IP Transformation Still Drives Telco Interest in Managed Services

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Sept. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite some missteps, telecom network operators still want their technology suppliers to provide managed services both to cut operating expenses and to smooth the transition to all-IP service delivery, according to the latest report from Heavy Reading Insider (www.heavyreading.com/insider), a subscription research service from Heavy Reading (www.heavyreading.com).

Managed Services for Telcos: Progress & Pain Points examines the development of the market for the provision of managed network, IT and service operations. It looks at the drivers of outsourcing and managed service use by operators, comparing them by region and by type of operator, and identifying how they have changed. The report also looks at how the nature of managed services engagements and the measures of success are changing in response to these changing drivers. It identifies the different types of service providers, which parts of the market they can participate in and how they differentiate themselves. Finally, it profiles and analyzes 15 key providers of managed services for telcos.

For a list of companies covered in this report, http://img.lightreading.com/lri/pdf/hri0912_companies.pdf

"In some markets, the outsourcing juggernaut is not rumbling on as many thought it would," says Danny Dicks, research analyst with Heavy Reading Insider and author of the report. "Nonetheless, outsourcing and managed service provision remains extremely important: the fundamental drivers remain in place, and the market is maturing and evolving to take into account operators' new priorities."

Managed services deals to transform networks and OSS under the intense pressures faced by communications services providers are continuing to grow, says Dicks. "Those operators that have gone down this route will stick with it, and they will be joined by others around the world," he continues.

Despite Alcatel-Lucent's recent announcement of a possible pullback in managed services activities, telecom equipment manufacturers will continue to lead the way in the telco managed services market, Dicks notes. "The role for IT consultancies and business process outsourcers will increasingly be focused on the delivery of managed service solutions built around solving discrete problems faced by operators," he adds. "They will compete for siloed outsourcing contracts rather than giant horizontal deals."

Key findings of Managed Services for Telcos: Progress & Pain Points include the following:

• Key drivers of outsourcing and managed services are cost saving, risk reduction, access to expertise and time-to-market reduction – though increasingly the big deals involve transformation.
• Measures of success for managed service deals are becoming more focused on business outcomes.
• For the biggest deals in more mature markets, there's a more hands-off approach, with the use of management dashboards to show adherence to SLAs.
• Equipment vendors are tightening their grip on the largest outsourcing and managed service deals, pushing up into the IT stack.
• Many providers are focusing on developing point solutions to specific challenges, delivered as managed services.

Managed Services for Telcos: Progress & Pain Points is available as part of an annual single-user subscription (12 issues) to Heavy Reading Insider, priced at $1,995. Individual reports are available for $900 (single-user license).

To subscribe, or for more information, please visit: www.heavyreading.com/insider. For more information about other Heavy Reading Insider research services, please visit: www.heavyreading.com/research.

To request a free executive summary of the report, or for details on multi-user licensing options, please contact:

Jeff Geddes
Account Manager
Heavy Reading
303-997-9135
geddes@lightreading.com

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Jennifer Baker
Marketing Director, Light Reading Communications Network
617-871-1910
jbaker@lightreading.com

About Heavy Reading (www.heavyreading.com) Heavy Reading is an independent research organization offering deep analysis of emerging telecom trends to network operators, technology suppliers, and investors. Its product portfolio includes in-depth reports that address critical next-generation technology and service issues, market trackers that focus on the telecom industry's most critical technology sectors, exclusive worldwide surveys of network operator decision-makers that identify future purchasing and deployment plans, and a rich array of custom and consulting services that give clients the market intelligence needed to compete successfully in the $4 trillion global telecom industry. As a telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network (www.lrcn.com), Heavy Reading contributes to the only integrated business information platform serving the global communications industry.

About Light Reading Communications Network (www.lrcn.com) The Light Reading Communications Network combines the most trusted telecom research brands with award-winning online communities and a rich events portfolio to deliver the only integrated business information platform serving the global communications industry.   With the power of this platform, leaders who build, deploy, finance, and regulate next-generation telecom networks are able to make more informed decisions on emerging market and service opportunities.  Light Reading Communications Network is a division of UBM TechWeb (www.ubmtechweb.com), the global leader in technology media and business information. 

SOURCE Heavy Reading