Page 71 - SAMENA Trends - December 2023

WHOLESALE UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Dutch Regulator Finalizes Decision Refraining from Regulating Wholesale

Local Access

The Netherlands Authority for Consumers & Markets (ACM) has regulation of the Wholesale Local Access fixed broadband internet
finalized its previously-announced decision to refrain from further market, after the European Commission (EC) confirmed that it
had no comments on the matter. The market analysis decision
was adopted on 12 December 2023. ACM reiterated that there
‘is currently sufficient competition in the telecom market’ and
confirmed its previous position that ‘further regulation of the market
is not necessary at this time’. The watchdog added, however, that
it ‘remains vigilant and will annually analyze the competition in the
telecom sector to ensure that providers continue to deliver the best
price-quality.’ In particular, ACM noted that it will annually check
whether incumbent national telco KPN and its fiber joint venture
Glaspoort are adhering to the commitment decision which makes
their fiber-optic networks open to various providers of telecom
services. ACM will also monitor whether fibre rollouts announced
for the coming years are actually realized by various parties. ACM
says it is also alert to takeovers in the telecom sector, ‘because this
can also lead to a deterioration of the competitive situation’.

AI to Curtail Revenue Leakage in 5G Roaming Connections

According to Juniper Research, AI solutions will curtail “revenue
leakage” in 5G roaming connections. The research suggests that
average revenue leakage per 5G roaming connection will decrease
from $1.72 to $1.20. This significant reduction is attributed to the
strategic implementation of AI-based segmentation by telecom
operators, marking a pivotal advancement in monetizing data-
centric users. Revenue leakage pertains to the value of services
provided but not adequately monetized, a challenge that the
telecoms industry has grappled with. Juniper Research’s latest
findings indicate that AI-based segmentation solutions play a
crucial role in addressing this issue by enhancing the allocation
of resources and introducing new pricing models, particularly in
the realm of 5G standalone networks. The key driver behind this
reduction is the ability of AI-based segmentation to discern and
categorize traffic types and segments in real-time, thus enabling
operators to better monetize emerging roaming services. By
leveraging machine learning models, operators can differentiate the 4G infrastructure relied upon by 5G non-standalone networks
enterprise traffic by use case and facilitate premium billing for – individual pricing strategies must be employed for each type
mission-critical 5G standalone connections. According to research of network. This ensures that the pricing accurately reflects the
author Alex Webb, AI-based segmentation “will differentiate Quality of Service (QoS) offered by these networks, considering
enterprise traffic by use case; enabling premium billing of mission- factors such as higher throughput and lower latency.
critical 5G standalone connections, thus reducing revenue In essence, the adoption of AI-driven segmentation tools emerges
leakage.” The report, titled ‘Global Roaming Clearing Market: 2023- as a critical strategy for telecom operators to optimize network
2028,’ recommends that operators adopt AI segmentation tools to resource distribution, identify enterprise traffic suitable for use
combat revenue leakage from 5G roaming on standalone networks. case-dedicated network slices, and ultimately curb revenue
As 5G standalone networks utilize the 5G core – as opposed to leakage in 5G roaming connections.

71 DECEMBER 2023