While 5G has been evolving over the years and has seen huge investments from telcos, the adoption of enterprise 5G has still been lagging. Barriers towards this adoption include the gap in awareness about enterprise 5G’s benefits, its value equation, and its implementation. This is evident in the struggle of telcos to monetize 5G, despite investing $1 trillion in network upgrades since 2018.
This is where network application programming interfaces (APIs) come in, with the promise of extracting value from this 5G infrastructure. This area of network applications opens up many possibilities for revenue streams in 5G such as real-time immersive video, edge computing, metaverse engagements, managing autonomous vehicles, and many others.
What is a Network API?
Any application programming interface (API) is a set of tools that allows applications to communicate with other apps, devices, or networks. A network API allows developers to write applications that can utilize the networks functions without needing an in-depth understanding of its technical aspects.
For example, a network API can allow applications to:
Access Real-time Data:
Obtain location information, manage bandwidth, or monitor network performance.
Enhance Functionality:
Enable features like call handling, SMS, video conferencing, or secure connections.
Automate Processes:
Manage network configurations, implement quality-of-service rules, or optimize traffic routing.
In fact, of the applications that we use daily such as messaging apps, email clients, and web browsers all leverage these APIs for network connectivity. Let us get an idea of how these APIs are being used today:
Network Configuration:
Automating the setup of VLANs, routing tables, or firewall rules.
Performance Monitoring:
Gathering metrics like latency, packet loss, or bandwidth usage.
Security:
Automating threat detection, logging, and remediation processes.
Cloud Networking:
Managing virtual networks, load balancers, and connections between on-premises and cloud environments.
Unlocking 5G Monetization through Network API
Let us understand the current state of 5G, its adoption and value proposition. As discussed earlier, communication service providers (CSPs) have invested heavily into 5G infrastructure. However, the traditional communication services they provide have limited growth and revenue generation. Basic connectivity services such as calls, texts, and internet have become commoditized, making it difficult to extract value from them.
While 5G is capable of ultra-low latency and higher bandwidth applications, this potential has remained unrealized to an extent. Hence extracting more value out of 5G will allow CSPs to explore new revenue streams and tap into growth. Closer integration between networks and app ecosystems will lead to seamless experiences and new innovations.
Some of these innovations will tap into new-age fields like remote operations, autonomous drones and vehicles, and augmented reality. Additionally, these APIs are also opening doors for CSPs to try new business models such as Communication platform as a service (CPaaS).
Communication platform as a service (CPaaS) – The First Step
CPaaS models allow businesses to integrate real-time communication through voice, messaging, or video into their applications. Networking APIs focus on the lower level aspects of the network, while CPaaS can be seen as the application layer built on top of these APIs. An example of this functionality in action is how Uber enables users to contact drivers directly within the app. Another example is how e-commerce platforms like Amazon send real-time messages to customers about their dispatch status.
While these services do make a case for network API, they still represent initial steps for this concept. They still limit the revenue potential of CSPs as they’re still restricted to voice and messaging. So while CPaaS is a step in the right direction, it must expose more capabilities to support the advanced use cases discussed above.
The Value Roadmap for Network API
Today, 5G is seen as a commoditized offering, bringing the promise of enhanced connectivity. It is this vague definition of what “enhanced” connectivity is, which is diluting the value proposition of 5G services. Networking APIs hold the potential to solve real-world challenges for users, enabling telcos to deliver value through subscriptions, services, and applications.
Today this area is in a nascent phase, meaning that telcos are working towards establishing the supply and demand that will unlock future 5G monetization. A major challenge that telcos are looking to tackle is one of interoperability. As it is necessary to bring scalability, an array of networking APIs is needed to gain buy-in from developers and enterprises.
Certain efforts are underway to gain momentum and seek collaboration between the telcos. CAMARA is an open-source project initiated by GSMA and the Linux Foundation, to standardize network APIs. Open Gateway is another such initiative by GSMA, and aims to determine the most viable APIs and push them forward.
Use Cases of Networking APIs
Lets understand how businesses and developers can use these APIs.
Transforming Operations For Businesses
Personalized Marketing: By analysing user behaviour, location, and preferences in real-time, these APIs will allow developers to run highly targeted and personalized campaigns. These can take the form of dynamic offers based on location, or customer segmentation through usage patterns.
Proactive Customer Support: A network API can achieve this through a combination of real-time communication and predictive analytics. As these APIs can monitor the network in real-time, they can notify the concerned parties before the issues escalate. Use cases also include automated assistance and the delivery of contextual information to the appropriate support agents.
Intelligent Resource Allocation: Networking APIs also allow telcos to optimize resource usage dynamically, using techniques like SIM density analysis. This give them the insights to lower their energy consumption, through optimizations in load balancing, bandwidth management, etc.
Enhancing Innovation for Developers
Location-based Services: These APIs provide access to high-precision geospatial data, opening up routing and positioning use cases in complex environments. These will enable the delivery of services that use geotagging and navigation.
Insights into Device and App Performance: This allows for dynamic adjustment of app performance based on the device status and user activity.
Dynamic Content Delivery: Applications can be designed to respond in real-time to network traffic changes and congestion, ensuring lower latency and an improved user experience.
Fraud Prevention: APIs for SIM swap detection allow developers to identify and mitigate fraudulent activities such as identity theft and account takeovers. This helps them in protecting their assets and maintaining user trust.
Empowering Ecosystems: How Telcos Can Lead with Network API
We have discussed a lot of ideas in this blog that can unlock value from 5G for telecommunication players. Early implementations of this area are already being seen in remote system maintenance and remote surgical applications. Next, the focus will be on areas such as fraud prevention and location-based services, as they are relatively easy to implement. SIM swap will prove beneficial in industries such as banking, insurance, and fintech. Location verification will prove useful in logistics and delivery, whereas number verification will improve authentication for social media.
These applications will drive the adoption of networking APIs, opening the door to futuristic implementations in edge computing, autonomous vehicles, and remote operations. However, to realize all this potential, telcos will have to create the market with standardized, interoperable APIs that can enable real-time communication and insights. As mobile hardware evolves, the need for highly programmable, low complexity solutions will become apparent. Investment in networking APIs has the potential to monetize 5G through the possibilities that it opens.
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