Well, we all know what 5G is bringing to the table in terms of speed, connectivity and use experience. We are talking about more and more connected devices, smart houses, remote surgery, smart manufacturing and much more. The possibilities are too many. 5G will chart a different and important journey for the CSPs and network slicing is an important element of this journey. Network slicing is a network architecture that allows multiple virtual networks to be created on top of a commonly shared physical infrastructure. In the hyper connected world, every service requires different levels of network bandwidth, speed or latency. With network slicing, you can divide the network into multiple slices which can function as an isolated end-to-end network that is tailored to match the exact requirements of the application running on it. Operators can set Service Level Agreements (SLAs) on a per-slice basis to guarantee the highest Quality of Service (QoS) to their customers.
Network slicing offers benefits to both the operators and its customers. As each slice is managed and orchestrated autonomously, it offers greater network flexibility by optimizing both efficiency and resource allocation. Operator can maximize the network resources and reduce network congestion. The end consumers will enjoy a seamless experience due to the improved quality of service.
An Opportunity with Challenges
While network slicing is set to create an exciting opportunity for telecom operators, there are several challenges that need attention particularly where 5G monetization is concerned. As we have seen, running an efficient 5GG ecosystem will require systems or solutions that are agile, scalable and open source that can adapt according to the changing market needs and operator requirements. Simply upgrading the existing legacy monetization system is going to be costly and may not result in the required agility and flexibility required.
Monetization with Efficient Network Slicing
5G will bring in many unusual use cases as CSPs goes ahead with their offering. The future monetization platform needs to be agile and configurable to meet the dynamic requirements of network slicing. When planning their monetization strategy, CSPs need to consider network slicing as per the requirement of the customer and how it is going to evolve from capacity-based slices to service-driven slices and ultimately to application- driven slices.
5G will create new and exciting opportunities for CSPs and with network slicing it will improve the QoS delivered to customers. But they need to rethink on the network monetization and creating new revenue streams. This will require a new approach and moving away from legacy system towards a more agile and dynamic solution that can support the enterprise customer demands.
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