Are Private Networks really a 5G revenue goldmine?
Private networks are widely touted as the “killer application” for 5G, however CSPs are not necessarily the go-to service provider. Can Mobile Private Networks be a 5G revenue goldmine for CSPs?
The global market for Mobile Private Networks (MPNs) is expected to grow to $16 billion by 2025. However, with CSPs only capturing 19% of MPN market spending, they are not often considered the go-to provider for enterprises building private 4G/5G networks.
Cerillion and Telecoms Tracker convened a debate around the business case for CSPs and Mobile Private Networks, hosted and moderated by Dean Ramsay of Telecoms Tracker, with Cerillion’s Richard Doughty joined on the panel by Darren Westmore of Three Private Networks and Peter Marshall of Ericsson for the 45-minute discussion.
The webinar also revealed the latest research from Telecoms Tracker’s recent survey of 160 CSPs to pry open the impact of private networks on BSS/OSS platforms.
The market for MPNs began gathering steam in 2019; today, there exist about 500 MPNs, representing $11 billion in annual spending for 2021, with growth expected to continue into 2025 and beyond.
Though CSPs are starting to pay attention to the opportunities presented, they are not currently the go-to choice for enterprises looking to deploy MPNs; as of 2021, 57% of the main contractors for MPN services are Network Equipment Providers (i.e. Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei), compared with 19% being CSPs – a figure that is unlikely to change any time soon.
As additional capabilities, such as dynamic spectrum allocation and support for temporary devices, are being rolled out, there is an explosion of activity from enterprises seeking their own MPN systems.
Whilst the dominant players so far have been the NEPs, with 5G, there is potential for new entrants, thanks to the larger addressable market and the growing number of interesting use cases businesses are finding for mobile private networks.
As demonstrated by Darren Westmore’s examples from Three’s deployments at Heathrow and Felixstowe, airports and seaports serving multiple end-user types, such as employees, IoT devices and passengers, provide a great insight into what makes a compelling business case. This template can be applied to all sorts of private networks, running in schools & colleges, manufacturing centres, hospitals, and entertainment venues.
Read Telecoms Tracker’s full report, “The 5G Growth Opportunity in Mobile Private Networks” here.