Service providers increasingly acting as IoT managed services, survey reveals

A new survey reveals a growing trend among service providers to view themselves increasingly as integrators and suppliers of Internet of Things (IoT) managed services, showcasing a deepening correlation between IoT and 5G technology as they cater to increasing enterprise requirements.

The survey, commissioned by RAD, also highlights service providers' rising focus on delivering IoT solutions customised for businesses, thereby enabling a seamless integration of IoT into their primary operations.

Titled 'Top 2023-2024 Trends in CSP IoT and Private 5G Campus Services', the survey encompassed over 200 executives, at director level or higher, from communication service providers (CSPs).

The survey discovered that 95% of CSPs are now offering IoT services, with IoT cloud connectivity being the most prevalent, provided by 70% of them. This service enables enterprises to connect low-power devices using their native protocols to IoT applications hosted in public clouds. Additionally, it was found that over half of the providers offer IoT integration services, with 43% offering IoT data plans.

"CSPs are looking to play a role in the entire IoT value chain," said Moshe Shimon, Vice President of Product and Marketing for RAD. "There is a rise in providers seeing themselves as IoT integrators and providers of IoT managed services. This leverages their customer base, network installation, and operation expertise."

Currently, 50% of the providers indicate that their private 5G offerings include IoT managed services bundled with their campus network. As digital transformation impacts many organisations across nearly all industries, private networks and cloud connectivity are progressively adopted. Private 5G provides an ideal fit for IoT installations, with its low latency and service continuity making it the standard converged network for collating all campus endpoints.

In fact, 5G-enabled IoT gateways are deemed a critical aspect of these networks with 97% of CSPs incorporating IoT gateways into their private 4G/5G ecosystem, serving to bridge various interfaces and aggregate IoT devices.

Moreover, the survey analysed multi-cloud and IoT services, the ways in which providers are developing the network edge, and their security as a service plans. "The convergence of IoT and Private 5G is reshaping the landscape of next-generation enterprise networks," Shimon commented. "For providers, it offers a future of innovation, comprehensive solutions, and new revenue streams."

RAD is a global expert in networking edge solutions. The company is focused on supplying communications service providers and critical infrastructure operators in over 150 countries with best-of-breed Carrier Edge, industrial IoT, 5G xHaul, and critical operational network solutions.

RAD co-innovates solutions with customers, offering always-on connectivity from anywhere, in addition to data-driven, AI-powered actionable insights at a glance. Founded in 1981, RAD serves as the anchor of the RAD Group, an umbrella of independent companies that develop diverse networking and telecom solutions.