURED  SAMENA TRENDS


                                               2021 IN REVIEW





        SAMENA Council’s Perspectives on the Year as It Unraveled New Trends
        and Contributions


        The Digital  Communications  Industry’s
        multi-dimensional  role, led by  Telecom
        Operators,  was highlighted  once  again
        throughout 2021, and remains undoubtedly
        at  the nucleus  of the society’s  efforts  to
        embrace  digitization and to keep hopes
        of achieving digital inclusion  for all; an
        imperative that has now been extensively
        defined  by  regional  governments  through
        their ICT visions.

        Following the events of the past two years,
        a  new opportunity  landscape  has  now
        emerged. In  this landscape,  creating the
        right enabling environment, especially with
        new policy approaches  and regulatory
        measures that can benefit all stakeholders
        in a sustainable manner, is a major policy
        and regulatory  imperative.  The need
        to ensure sustainability of the  Industry
        demands  transformational steps across
        the business, and putting right policies and
        right methods in collaboration to effective
        use.

        In  the post-pandemic  era, sustainability
        of Operators’ business is critical, for they
        are the  providers  of the  infrastructure
        that  supports  the now-ever accelerating
        digital and related economic  activity.
        While trying to  understand  the impact   technology  developments  and identifying   regulatory authorities  and governments
        on their businesses  from  new digital   the right digital transformation strategies,   need  to adjust legacy  regulatory and
                                                                                 economic frameworks to new data-driven
           In the post-pandemic era, sustain-ability of Operators’               technology and market realities.

           business is critical, for they are the providers of the               A lot of questions are surfacing regarding
           infrastructure that supports the now-ever accelerating                the new disruptions  caused,  including
           digital and related economic activity. While trying to                what to do about cross-border data flows,
                                                                                 taxation in the digital economy, spectrum
           understand the impact on their businesses from new                    availability,  5G  and digital services use-

           digital technology developments and identifying the                   cases and much more. To bridge the gaps
                                                                                 in understanding of different stakeholder
           right  digital  transformation  strategies,  regulatory               issues, and to align policy-, regulatory-, and
           authorities  and  governments  need  to  adjust  legacy               private-sector priorities, SAMENA Council
                                                                                 focused its 2021 work on addressing core
           regulatory and economic frameworks to the new data-                   issues that Operators are contending with,

           driven technology and market realities.                               including but not limited to enablement of
                                                                                 Cross-border  Data  Flows,  rectification  of


                                                                                                    7     JANUARY 2022
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