Modernizing Telephony Infrastructure in 2024: Why It Is Essential for Operators

June 13, 2024 · 6 min to read

Telecom operators offer various services, with telephony being one of the core offerings. As technology advances and customer expectations evolve, continuous modernization of the telephony infrastructure is inevitable. In this article, we’ll try to explore the necessity of modernization, the domains of improvement, and how partnering with a professional vendor can facilitate this transformation.

The Need for Modernization

In the beginning, it’s crucial to understand why modernization matters. A clear understanding of this topic will help you define what exactly you should improve with your infrastructure. Let’s consider the most important reasons for this process:

Strengthen security. Cyber threats don’t disappear, and hackers always search for vulnerabilities in existing phone systems. Without regular updates and modernization, there’s a massive risk that outdated infrastructure will be hacked soon. So, constant modernizing is essential to protect sensitive data and maintain customer trust.
Enhance automation. As usual, the newer the infrastructure, the better its capability to automate various tasks. For instance, telecom operators can optimize different processes, such as billing, and reduce the need for manual work.
Extend the amortization period. Updating infrastructure can delay the need for costly replacements, maximizing the ROI. Suppose a telecom operator decides to ignore modernization. In that case, they’ll face a situation when the infrastructure is completely outdated, and the only way to solve the problem is to build everything nearly from scratch.

In other words, modernizing your telephony infrastructure isn't just a beneficial option to enhance your service quality; it's a necessary step. Ignoring this need puts you at risk of being unable to launch new in-demand services, potentially leading to the obsolescence and end of support for your offerings. Continuous infrastructure modernization should be a core strategy for telecom operators to stay competitive.

Areas of Modernizing Telephony Infrastructure

When modernizing infrastructure, several key areas should be considered. Ideally, you should focus on each domain to gradually update your infrastructure from all angles. Let's explore the most crucial aspects of modernization.

Network Transformation

Networks need to be modernized to support future technologies. A contemporary network seamlessly integrates different components of the digital core and other cutting-edge technologies. We’ll examine two options every telecom operator has for replacing outdated network switches.

For example, it’s possible to implement network function virtualization (NFV) technologies that integrate software with existing legacy systems. It allows operators to use standard server hardware to perform functions previously deployed in specialized equipment. Though this provides immediate benefits, telecom operators still encounter scalability challenges and the ongoing need for manual maintenance updates.

You can also consider cloud-based solutions. These offer your network all the advantages of the cloud — such as scalability, unmatched service agility, and sustainable margins — and are suitable for any telecom operator. Cloud solutions offer high flexibility in delivering new services, enabling quick adaptation to market changes and customer demands.

Cybersecurity

According to Infopulse, telecom companies face an average of 104,000 cyber-attacks annually, about three times higher than in other sectors. To prevent security threats, consider the following steps:

Leverage machine learning for continuous, real-time network monitoring to identify and respond to suspicious activities and analyze these threats to establish a predictive security posture.
Conduct security architecture reviews by third-party specialists to evaluate all security layers across infrastructure, applications, workflows, and personnel.

New Services

Modernizing only networks and cybersecurity isn’t enough. As basic telephony becomes a commodity, telecom operators should expand their offerings beyond basic connectivity to advise subscribers on maximizing the benefits of their connected services.

For instance, operators can introduce a cloud PBX service with sought-after features like call recording, call history and statistics, call whispering, CRM integrations, and more. The practice has shown that B2B customers value these offerings and are willing to pay for the enhanced functionality. Along with network modernization and cybersecurity improvements, services like a cloud PBX can help telecom operators stay competitive for years.

Become a partner

With Digital Tide, you can launch in-demand voice services and ensure that your telephony infrastructure is always modernized in a timely manner.

How Can a Platform Solution Help You With the Modernization?

Telecom operators often work with various vendors that offer different telecom solutions. While this approach has advantages, it needs more flexibility and involves multiple costly contracts. Operators must modernize their telephony infrastructure without making significant investments.

A better solution is partnering with a professional vendor that provides a flexible, carrier-grade platform. Such a platform enables the quick launch of multiple telecom services without requiring substantial upfront investments. In this regard, Digital Tide is a superior choice, enabling operators to roll out a white-label cloud PBX, CPaaS, and other voice services. The benefits we provide include:

Quick launch of new services. With Digital Tide, you can roll out different voice services with in-demand features in a brief time. As customer needs constantly change, our platform ensures you can deliver up-to-date functionality. While your competitors are still developing new services from scratch, you'll be ahead of the game, attracting their subscribers.
Easy scalability. You can connect as many subscribers as possible, and your voice services won’t quit operating. Digital Tide has the necessary resources to help partners grow their subscriber base without obstacles. Our reliability level is 0.99994, meaning only 30 minutes of downtime per year due to network infrastructure failure.
Technical maintenance. Continuous technical support ensures that your service features work well. Our technical support specialists are always online, so you and your subscribers can ask questions about services anytime.
Regular updates. You won't have to worry about your telecom services becoming outdated. Our product managers continuously research the market to identify and address current challenges with in-demand functionality.
Revenue sharing model. There's no need for huge initial investments in an unknown service. Our team helps you launch the service, and we operate on a revenue-sharing model, where you share the profits with us 50/50 once you start earning.

In other words, choosing Digital Tide will help you modernize the telephony infrastructure and find new ways to stay competitive in the telecom market. With our platform, you can create new revenue streams and stay ahead.

Conclusion

Modernizing telephony infrastructure is no longer optional but a necessity for telecom operators. Without it, staying competitive and meeting customer expectations are nearly impossible. You should pay attention to the following key areas of modernization: launching new in-demand services, network transformation, and cybersecurity.

As for in-demand services, you can partner with a professional vendor like Digital Tide to mitigate modernization risks. This approach will help you impact modernization, attract new subscribers, and reduce churn.

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CEO

Alexey Belyakov