Ongoing digital transformation initiatives are driving significant changes in how enterprises interact with the technological and operational aspects of their businesses. Throughout all of this, unified communications (UC) systems have now taken an outsized role in maintaining connectivity among increasingly distributed systems and workers.
Cloud communications provider BroadSoft recently published its “Future of Work Survey,” a survey of telecommunication operators worldwide. According to this survey, respondents are expecting an increase of IP-based UC line shipments beyond 51 percent. BroadSoft conducted the survey during one of its hosted events in November 2016. The results of the survey were taken from a sample of over 130 representatives and decision makers from 96 service providers.
Enthusiasm for Cloud
BroadSoft’s Taher Behbehani, chief digital and marketing officer, notes that the dramatic uptick in respondents’ overall enthusiasm toward the cloud reinforces the company’s belief that current on-premises shipments will eventually be surpassed by new UCaaS and hosted PBX shipments by 2020. According to Behbehani, the results of the BroadSoft survey provide significant proof of an anticipated acceleration of cloud adoption throughout the entire business spectrum. It also signals significantly increased demand for cloud-driven team collaboration services, along with contact center and mobility integration services delivered through the cloud.
Other Cloud Insights
The BroadSoft survey also revealed a variety of other critical insights into the transition towards cloud-based communications. For instance, survey respondents identified mobility as a key driver in this developing trend. According to the survey, the worldwide adoption of mobile-only UC is expected to reach 41 percent by 2020. Respondents also identified the convergence between fixed and mobile systems as another emerging trend. When polled on this particular trend, service provider representatives responded by noting their expectations of fixed and mobile system convergence to reach 49 percent by 2020.
According to the service provider representatives polled in the BroadSoft survey, customers are expressing an ever-increasing need for cloud-driven collaboration services. As a result, telco companies are finding themselves with a golden opportunity to capitalize on these services and utilize the ever-increasing demand to effectively grow and make themselves more competitive in the cloud era.
Changing Landscape
Behbehani also notes that there’s been a significant change in the threat landscape, according to the results gathered during the survey. Although telcos are becoming less worried about premise and niche SaaS vendors, OTT UCaaS vendors are being increasingly seen as a threat. Telcos that are capable of providing integrated UC, contact center, and team collaboration services can distinguish their offerings from burgeoning OTT UCaaS vendors as well as global IT and consumer brands.
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