Mobile operators need radical change for 4th industrial revolution

Glenn Lurie, CEO, and president of Synchronoss said it is imperative that mobile operators undergo significant and radical change to take advantage of the prospects presented by the 4th industrial revolution

The CEO, during the Fourth Industrial Revolution keynote at the ongoing MWC2018 in Barcelonia, stated that “Operators must expand, innovate, federate and experience in order to survive and prosper from this upheaval. They should embrace it.”

“Expansion means grasping the smart city/connected car concept. It’s the next great thing, and a huge opportunity for operators,” added Lurie. “Innovation focuses on the speeds possible from 5G – this being the first time operators can capitalise on the fact that this generation is the first to centre on the use case where everything is connected.”

Lurie conceded that federation might draw the attention of regulators, but stressed that operators must start working together, with messaging being an obvious starting point. “Experience is all about which industry delivers the connected life. “It’s all about the home, city, car, etc. – and the operators are in the best place to enable and profit from owning this ecosystem.”

Summing up, Lurie urged operators to fight for the right to make a fair return on investment. “The consumer is the focus for many industries and operators need to be proactive to gain a meaningful foothold and ultimately win the fight for the customer.”

Also speaking at the keynote was Sue Siegel, chief innovation officer for GE. She urged companies to understand what part of the value chain they own and get to build partnerships in new ecosystems.

“Innovation is all about invention and disruption is becoming more acceptable. The pace of change is accelerating and we’re bringing in new talent from the gig economy to help us adapt to this new model.”