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Bold moves shape Asia-Pacific’s telecom future
3-MINUTE READ
February 4, 2025
Room for growth in consumer and enterprise markets driven by cloud and 5G
The APAC region presents significant growth potential in the B2C market, driven by increasing mobile subscriber penetration and rising demand for digital services. The market is projected to continue to expand, with substantial untapped opportunities across India, Indonesia, Cambodia, and parts of China. Beyond traditional B2C, consumer demand for digital services like mobile payments, smart home solutions, and e-health and wellness are rapidly emerging.
B2B is also an important growth market for operators around the world. While in North America and Europe, telecom operators are pressed to explore new revenue streams due to their saturated consumer markets Asia Pacific region presents a different landscape. In Asia Pacific region, from India to Indonesia, and Cambodia to parts of China in addition to the untapped potential of the B2C market that the countries continue to explore, local telecom companies have also made significant inroads into the enterprise market, establishing a robust presence (compound annual growth rate of 5.2% between 2019 and 2025 according to GlobalData). The region is also seeing a growing need for IC&T services demand by SMBs fueled by Cloud & Cybersecurity.
The Asia-Pacific market is growing at
5.2%
CAGR between 2019 and 2025 (GlobalData). These telcos have achieved robust enterprise growth by investing in technology and diversifying their offerings.
Much of the Asia Pacific telecom operators' success can be attributed to their early and effective monetization of 5G technology. Since the initial rollouts in 2019, the region has seen innovative use cases such as SK Telecom's 5G-powered smart factories, NTT Docomo's forays into autonomous driving, and AIS's groundbreaking application of 5G in robotic healthcare in Thailand. Countries like Japan, Australia, and South Korea are expanding their electronics and semiconductor sectors, while nations such as India and Indonesia are leveraging digital transformation and green energy initiatives to drive growth. These trends underscore the region's strong focus on technology-driven expansion and infrastructure investments as key economic drivers.
In addition to these private sector advancements, regional operators have established a strong presence in the public sector. They have capitalized on the competitive environment to secure leading positions in growing market segments.
A standout example of this strategic approach is the collaboration between Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison Group and Accenture. Through its subsidiary Lintasarta, the group is expediting the development of Indonesia's sovereign AI cloud platform. Utilizing our AI Refinery™ platform, this partnership aims to create advanced AI solutions tailored to various industries, with an initial focus on financial services. The goal is to boost profitability, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth for Indonesian banks, while also driving the nation's broader digital transformation.
By ensuring data security and fostering innovation, this effort contributes to Indonesia's economic resilience and technological empowerment. Several things help explain the innovative changes we're seeing in the Asia-Pacific region. The competitive markets and local rules play a big part. Also, national goals to speed up tech-based innovation in many areas lead to better teamwork between the government and private companies. This puts some of the region’s telecom companies in a great spot, where they can help shape rules and act as important partners for international tech and platform companies.
But these reasons alone don’t fully explain why the Asia-Pacific region’s telecom operators are leading the way in global business and tech innovation. They also don’t explain why the TM Forum chose to put its Innovation Hub in Mumbai where big telecom players like Deutsche Telekom, Telenor, Vodafone, Orange, Google Cloud, Microsoft, and Jio have joined forces, just like we did to work on solutions like cloud-native software to replace old systems and ways to fight fraud.
The region’s telecom leaders are simply more open to new ideas and have a strong drive to succeed. Some are more willing to think outside the box. For example, Globe Telecoms in the Philippines hired a former consumer goods executive, Carl Raymond Cruz, as its next chairman. Cruz has a lot of experience from working at Unilever in Africa, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines, showing a new and creative way to lead.
But beyond leadership changes, the region’s unique conglomerate structure significantly influences the telecommunications landscape. Operators like Globe in the Philippines, PLDT, and True Corporation in Thailand, as part of larger conglomerates, can cross-leverage investments in citizen services. This enables them to integrate deeply into customers’ digital lives, fostering innovation and creating interconnected digital ecosystems.
Asia-Pacific telcos are thriving by embracing bold partnerships and technology-driven innovation.
Mathangi Sandilya / Managing Director – Technology, Communications, Media & Technology Lead
Telecom companies in the region must handle costs differently. In places where hiring cheaper labour isn't an option, outsourcing isn't as helpful. This means companies must find other ways to cut costs within their own operations. Using technology can be a big help here. It can make things simpler and more flexible, which saves money in the long run.
The region’s telcos are also bolder when it comes to joint ventures or acquisitions and partnerships. Australian operator Telstra, for example, has made nine acquisitions in healthcare since 2013. Its healthcare expertise has come almost exclusively from these acquisitions. Another example is the partnership between Singtel and Netflix in Singapore. Singtel offers exclusive Netflix packages to its subscribers, providing them with seamless access to popular streaming content. This collaboration has helped Singtel differentiate itself in the market and increase its customer base.
In Japan, ARISE analytics, a data analytics company that was born in 2017 as a joint venture between KDDI and Accenture supports corporate data-driven management, while NTT Digital unveils a vision for the future of digital wallets: creating a unified ecosystem, Universal Wallet Infrastructure can unlock the potential of agentic AI and enable businesses to deliver hyper-personalized, privacy-preserving experiences, paving the way for a user-centric digital future.
What the future holds for the region
Asia-Pacific telcos are at the forefront of embracing technological innovation and diversifying their offerings to stay competitive. With opportunities in cloud computing, IoT, e-commerce, digital payments, and more, telcos must continue to explore new technologies while focusing on customer experience and cybersecurity.
As B2B customers continue to seek comprehensive solutions that combine various technologies and services. Telcos will need to partner with other businesses to offer these and specialize in new, different verticals (telcos like Singtel are launching private 5G networks for enterprise customers in industries such as healthcare, manufacturing, and logistics).
To fully leverage these growth areas, telcos must invest in robust networks that can support increased traffic from cloud computing and B2B2X activities. They also need to invest in data analytics tools to better understand customer behaviour and preferences, especially with today’s markets high levels of pre-paid customers. This is where Artificial Intelligence (AI) is also expected to transform the sector, helping telcos understand individual customer needs, improve customer satisfaction, and create upsell and advocacy opportunities.
The Asia-Pacific region has emerged as a global leader in telecommunications, driving innovation and setting new industry standards. By embracing emerging technologies like 5G, AI, and cloud computing, regional telcos have successfully expanded their service offerings and captured new market opportunities. As the region continues to evolve, telcos must prioritize customer experience, invest in network infrastructure, and forge strategic partnerships to maintain their competitive edge. By doing so, they can unlock the full potential of the digital age and shape the future of telecommunications.