2023telecom

industryoutlook

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2023telecomindustryoutlook

Contents

Thebundlebattle:Addmorevalueforcost-consciousconsumers4

Fixedwirelessaccesssurges,butwillitendure?5

Whatenterpriseswantfrom5Gedge7

Jointventuresacceleratedeploymentoffibernetworks9

Increasethefocusonsustainability10

Signpostsforthefuture12

AboutDeloitte’soutlooks

Deloitte’s2023telecomindustryoutlookseekstoidentifythestrategicissuesthattelecomorganizationsshouldconsiderinthecomingyear,includingtheirimpacts,keyactionstotake,andcriticalquestionstoask.Thegoalistohelpequiptelecommunicationorganizationswiththeinformationneededtopositionthemselvesforastrong,resilientfuture.

2023telecomindustryoutlook

Executivesummary

Demandforconnectivitycontinuestogrow,bringingbothopportunitiesandchallengesforcommunicationsserviceproviders(CSPs).Inthisyear’stelecomoutlook,weexplorehowCSPsaredeliveringvaluetoconsumerandenterprisecustomerswithbundledservicesandconnectivityoptionslike5Gfixedwirelessaccess(FWA)andfiber,aswellastheirroleinmeetingthegrowingdemandforedgecomputing.We’llalsoconsiderhowCSPsmaywanttobalancepricingdecisionswiththeneedtoacceleratedeploymentofinfrastructurelikefibernetworkswhileattendingtothegrowingurgencytoreduceresources,waste,andemissionsfromnetworkoperations,upgrades,anddeployments.Asconnectivityworksitswayintomoreoftheworld,itmaybemoreimperativethanevertobalancecostswiththeneedsofhouseholds,businesses,communities,andtheenvironment.

Forindividualsandfamilies,connectivityisimportant.Manyrelyonitforinformation,entertainment,and

meaning.1

Manynowrequireitforeducation,employment,andhealthcare.Yet,consumersoftenhavecostconstraintsthatcanlimittheiroptionsordrivethemtoseekthebestserviceatthelowestprice.ThisfactorcanpresentachallengeforCSPsthatneedprofitstodrivegrowthandreinvestintheirbusinesses.Tooffermorevaluetoconsumers,manyCSPsarebundlingmobileandhomeinternetaccess,offeringconnectivityoptionslikefiberand5GFWA,andpartneringwithentertainmentservicestoincludesubsidizedorfreesubscriptions.Aswe’llsee,bundles—withtheriskofdilutedrevenues—shouldbecarefullyconsidered.

Aspartofthis“bundlebattle,”5GFWAhasenjoyedsubstantialgrowth.Thistypeofconnectivitycanprovidestrongreliability,butsomequestionsremainabouthowmuchitcanscale.Asmorepeopleuse5Gservices,andifmorebandwidth-intensive“killerapps”emerge,thelimitsof5GFWAcouldbeexposed.However,marketdynamicsandnext-gentechnologysolutionscouldovercomethesechallenges.

Forenterprisecustomers,theneedtocutcosts,automatecapabilities,andsupportinnovationisdrivinginterestandadoptionofedgecomputing.Deloittehasintervieweddecision-makersfromacrossindustriestounderstandwhatcapabilitiesthey’reunlockingwithedgecomputingandtheproviderstheylooktoforsupport.Companiesusingedgecomputingshowwhat’sworking;wheretheyneedmorehelp;andwhomtheyturntoforlocalareanetworks,servicelayers,andintegratedcloud-to-edgebusinesssolutions.ThekeytakeawayisthatCSPswilllikelyneedpartnerstodevelopanddeployedgesolutions,requiringmorecooperationwitherstwhilecompetitors.

Manyoftheconnectivitysolutionswecoverrelyonfibernetworks.Withhighdemand,strongcompetition,andtheneedtooptimizecostsandrisk,moreCSPsarepartneringwithprivateinvestorstoacceleratedeploymentoffibernetworks.

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Thesepartnershipscanbemutuallybeneficial—andreinforcedwithgovernmentfundingthatcanfurtherincentivizebuild-out.

Indoingso,thesepartnershipscansupportexistingcustomerswhileextendingfurtherintounderservedcommunities,helpingtonarrowthedigitaldivide—thegapbetweenthosewhohaveaccesstomoderninformationandcommunicationtechnologiesandthosewhodon’t.Thisaspecttugsatthebroadereconomicimperativeofconnectivity:morebandwidth,moreequallydistributed,enablinggreateraccesstoeducationandopportunity.

Asclimatecrisesmount,aloomingquestionishowtoreducewasteandemissionsfromsomuchinfrastructure,itsoperations,andsupplychains.ForCSPs,loweringtheirownenergyusage,increasingcleanenergypurchases,andhelpingtheirsuppliersdeveloptheirownnet-zeroroadmapscanhelpmitigateemissionsandavoidreputationaldamagewhenmorepeopleareweighingthelargercostsofeconomicgrowth.

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2023telecomindustryoutlook

Thebundlebattle:Addmorevalueforcost-consciousconsumers

TheideaofCSPsofferingproductandservicebundlesisnothingnew:IntheUnitedStatesandCanada,3Gand4Gwirelessservicesreachedrapidadoptionbybundlingmonthlyconnectionserviceswithnewsmartphonecontracts.Overtime,CSPshaveofferedallkindsofbundles,rangingfromdeviceandservicebundlestocontentbundles,cloud,andgamingservices,andsmarthomeproductofferingsrangingfromsecuritytomanagedWi-Fi.

Somecompaniesthathavelotsoffixedconnectionsbutnofacilities-basedmobileoffering(mainlycablecompanies)arepartneringtobeabletoprovideboth.Atthesametime,somecompanieswithlotsofmobileconnectionsbutno(ornotenough)fixedconnections(mainlywirelesstelcos)areusingnewbusinessmodelsandtechnologytooffertheirownbundles.

In2023andbeyondtheremaybeampleroomtogrowfixed-mobileconvergencebundlesintheUnitedStates:Onlyabout8%ofconsumersintheUnitedStatessubscribedtoaconvergedservicein2022.

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Further,recentresearchshowsthateveryadditionalserviceaddedtoabundleincreasescustomersatisfaction.Asingleserviceresultedinhavingaslightlynegativenetpromoterscore(NPS)of-10,butasingleadditionalvalue-addedserviceincreasedNPSto+20,andaddinganothertwoservicesbroughtitto+40.BundleswithfiveormoreservicesseeanNPSof+60,likelyhavinganimpactoncustomerretentionandreducingcustomeracquisitioncostthroughwordofmouth.

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Deloitte’s2022ConnectivityandMobileTrendssurveyfoundthatUSconsumersarestronglyinterestedinbundles,with68%ofthosewhowerenotcurrentlyonamobileandhomeinternetbundlesayingtheywouldconsiderit.

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Forthosewhocurrentlybundlemobileandhomeinternet,costisnotthemaindriver:Oftherespondentswhosaidtheyhadamobileandhomeinternetbundle,almosthalf(45%)saidthatoneoftheirtoptworeasonsforhavingthebundlewasbillingconvenience,wellaheadofthe38%whomentionedlowerprice.However,forthosewhodon’tyethaveabundle,45%saidlowerpricewasatopmainreasontheywouldswitch,withonly22%citingmoreconvenientbillingasthe

inducement.6

Amongthosewhowouldnotconsiderbundlingtheirmobileandhomeinternet,29%saidtheydidn’tthinkbundlingwouldlowertheircosts,and28%saidtheyfeeltheygetbetterservicesthroughseparateproviders.Towinthesecustomers,CSPsshouldshowtheirbundlesoffersubstantialcostsavingswithoutsacrificingspeedandcoverage.Finally,fromthesamesurvey,nooneprovidercategorydominated:Although41%ofthoseconsideringabundlesaidthey’dprefertogetitfromtheirhomeinternetprovider,32%saidtheyoptfortheirmobileserviceprovider,and27%hadno

preference.7

Historically,cablebroadbandprovidersintheUnitedStateshavebeenfacilities-based,go-it-alonenetworkprovidersfordeliveringbroadbandandcablesignalsoverawirelineinfrastructure.ButtheyareincreasinglypartneringwithwirelessprovidersandbecomingMobileVirtualNetworkOperators(MVNOs).MVNOshavebeenaroundfordecades,butrecentgrowth—drivenlargelybycablecompanyofferings—hasbroughtthemtoanewlevelintheUnitedStates,withMVNOsaccountingfor31%ofallpost-paidnetwirelessadditionsinQ32022,upfrom25%in2021,andthetwolargestcablecompaniesnowhavemorethan10millionmobilecustomers.

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Meanwhile,5Gtechnology,especiallyinmid-band,hastakenFWAtoanewlevel.FWAat4Gcapturedarelativelyminorshareofbroadbandconnectivitypriorto2020,but5GFWAhasbeenrapidlycapturingbroadbandsharesincethenandrepresented90%ofallbroadbandnetaddsin2022.FWAnetaddsfromthetwolargestproviderswere3.17millionnewsubs,upfrom0.73millionin2021andcomparedtoonly350,000netaddsfromthelargestwireline

providers.9

MVNOsandFWAareimportantnewpartsofthebundleboom,butthenextbigdriverofgrowthcouldbevideocontent.Video-on-demand(VOD)streamingrevenues,eithersubscription,adsupported,orahybrid,arelikelytobeover$30billionintheUnitedStatesin

2023.10

Videorepresentsabout65%ofnetworktrafficgloballyin2022,andmanyofthebiggestconsumersofbandwidtharetheVOD

providers.11

ManyCSPsalreadyofferbundlesthatincludeVODservicesbutmaywishtocaptureaddedrevenueandprofitsandperhapsevenshareinsomeoftheadvertisingdollars,asthead-supportedpartofthemarketispredictedtogrowintheUS

market.12

CarriershaveexploredopportunitiesforrevenuegrowthinthepastbeyondbundlingVODservices(i.e.,revenuesharingoradrevenue).GiventheheadwindsintheVODmarkettoday,withslowergrowth,higherchurn,andrisingcontentcosts,theremaybenewopportunitiesforVODprovidersandCSPstopartner.

StrategicquestionsforCSPstoconsider:

.HasFWApasseditspeak,orareweseeingthestartof

somethingevenbigger?

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.Bybundling,areCSPstradingoffsubscribernumbersandrevenuesforprofits?ThepricingofmobileservicebycablecompaniesandFWAbywirelesscompanieshasbeenaggressive;doesitneedtocontinuetobeaggressivetoattractnewbundlebuyers?

.IsbundlingsomethingCSPsmustdotomaintaincompetitiveparity?Howcanbundlesbemoreeffectiveinattractingandretainingsubscribers?

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2023telecomindustryoutlook

Fixedwirelessaccesssurges,

butwillitendure?

FWAtechnologysurgedintheUnitedStatesin2022andon5G,with90%ofbroadbandnetaddsamongthelargestproviderscomingfrom

FWA.14

ButinQ4,numbersslowed,leadingsometoaskifFWAintheUnitedStatesisgoingtosustainquitethathighapace.Isprovidingbroadbandover5Gsustainableintermsofperformance(comparedtowiredalternativessuchasfiberopticorDataOverCableServiceInterfaceSpecification[DOCSIS]),andisitsustainableintermsoftheeconomics,orisitonlyaneconomicallyviablesolutionintheearlydaysofthe5Grollout?

Mobilenetworkoperators(MNOs)intheUnitedStateshavespentcollectivelymorethan$100billiononspectrumandnetworkstobuildout

5G.15

Althoughconsumersareembracing5Gspeeds,theylargelyaren’tpayingforit.Enterpriseusecasessuchasprivate

5Gnetworkslooklikeaninterestingopportunityovertimebutmaytakeyearsbeyond2023tomaterialize.Other5Gapplications,suchasgaminginthecloud,ubiquitousVRgoggles,orthemetaverse,arealsointerestingbutlongerterm.Ifhistoryisapredictor,theyarelikelytofavorappanddevicecompaniesratherthanCSPs.Fornow,FWAappearstobethelargestsourceofincrementalconsumer5Grevenue,bothintheUnitedStatesandglobally.

ThetwolargestMNOsofferingFWAaddedalmost4millionFWAsubscribersintheUnitedStatesin2021and

2022.16

That’sonly3.6%oftheroughly110millionUSbroadband

subscribers,17

suggestingthatthere’splentyofroomforgrowth—afterall,inFinland,30%ofconsumersaccesstheinternetvia

FWA.18

Asof2021,15%ofAmericansdidnothavebroadbandathomebutreliedontheirsmartphones

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Thatsaid,Q42022FWAnetaddsandprojectedH12023netaddssuggestaflatteningingrowth:ManyAmericanswilllikelysubscribetoFWAin2023,butthenumbermaybeaboutthesameasin2022.ButarethereanyreasonstothinkthatFWAcoulddecline?Coulditbecometheeight-tracktapeofhomebroadband,wildlypopularforawhilebutsoonabandoned?

Thefirstconcernisaroundperformance.Although90%ofcurrentFWAusersintheUnitedStatessaytheirbroadbandisatleast“goodenough,”

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willthatchangesoon?

In2023,thatlooksunlikely.AccordingtoaNovember2022analysisbyOpensignal,in25USmarketsandacrosssixindicatorsofperformance,FWAserviceswerecharacterizedas“typicallymiddleofthepack”comparedtocableandtelcowirelinealternatives,andminimumdownloadspeeds(evenatpeaktimes)wereconsistently50—80Mbps.

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AlthoughthereareUSservicesthatofferhigherpeak-timedatarates,therearefewconsumerapplications(asidefromlittle-used4Kand8Kvideostreaming)thatrequiremorethan10Mbpsspeeds,suggestingthatevenmultiple-userhouseholdswillfindFWAspeedsgoodenoughfor2023.

Butwhataboutlongerterm?First,therearefewsignsthatconsumersareshiftingfromHDto4Kand8Kanytimesoon:asanexample,8KTVswereonly0.15%ofglobalTVsetsalesin2021andevenby2026arepredictedtohaveaninstalledbaseofonly2.5millionhouseholds.

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Second,although5GFWAatpresentisslowerthancableorfibersolutions,itisalsoamuchyoungertechnology.Itislikelytoimproveandhaveastrongperformancetrajectoryoverthenextfewyears,keepingitalegitimatealternative.Finally,asmoreandmore5GFWAtransitionsfrommid-bandfrequenciestommWavebands,speedsshouldrisemuchfasterandcouldevenbecompetitivewithcableorfiber.Already,althoughinlimiteddeployment,real-worldspeedsof1–1.6Gbpsarebeingseenat26,28,and39Mhz.

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2023telecomindustryoutlook

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Thesecondconcernaboutthesustainabilityof5GFWAistheeconomicsdictatedbyspectrumavailability.Intheearlydaysof5G,withrelativelyfewmobileuserson5Gattheaverage$50–$55postpaidmonthlyaveragerevenueperuser(ARPU)intheUnitedStates,itmakesalotofsenseforMNOstofillupunusedcapacitywith$20–$30monthlyARPUFWAcustomers,especiallythosewhoarebundlingwithmobileservice.Butastherelativelyscarcemid-bandspectrumbeginstofillupwithmobileusers,isFWAstillsustainable?ThisquestionwasprominentlyfeaturedatMWC2023inBarcelona,withoneanalystcautioningthat“operatorsoughttobethinkingincrediblycarefullyaboutwhattodowithcapacity”andwarningthattheycouldseeanissueinfiveto10years’time.

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Ingoodnews,MNOsarelikelytosolvethiscapacitycrunchviatechnologicaladvancement.Althoughalmostallcurrent5G

FWAsubscribersareonmid-bandfrequencies,overtimeMNOsshouldbeabletotakeadvantageofimprovementsto5Gspectralefficienciesevenatthosebands.CarrieraggregationandWi-Fioffloadcouldbedeployedtoenhanceperformanceandsharetrafficwithothernetworksorpartsofthespectrum.Perhapsmostimportantly,MNOscouldshiftmanyofthecurrentuserstommWavebandswiththeirverywidechannelsandcapacity(500–800MHz).

StrategicquestionsforMNOstoconsider:

.WillMNOsbeabletomovesignificant

numbersofcurrentmid-band5G

FWAuserstommWaveovertime?

.Willconsumersfindakillerappthat

needs50–100Mbpsperstream

downloadandexceedsthenear-term

abilityofnon-mmWave5Gtoprovide?

Howwilluploadrequirements

changeforconsumers?WillFWA

meetthoseneeds?

.Wasthesurgein5GFWAin2021

and2022aspikeresultingfrom

harvestinglow-hanging-fruit

subscribersincertainareaswith

therightdensities?Orwill5GFWA

beabletokeepadding2millionto4

millionsubsperyearinthefuture?

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2023telecomindustryoutlook

Whatenterpriseswant

from5Gedge

Edgecomputingisamultibillion-dollarmarketgrowingatmorethan20%annually,andCSPs,hyperscalers,andequipmentcompaniesareallbattlingforshare.

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Itisimportantforenterprisesinterestedinreducinglatency,improvingperformance,reducingcosts,andgreatercontrolovertheirdata.

TobetterunderstandhowCSPscancompeteintheenterpriseedgecomputingmarket,inlate2022Deloitteinterviewed13decision-makersfromenterprisesacrossarangeofindustriesthatareimplementingortestingedgecomputing.Allcompanieshaveatleast$500millioninannualrevenue,andmostweremorethan$5billion.

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Whilethetechnologiesenablingenterpriseedgecomputing—suchas5Gconnectivity,compactandpowerfulservers,andnewprocessors—areinnovative,manydecision-makersseeedgecomputingasanextensionoftheirexistingnetwork,storage,andcomputeenvironmentratherthansomethingtotallynew.Theywanttoupgrade,ratherthanreplace,theirinfrastructure.

Decision-makersexpressedfourmaingoalsfortheirenterpriseedgenetworkinvestments:

.Reducethetotalcostofenterprisecloudandnetworkownership.

.Improveaccesstodataandapplications,especiallyforremote

locations,users,anddevices.

.ImprovebusinessKPIsthroughbetterdecisionsmadepossible

bymorefrequentandaccuratedata.

.Unlockproductivitygainsthroughmoreefficientprocesses

andautomation.

Companiesthathavealreadyimplementededgecomputinghaveachievedmanyofthesegoals.Themainbenefitsrealizedfromedgevs.“pre-edge”infrastructureinclude:

.Improvedbalanceofnetworkcosts,datamanagement,and

computeneeds.

.Theabilitytoanalyzedatainrealtimewithoutlagsonthesystem.Datacanbeprocessedonsite,withlessdatabeing“shipped”tothecloudandstored.

.Morestableendpointconnections.

.Reducedlatency.(Thiswasatopissueintheinterviews.)

Wheredodecision-makersturnwhenconsideringandselectingedgecomputingsolutions?Accordingtoourinterviews,hyperscalecloudprovidershavethemostinfluence,especiallyiftheyareincumbentproviders,largelybecausecompanieswanttoensuretheycanconnectedgedatatotheircloudplatforms.Accordingtorespondents,telecomcompaniesandsystemintegratorsalsohaveinfluencebutlessthancloudprovidersdo.Ingeneral,decision-makersseekadvicefromexistingproviderssincemanyseeedgecomputingasanextensionandenhancementoftheircurrentdatacapabilities.

Enhancingnetworksanddatacapabilitiesfortheenterpriseedgeoftenrequiresstrongpartnershipswithareliableecosystemofproviders.Atleastfornow,nosinglevendororclassofvendorcanprovidethecompleteedgesolution,whichrequiresbothanecosystemofprovidersaswellasaneedtocoordinatethem.Decision-makerstypicallyconsiderthreemaintypesofcompanieswhenlookingtoimplementedge:

.Telecomcompaniesthatdeliveraccessandlocalareanetworks

.Integratorsandtechcompaniesthathelptoimplementservicesandsolutions

.Hyperscalecloudprovidersthatofferbusinesspractice

approachesacrossawiderangeofbusinesssolutions

2023telecomindustryoutlook

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Whenconsideringedgeinvestments,decision-makerswanttoknowwhichinnovationsarecomingnextsotheycan“future-proof”theirITandnetworkenvironmentsasmuchaspossibleandavoidcompleteoverhauls.Theywanttounderstandhowtheiredgearchitecturewillscaleandwhatadditionalinfrastructureinvestmentswillbeneeded.Toanswerthesequestionsandsteerthemthroughuncertainty,decision-makersoftenlookforpartnerswithstrongtechnicalcapabilitiesthatcanscaletheirsolutionsandwillbethereforthelonghaul.

Whenconsideringwhethertoinvestinedgecomputing,severalchallengeshavethepotentialtoholdcompaniesback,including:

?Dataquestions:Howwilldatafromnewedgedatasources,suchasdevicesandsensors,becaptured,analyzed,andintegrated?Willitbeconsumable,andbywhom?Cantheyprocessallthedatathey’llgetandgainvaluableinsights?

?Networkingskills:Companiesarecomfortablewith

theirnetworkcapabilitiesintermsofLAN,WAN,andcloudconnections,butconnectingmultipledevicesandedgeappliancestonetworkingtoolsforanalyticsisanunknownandapotentialchallenge.

?Implementationconcerns:Manycompanieswantaphasedimplementationratherthanasinglerollouttohelpensurekeyprocessesanddatasourcesarecapturedinthenewprocessflowandoverallinfrastructure.

?Pricingtransparency:Organizationswanttofullyunderstandpricepointsandoperationalcostprojectionmodels.

StrategicquestionsforCSPstoconsider:

?Howmuchofthe“solutionstack”canCSPsdeliverororchestrateforcompanieslookingfor5Gandedgecomputingsolutions?Ordotheywanttofocusonprovidingthenetworkand/oredgerealestate/datacenters?

?Manydecision-makersneedassurancethattheycanconnectthedevicestheyneedandanalyzedataeffectively.WhatrolecanCSPsplayinhelpingthemunderstandhowanintegratedsolutionwillwork?

?CanCSPsmakethepricingandimplementationroadmaptransparent?

?CantheCSPsactasintegrators,presentinganattractive“bundle”witheaseofpurchaseandpotentialpricingdiscounts,orconsiderbeingapartofsomeoneelse’sintegratedbundle?

Byansweringthesequestions,decision-makerscanfeelmore

comfortableabouttheamountthey’llinvestinedgecomputing

andthebenefitstheycanexpect.

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2023telecomindustryoutlook

Jointventuresaccelerate

deploymentoffibernetworks

Consumersandbusinessesalikerequirerobustconnectivity.Themorebandwidththattelecomsandcablecompaniesoffer,themoreusecasesemergetotakeadvantageofitall.Fiber

opticnetworksareespeciallygoodatmovingmoredataatfasterspeedsoverlongerdistances,connectingdirectlytohomesandbusinesses,andprovidingthebackhaulforwirelessnetworks.Fiberconnectivitycanaddvalueforcustomersandisoftenacompetitivedifferentiatorforproviders,butit’sveryexpensivetobuildandmanagetheinfrastructure.In2022,UStelecomsspentbillionsofdollarstobuildoutfiber.

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CSPsandprivateinvestorsareincreasinglyformingjointventuresthatcanacceleratedeploymentandofferlong-termreturnstoinvestorsandcustomers.

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ForCSPs,jointventurescanlowerthefinancialburdentofundfiberandenablethemtoinvestinotherpartsoftheirbusinesses.Risinginterestratescanalsomakedebtfinancingmorecumbersome,soCSPsarelookingtoprivatefundstotakeastaketoreducetheircostofcapital.Ultimately,jointventurescanenableCSPstoacceleratedeploymentandexpandserviceareasmorerapidlyandefficiently.TheymayofferCSPsacompetitiveadvantagenotonlytoreinforcetheirbroadbandofferingswithfiberbutalsotosupportnewaccesstechnologieslikeFWAandDOCSIS4.0thatrelyonfiber.

Forinvestorslikeprivateequity,fibernetworkscandeliverstableandreliablereturnsoverdecadesofoperation.

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Demandforhigh-speedinternetshowsnosignofslowing,andfiberwilllikelybecomemorevaluableastrafficgrows.Similarpartnershipshelpedfundthebuild-outofcellulartowersthathavedeliveredstrongmultiplesonthoseinvestments.InvestorslookingtodiversifytheirportfolioswithassetsinthestableandgrowingtelecommunicationsectorcouldfindthevalueofinvestinginCSPsistheirinfrastructure.Fasternetworksandmorereliableservicescansupportwork,education,andentertainmentforbusinessesandconsumers.Morebroadbandconnectivitycanenablenewwavesofinnovationforinternetservicesanddeliverbetterexperiencesandnext-generationfeaturesforconnecteddevices.

Acceleratingfiberrolloutcanhelpnarrowthedigitaldivide.Improvingaccesstotechnologycandelivergreateropportunitiestounderservedcommunities,helpingtoreducethedisparitiesineducation,healthcare,andjobopportunitieswhilesupportingoveralleconomicproductivity.

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Indeed,fibernetworkscanbeseenasanationalimperative.Lookingback,Deloitteestimatesthat“a10-percentage-pointincreaseofbroadbandaccessin2014wouldhaveresultedinmorethan875,000additionalUSjobsand$186billionmoreineconomicoutputby2019.”

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GovernmentsunderstandthevalueofgreaterconnectivityandarefurtherincentivizingCSPs.TheUSgovernment’s$42.5billionBroadband,Equity,Access,andDeploymentgrantprogram’saimisforeveryAmericantohaveaccesstoaffordablehigh-speedinternet.

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Fundingwillprioritizeextendingfiberconnectivitytoendusers,supportforunservedlocationswithlimitedaccess,andimprovingaffordabilitytoensureaccess.Inthesepublic–privatepartnerships,thegovernmententityprovidesfunding,acceleratedpermits,andtaxincentives,whiletheCSPco-funds,deploys,andoperatesthen