The COVID -19 pandemic has, without a doubt, changed the very paradigm of digitalization. Digitalization has, for quite some time, been defined as “the use of digital technologies and digitized data to transform how customers engage and interact, and create new (digital) revenue streams…” This conventional model fundamentally centers on upgrading profitability. However, the disruptions introduced by the ongoing pandemic have rendered digital remodeling necessary. The idea is to focus on business operations themselves to maintain the workflow, as much as enhancing it, of course. Operating and maintaining telecommunications infrastructure and services is a mammoth task, one that requires significant expenditure. In the mobile industry alone, capital expenditure (CAPEX) is expected to reach $160 billion in 2020, as per Statista.
Having said that, however, let’s not forget, customer patterns themselves have undergone a sea change. Consumers are focused more online content, even while going about their regular routines-the “new normal” in these extraordinary times, no doubt!
Media consumption is up, and video is witnessing the highest uptake in terms of usage. In a survey conducted by GlobalWebIndex, respondents reported watching more broadcast TV, streaming services and news coverage, at around 40 per cent each. Clearly, the era of video is here!
This demand for digital platforms and experiences will continue to accelerate in the future. Businesses and customers will continue to look for alternatives to in-person gatherings in a post-COVID world. The pandemic has intensified certain technology trends, including digital services like gaming, advertisement based marketing, video on demand and video conferencing to name few. To illustrate, consider this-Verizon has reported that video streaming is up by 12 per cent. It is expected that the average adult will watch more than two hours of digital video in 2020, up from 19 minutes in 2019. The pandemic accelerated a longstanding trend—digital video increased 12 minutes in 2019 and will increase by a further five minutes in 2021. Mobile gaming will also stand to benefit and gain minutes. Adults are expected to play mobile application games for 26 minutes on an average, a three-minute increase. By comparison, mobile gaming added a mere two minutes in 2019. These markets will define the next era of digital experiences. In fact, the innovations in these spaces will enable and further our vision to be a leader in the digital consumption space.
Permit me to elaborate. Comviva has always been aligned with the dynamic changes taking in the digital world. Adopting new age trends in digital services has always been atop our priority list.
For telecom operators, creating products and services in-house or on a CAPEX model and managing it end-to-end is a legacy mode of functioning. Telecom operators ought to deliver core services in conjunction with partners who understand the finer nuances of the industry. The ability to contribute creatively, by collaborating with partners across multiple industries and offering a single platform to managing all these partnerships will be every operator’s mainstay in the future. Providing a “digitized way of life” for customers by creating a virtual marketplace is a vital move for these players.
In line with this vision, we have launched the Strategic Digital Services Initiatives. This, in a nutshell, entails the launch of two new major initiatives; Mooditt Games and Performance Marketing. This is, of course, in addition to the Mooditt Entertainment initiative launched earlier. With each of our products and services catering to ever-evolving customer needs, we ensure customer data is analyzed more effectively. The backbone of these initiatives is bolstered by innovations in the field of API gateways and the overall partner ecosystem. These technologies will enable us to integrate faster and more efficiently with other internal and external products and services. Digital Business Management, for instance, helps our customers to register significant business growth. This, needless to say, includes eight best practices such as resource identification, revenue planning, monetization, business intelligence and analytics, customer engagement, billing and reconciliation, service enhancements and governance.
All in all, the ongoing pandemic has certainly changed the rules of the digital game. What will count is staying ahead of the curve and ensuring one remains a step ahead of the customer.
REFERENCES
https://www.jpmorgan.com/global/research/media-consumption
https://www.emarketer.com/content/pandemic-accelerating-time-spent-with-mobile-video-gaming
