The arrival of cloud-based, over-the-top service providers is creating a sea change in the communications marketplace. At the same time, smartphones have become the center of the communications universe.
That has created an environment in which existing communications service providers are being forced to adapt to become more agile and fast moving. That will require CSPs both to transform their infrastructure on the back end, through the adoption of new technologies like the cloud, software-centric architectures and virtualization, and to deliver more innovative, mobile-first and unique service offerings.
RCS is one technology that could enable them to do that. This technology uses IMS to deliver enhanced communications across devices on any network. That includes things such as content sharing, file sharing, group messaging, social networking and VoIP.
“If mobile operators don’t pursue service offerings like those outlined, they risk losing out to the innovative operators that already are,” Nicolas Appert, head of monetization, writes in the upcoming September issue of INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine, a publication of TMC (News - Alert). “If mobile operators continue to rely on outdated services, they’ll fail to provide their customers with the fast access and seamless user experience that they’ve come to expect from their digital experiences. If they don’t, consumers will be quick to move, as customer loyalty today is a rare commodity and has to be earned.”
You may remember that RCS was a hot topic a while back, but then quickly faded into obscurity. That was under the GSMA’s (News - Alert) Joyn effort. But this time RCS seems to have some real momentum.
None other than Google, which last year purchased Jibe, now is a RCS booster. And several high-profile CSPs earlier this year announced they are working on RCS. That list includes America Movil, Bharti Airtel Ltd., Deutsche Telekom, Etisalat, KPN, Millicom (News - Alert), MTN, Orange, TeliaSonera, Telstra, Turkcell, VimpelCom and Vodafone.
To find out more about RCS, who’s doing what with it, and how it could help your organization to be more competitive, join us for the upcoming webinar “Navigating the RCS Journey in the Google Age.” This online event is scheduled for Sept. 12 at 8 a.m. Pacific time/11 a.m. Eastern. Jay Bhatt, RCS product director at Xura (News - Alert), is the featured speaker.
Edited by Alicia Young