Telco in 20
Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
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Give me 20 minutes, and we’ll cover the next 20 years in telco. Get the latest news, insights and best practices on how public cloud is transforming telecom – and enjoy a few laughs!
Available episodes
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Oldest first
3 days ago
Nokia’s journey to becoming cloud native
Nokia revealed a significant rebrand at Mobile World Congress 2023, signally a shift in the company’s focus to enterprise and B2B, which it sees as the future of telecom. For this episode, I talk with Nokia Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Europe Azfar Aslam about Nokia’s new direction, the challenge of refactoring legacy products, and what’s in store as the hyperscalers work to become carrier-grade cloud providers.
Listen now to hear about:
* The balance of hardware and software in Nokia’s portfolio [04:34];
* How the company is adapting products for a public-cloud-driven future [06:44];
* How it weighs the benefits of refactoring for the public cloud against maintaining a common software base [10:30]; and
* Azfar’s thoughts on network workloads running in public clouds [12:51].
Links and Resources
* Check out Nokia’s technology vision for 2030. It talks about the network of the future (a network of networks!) and how open APIs and the monetization of those APIs will be key. Hmm, sound familiar? 🧐
* Read about Nokia’s super cool rebrand in The Verge.
* What is cloud native, and how can you be sure that vendors are designing their applications correctly? Watch my hilarious Top 5 List with TelecomTV and Ray LeMaistre where I explain this misused term.
* Check out Totogi’s _Whoosh!_ offering that can help CSPs pull developers from Twilio’s ecosystem and into an operator’s. You’ll need this for those network APIs.
* Check out Nokia’s press release about its work on DISH’s 5G standalone core network
* Learn about what DISH is doing with the public cloud and then check out my conversation with DISH Wireless EVP and Chief Network Officer Marc Rouanne.
* You can find the transcript for this episode here.
* Did we talk about dinosaurs in this episode? WE DID! RAR! 🦖 Sometimes dinosaurs can be cool, like when they’re movie stars and scare common folks. Watch the official trailer from Jurassic Park 2, which was filmed on Asfar’s favorite Hawaiian island, Kuwai.
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
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* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on X @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Azfar Aslam
Azfar is passionate about driving customer success and has shaped technology and business strategies for over 60 Communications Service Providers and Large Enterprises globally. His experience spans new technology evaluations and product introductions, from portfolio and investment optimizations to E2E evolution of communications networks and AI-enabled automation. Azfar has also been deeply involved in corporate strategies, including M&A, new market entry, and establishing new lines of business. His current focus includes helping customers chart their journey toward new value creation in industry 4.0 in the high-performance critical networks era.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Sep 5, 2023
Ep 74 - It’s time to take on Twilio!
The telecom industry agrees that the future of 5G and enterprise telco lies in monetizing network APIs. But communications platform-as-a-service (CPaaS) company Twilio has been eating telco’s lunch by not only capturing messaging revenue, but also dominating enterprise IT departments.
For this episode, I’m sharing my recent TelecomTV talk about how telcos can beat Twilio and take back what’s theirs. I share a three-step plan for regaining a strategic position within enterprise IT departments, and give a sneak peek at a new Totogi CPaaS product that can help.
Click play to hear:
* What’s happened to telcos’ Application-to-Person (A2P) APIs market share over the last decade [03:51];
* The big difference Twilio-compatible APIs could make [05:35];
* How telcos can use owner economics to undercut Twilio pricing [06:38];
* How Totogi’s latest product, _Whoosh!_, can help [07:45]; and
* Why telcos need to start now [09:26].
Links and Resources
* Check out the video version of my talk, released as part of TelecomTV’s Cloud Native Telco Summit. You know how much I rock a video talk!
* Learn more about the awesome power of _Whoosh!_
* Twilio has been running circles around telco. Read about why it happened in my monster blog, Telco execs: Are you jealous of Twilio?
* Read about the activist fight over at Twilio in The Information (subscription) and Reuters.
* Check out Twilio’s Investor Day 2022 deck - tons of great information in this resource.
* Come meet the Totogi team at TM Forum’s DTW - Ignite in Copenhagen on September 19 - 21. Grab a delicious coffee at the Totogi Supercharged Cafe (plus, we’re donating to Unconnected.org for every cup served), and stop by our stand for a _Whoosh! _demo.
* We’re partying in Copenhagen! Don’t miss our launch party on September 19 – DM me on X or LinkedIn for details and an invite.
* Why all of the sudden interest in Twilio? Learn more about TelcoDR’s purchase of CPaaS company, Kandy.
* View the transcript for this episode.
* Did you catch my Mickey Mouse hands at the end of the video? It’s so I can slap Twilio around on behalf of telco. I’m thinking of taking the hands to Copenhagen and wearing them at the conference. Want a pair of your own? Buy them here
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on X @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on X @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Aug 22, 2023
Ep 73 - Can telco compete in CPaaS?
The Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS) market is expected to hit $60 billion by 2030. Telcos deserve a big piece of this revenue—after all, their networks power CPaaS. But up until now, they’ve lost customers and revenue to companies like Twilio that make it easy for developers to add capabilities to products without having to navigate complicated telco organizations.
But the landscape is shifting. With the cloud native capabilities of 5G and initiatives like the GSMA’s Open Gateway, there are signs that telcos can take back the CPaaS reins. For this episode, I talk with Yesmean Luk, principle consultant and practice lead at STL Partners, about the future of CPaaS and what telcos need to do to recapture lost enterprise revenue.
Listen now to hear:
* Why CPaaS is a huge opportunity for telco [04:32];
* What needs to happen to make Open Gateway work [07:13];
* Why enterprise developers will be key to recapturing lost revenue [14:49]
* How having a software mindset can help [16:09].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above.
Links and Resources
* Don’t miss my September 5 TelecomTV talk about why now is the time for telcos to take on Twilio. It includes a sneak peek at an awesome new Totogi CPaaS product.
* The Totogi team will also be demonstrating our CPaaS offering and our game-changing Charging-as-a-Service at TM Forum’s DTW - Ignite in Copenhagen from September 19 - 21. (And of course we’ll be throwing an awesome party. DM me on X or LinkedIn for details and an invite!)
* Yesmean and I met when we took part in a CPaaS Acceleration Alliance panel. Check out its recent State of CPaaS report.
* Recent headlines confirm that a lot is happening in the CPaaS space:
* March 8, 2023: Skyvera Acquired American Virtual Cloud Technology Assets
* July 17, 2023: Proximus Group acquired a nearly 60% stake in Route Mobile
* July 21, 2022: Ericsson completes its $6.2B acquisition of Vonage
* Read my recent blog, Telco execs: Are you jealous of Twilio?
* You can find the transcript for this episode here.
* Yesmean and I both think telcos are ready for a CPaaS comeback. Check out this highlight reel from one of the greatest comeback stories in sports history, when the New England Patriots rallied from being down 28 points to beating the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in Super Bowl LI.
* When you’re done, take a look at this video of LL COOL J’s Mama Said Knock You Out, aka “Don’t call it a comeback!”
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on X @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Yesmean Luk
Yesmean is a principal consultant at STL Partners and leads the Private Networks practice. She has led major strategic growth projects with both operators and technology companies globally. Her focus has been on helping clients figure out how to drive growth in a B2B2X ecosystem, including in domains such as private networks, network slicing, edge computing and network APIs. She has also authored several thought-leadership reports across these areas and is a regular speaker at renowned industry events. Before joining STL, she held various consulting roles at Deloitte and IBM.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Aug 8, 2023
Ep 72 - Mats Granryd talks Open Gateway
During this year’s Mobile World Congress, the GSMA announced a game-changing initiative called Open Gateway. It aims to revolutionize how operators collaborate with developers and each other, with the goal of opening up new revenue streams beyond traditional rate plans through the use of network APIs.
For this episode, I sat down to talk with GSMA Director General Mats Granryd about the Open Gateway initiative and how network APIs may be the future of enterprise telco. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* How opening networks will help telcos monetize 5G capabilities [03:29];
* Why telcos are excited about Open Gateway and jumping on board [05:42];
* The shift that’s needed to make telcos easier for developers to work with [08:59];
* Strategies to attract enterprise IT developers to use Open Gateway APIs [13:55]; and
* How 5G can enable new technical monetization models [16:23].
Links and Resources
* I thought my conversation with Mats was so important that I flew across the Atlantic to meet with him in person. We met at The Shard in the center of London and recorded our interview, which you can watch here. Check out that view!
* Learn more about the GSMA’s Open Gateway initiative.
* Surely you heard the news that TelcoDR bought Kandy, a CPaaS company, out of bankruptcy in March of this year.
* Be sure to catch the announcement of a new Totogi’s CPaaS product that will help telcos take on Twilio. I’ll be sharing a video about it on September 5 as part of TelecomTV’s Cloud Native Telco Summit. Don’t miss it—it’s MUST-SEE TV!
* Come meet with the Totogi team at TM Forum’s DTW - Ignite in Copenhagen on September 19 - 21 so we can give you a demo and snag an invite to the launch party. DM me on X or LinkedIn for details and an invite.
* Twilio has been running circles around telco, taking the enterprise IT developers and owning the platform. Read this monster blog I wrote about why it happened in Telco execs: Are you jealous of Twilio?
* View the transcript for this episode.
* I caught a few Wimbledon matches while I was in the UK. Check out this montage of 2023 highlights.
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on X @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on X @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Mats Granryd
Mats Granryd is Director General of the GSMA and a member of its Board. He leads the GSMA in supporting its global membership across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good, Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. Under Mats’ leadership, the GSMA has been instrumental in the advent of the 5G Era, advocating for timely and affordable spectrum access, supporting the global rollout of 5G and mobile IoT networks, creating an eSIM solution and providing the world’s largest platform to convene the mobile ecosystem and industry verticals at the MWC and M360 series of events.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Jul 25, 2023
Ep 71 - Save bookoo bucks with CloudFix
Cloud migration is on every telco's roadmap these days, but a lot of leaders worry about runaway costs. Today’s guest, Rahul Subramaniam, is the founder and CEO of CloudFix, a cool SaaS platform that automatically optimizes AWS spend. It identifies savings, and after you approve them, implements them automatically without manual effort from your team. Listen now to hear:
* How CloudFix works and what makes it fast and secure [05:15];
* The profile of the AWS customer that can benefit the most [07:41];
* Real-world savings success stories [08:25];
* Why AWS wants to help customers save money [13:05]; and
* The special discount telcos can get on CloudFix from TelcoDR [15:55].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Read about TelcoDR’s exclusive partnership agreement with CloudFix that can save telcos money
* Listen to Rahul talk more about CloudFix on his AWS Made Easy podcast with co-host Stephen Barr, then check out the AWS Made Easy episode with Jeff Barr, chief evangelist for AWS
* Visit the CloudFix website
* Read how organizations can reduce compute, networking, and storage costs by up to 66% by migrating workloads to AWS in a report from Enterprise Strategy Group
* To learn more about controlling cloud costs, check out episode 4 of Telco in 20 with cloud economist and consultant Corey Quinn, who talked about how his business, the Duckbill Group, can help you control cloud costs, and episode 39 with Michael Kearns from Virtasant, the maker of business software that helps optimize cloud spend.
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on Twitter @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Rahul Subramaniam
Rahul is Founder and CEO of CloudFix, and a board member of the FinOps Foundation. Throughout his career, he has successfully migrated 140+ enterprise software products to AWS and created revolutionary products that transform how users build, manage, and optimize in AWS. Rahul is also the founder and co-host of AWS Insiders, an industry podcast offering a no-holds-barred look at the state and future of AWS and cloud computing.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Jul 11, 2023
Ep 70 - Unleashing telco potential with AWS
Almost every telco I talk to is doing some kind of work with Amazon Web Services (AWS). It has the biggest market share of all of the hyperscalers, operates tons of data centers across the globe, and keeps churning out powerful software and custom-built chips that are perfect for operators.
For this episode, Chivas Nambiar, director of worldwide solution architecture, AWS for telecom, joins me to talk about how AWS is working with our industry, how cloud software is changing the landscape, and the future of telco in an AI-driven world.
Click play to hear our conversation about:
* What telcos are looking for when they come to AWS [03:08];
* What holds them back when adopting the public cloud [05:37];
* How the ability to easily run experiments with the cloud is moving the ball forward [08:38];
* How SaaS solutions like Totogi are unleashing value and speed [10:49]; and
* How GenAI will affect telcos business model and future [15:55]
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Learn more about AWS for Telecom.
* Check out Chivas’ recent conversation with RCR Wireless about what it means to be a tech-co and why that's important for operators.
* Get a demo of Totogi’s cloud-native, SaaS solutions for telco.
* I first met Chivas outside of my awesome talk at MWC 2022 —_The Public Cloud is NOW_—which opened with an epic performance by a Taiko drummer. Watch it on demand and learn more about Taiko drums.
* I’m so impressed that Chivas is learning to swim. Check out this scene from Ice Age where Sid the sloth helps saber-toothed tiger Diego overcome his fear of water.
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on Twitter @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Chivas Nambiar
Chivas Nambiar is the director of worldwide solutions architecture for the global telecom business unit at Amazon Web Services (AWS), leading a worldwide technical team focused on enabling communication service providers, network equipment providers, and independent software vendors to transform their business by moving to the cloud. Prior to joining AWS in 2020, Chivas spent 17 years in the telecom industry at Verizon Communications Inc.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Jun 27, 2023
Ep 69 - Appledore Research sits down with Totogi
Hey, look at that—I’m a guest on a podcast! I recently joined host Robert Curran and principal analyst John Abraham on the Appledore Research Podcast, and now I’m bringing that episode to you here. We talk about everything from the state of charging in telecom to CLOUD CITY’s rockstar takeover of Ericsson’s space at MWC21—a takeover that included an ACTUAL rock star. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* How and when I became a public cloud convert [04:54];
* The birth of Totogi and what it’s doing today [09:13];
* The mission behind the $1 billion Telco Transformation Fund [13:37];
* Why Totogi decided to go all in with AWS [22:19];
* And one of my favorite topics—how to drive the culture change you need to make your digital transformation a reality [28:30].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here. [LINK]
Links and Resources
* Learn more about Appledore Research and check out the Appledore Research Podcast.
* Find out more about Totogi’s cloud-native, SaaS solutions and get in touch to set up a demo.
* Check out my Siebel vs Salesforce talk from TelecomTV’s 2021 DSP Leaders World Forum.
* We touched briefly on Open Gateway and network exposure function APIs. I wrote two recent blogs about these topics; Is Open Gateway the answer to telco’s Twilio woes? and How to save 50-90% on compute with spot instances. Give them a read!
* I love talking about change management, and so does my buddy, transformation guru Jim Abolt. He talked about this topic on the very first episode of Telco in 20, and then came back for episode 7 to share even more insights.
* My favorite Bon Jovi song of all time is Living on a Prayer, which he sang in CLOUD CITY. He doesn’t do it all the time because he told me once that the octave ranges are too tough on his vocal cords, but he did a sweet acoustic version for us that night and it was EPIC. What a magical experience!
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on Twitter @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s bio
About Appledore Research
Appledore Research is a global research and consulting firm specializing in the telecommunication and software market. It provides market share, forecast, business models, industry trend reports, and custom research in the areas of network automation, 5G, Edge compute, SD-WAN, SDN, AI, and analytics, in the telecommunication and media market segments.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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Jun 13, 2023
Ep 68 - giffgaff is 1,000 times faster with AWS
In 2020, award-winning British MVNO giffgaff decided to go all-in on the public cloud with AWS. The bold move sped its software release process by 1000x, allowing it to focus on what matters: its members. Now the company is an all-star player in customer service and cloud innovation.
In this episode, giffgaff’s Chief Operating and Technology Officer Steve McDonald shares the inside story about how the courageous move happened, the challenges giffgaff faced along the way, and lessons learned that other telcos should know. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* How technical debt was strangling the business [02:20];
* How long it took to see release success and code improving [07:37];
* What prompted giffgaff to speed its move to AWS [09:18];
* What it did reel in cloud costs [12:17]; and
* What Steve would do differently if he did it all over again [15:35].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Learn more about giffgaff.
* Watch my talk from MWC23’s MVNO Summit, SUPERCHARGE your MVNO with personalization. I feature giffgaff’s journey to the public cloud prominently.
* Keep up with the company’s IT evolution on its tech blog.
* Read the 2020 announcement about giffgaff’s plan to go all-in on the public cloud with AWS.
* Read how pundits said the move was a bad idea. Boy, were they wrong!
* Get blown away by the performance of Yunchan Lim, the 2022 Cliburn gold medalist, audience award winner, and winner of the award for best performance of a new work
* Steve McDonald loves Chopin. You know which piano piece I can’t resist? _Linus and Lucy_ by Vince Guaraldi, better known as The Peanuts Song. Which character are you in this clip? I’ve always identified with the twin dancing near Pigpen.
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on Twitter @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Steve McDonald
Steve McDonald is Chief Operating and Technology Officer at giffgaff. Having joined the company in 2017, he is driving significant change and innovation throughout the company. In 2020, he led the network’s milestone move as the first MVNO in Europe to move to Amazon Web Services. He is a motivational and inspirational leader, known for building high performing, agile teams. He uses technology to meet business ambitions by engaging teams across all verticals to apply cutting edge software solutions. Before giffgaff, Steve spearheaded the software development at major brands including Tesco, Sage Pay, and Deutsche Bank.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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May 30, 2023
Ep 67 - How to create shareholder value
Telco stocks used to be Wall Street darlings, but in recent years have become stable dividend plays for grandpa investors. Can they return to their former glory?
Today’s guest, Recurve Capital Founder Aaron Chan, has well-informed thoughts on what the industry needs to do to restore its shine. He’s at the forefront of investment strategies and market trends in telecom, and not surprisingly, he sees its future linked to the public cloud.
Before you listen, it’s important to note that the thoughts Aaron shares in this podcast are his opinion, and do not constitute investment advice. Now, hit play to hear our conversation about:
* What needs to happen to bring telco stocks back into the spotlight [04:02];
* The opportunity the metaverse presents for the industry [06:28];
* How the public cloud and hyperscalers can help telcos get back in the game [11:21];
* How Starlink changes the equation for the rural broadband market [15:37].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Learn more about Recurve Capital.
* Hear more from Aaron on Greg Bryan’s TeleGeography Explains the Internet podcast.
* Want to read a book about creating outsized shareholder returns by taking calculated risks? Then pick up The Outsiders, by William Thorndike, which focuses on eight unconventional CEOs like John Malone of Liberty Media. He focused on generating cash flow, using leverage to create value, and investing in businesses with strong competitive advantages.
* I’m running a vertical SaaS enterprise software company called Totogi. In a nutshell, we’re trying to run this thing using the Rule of 40. Software is soooooo much easier than telco; maybe after reading about Rule of 40 some telco execs will want to join me?
* Aaron compared Elon Musk’s Starlink to The Avengers’ Thanos. Check out this video clip of Thanos snapping his fingers to destroy half the universe, so the other half could survive.
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
* Have an idea for a Telco in 20 podcast guest or topic? Send it in!
* Want to sponsor a podcast? Let us know
* Follow Telco in 20 on Twitter @TelcoIn20
* Follow DR on Twitter @TelcoDR
The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Aaron Chan
Aaron Chan is the Founder and Managing Partner of Recurve Capital. He has 20 years of long/short investing experience. Prior to founding Recurve Capital, he spent more than six years at MIG Capital, a long/short equity hedge fund. Before MIG he was a Sector Manager at Facet Capital Management, where he oversaw investments in Media and Telecom sectors. From 2011 to 2013, he was a Portfolio Manager at QM Capital, and began his career at Criterion Capital Management, a long/short equity fund focused on Technology, Media and Telecom sectors. He earned his B.S. in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University in 2004.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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May 16, 2023
Ep 66 - Anyone can be an MVNO with Gigs
Telcos make it hard for enterprise customers to negotiate deals for affordable connectivity. A few innovative tech firms are building their businesses around making things easier. One of them is Gigs, which buys pre-negotiated connectivity and offers easy APIs to allow enterprise software developers to create and sell their own voice and data plans. In this episode, Hermann Frank, co-founder and CEO of Gigs, tells us how the idea for the company was born, why customers love it, and how the public cloud makes it all possible.
* How GIGS simplifies the process of buying and selling data plans [04:09];
* The problems it solves for its customers [05:14];
* How Gigs reduced a process that took 15 months down to 15 minutes [06:18];
* Why public cloud, API-based solutions are the future [09:40].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Learn more about Gigs
* TechCrunch wrote an article on Gigs and how it recently raised $20M
* Take a look at Totogi’s public cloud-native, API-based solutions
* Check out Gigs emoji mascot—don’t you just love it? Hermann has a pair of sneakers with the mascot.
* I love sneakers too—I have a 5+ pair collection of Golden Goose Mid-Stars. They’re made for skateboarding, or in my case, delivering MWC keynotes. My most recent pair has a pink sole! Love it.
* As a foodie, I just love the idea of Gig’s Table. It makes me think of that great dining scene from the 1996 movie, _Big Night_.
* And this is not a cooking scene, but it’s a hilarious sketch from _Saturday Night Live _about ordering lobster in a diner. If you love _Les Miserables_, you’ll love this sketch!
Wanna talk public cloud? Telco execs, set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
Follow DR
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The Telco in 20 podcast won a 2022 Platinum MarComm Award, a 2022 Gold Hermes Award, and was recognized as a Forrester Top 100 Channel Podcast and Feedspot Top 10 Telecom Podcast. If you enjoy the podcast, would you leave us a short review? It takes you seconds to do in your app and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. And I love reading your feedback and reviews!
This week’s guest
About Hermann Frank
Hermann Frank is the co-founder and CEO of Gigs, the world's first telecom-as-a-service platform that enables companies to quickly and easily launch their own mobile service while retaining full control over branding and pricing. Prior to Gigs, Frank worked as a startup entrepreneur, consultant and for the Fraunhofer Institute, among others. Hermann Frank studied business administration at Maastricht University (Netherlands) and at the Luigi Bocconi University of Economics in Milan, Italy.
Podcast Credits
* Executive Producer and Host: Danielle Royston, TelcoDR
* Senior Producer: Lindsay Grubb, TillCo Media
* Editor/Marketing: Alisa Jenkins, Springboard Marketing
* Editing: Andrew Condell
* Associate Producer: Kriselda Dionisio
* Music: Dyami Wilson
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May 2, 2023
Ep 65 - The new guard in telco tech
Forward thinking, innovative companies are using the public cloud to deliver easy-to-use telco software that reduces costs and speeds deployments. Today’s guest, Erlend Prestgard, is the CEO and co-founder of one of these visionary businesses, Working Group Two. His team has built a multi-tenant, public-cloud-native, mobile core running on AWS—something naysayers have said today’s tech couldn’t support. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* Why building a mobile core network on AWS is revolutionary [03:03];
* What business value it delivers [04:11];
* How the telco industry is responding, and the outdated perceptions some leaders are still hanging onto [11:34]; and
* The most important lessons Working Group Two has learned about the best ways for telcos to get to the public cloud [15:18].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode h…
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Apr 18, 2023
Ep 64 - The cloud-first mindset
In 2015, Hawaii-based MVNO Mobi decided to give up managing the radio components of its network in favor of focusing on creating awesome services for subscribers. To accomplish this, it needed to become a thick MVNO with its own mobile core, so it started working with Working Group Two to implement a public-cloud-native, mobile core running on AWS.
For this episode, Mobi CEO Justen Burdette joins me to talk about why the MVNO chose this path, the benefits it gained by teaming with Working Group Two, and why it’s so great to work with the public cloud.
Click play to hear our conversation about:
* What makes Mobi different than a traditional MVNO [02:50];
* How it benefits from having its own mobile core [07:06];
* The advantages of working with cloud-first solutions [10:47]; and
* How Working Group Two’s APIs bring value to the business [13:04].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above…
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Apr 4, 2023
Ep 63 - Ante up to be a public cloud contender
The amount the hyperscalers spend on the public cloud is staggering. It requires a $100-billion+ buy-in to be considered a serious player. Today’s guest, Charles Fitzgerald, tracks hyperscaler CapEx spending each quarter on his Platformonomics blog. He parses earning reports to gain insight into who’s putting their money where their mouth is.
Charles recently published his annual 2022 retrospective on the cloud players. In this episode, we get his thoughts on the Big Three, the other guys, and the telco clouds. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* Why he started tracking the hyperscaler CapEx [01:57];
* How the Big Three rank in spending and where telcos sit in the mix [04:02];
* His insightful take on AWS’, Azure’s, and Google Cloud’s positions in the market [09:19]; and
* Why he thinks IBM and Oracle are out of the race [15:45].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above.…
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Mar 21, 2023
Ep 62 - Running your network on the public cloud with Juniper Networks
So much has changed with the public cloud and telco since I created CLOUD CITY at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2021. Back then, most industry folks said that the public cloud _might_ be a good fit for enterprise IT and BSS workloads, but considering it for network workloads was an entirely different matter. Fast-forward two years, and now my question for the industry is, “are there any telco workloads that can't move?”
In this episode, I talk with Ben Baker from Juniper Networks about where we are in telco's network journey to the public cloud and which workloads the hyperscalers are ready to support. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* The most important strategic decision for telcos [05:02];
* Why the network is more important than ever [06:57];
* Can telcos technically run network workloads on the public cloud [09:38]; and
* How and why telcos should be using the public cloud [13:41].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast…
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Mar 7, 2023
Ep 61 - SUPERCHARGE your MVNO with personalization
On March 1, I presented a keynote— my third in a row!— at MWC’s inaugural MVNO Summit. It was standing-room-only with leaders from digital brands, MVNOs, and MVNEs who were eager to learn how intelligent, SaaS software (like Totogi!) can help them delight customers and grow ARPU. We captured the talk on video, and I’ve turned it into this podcast. Listen now to hear about:
* Why MVNOs need to start acting like internet companies [04:02];
* How Totogi’s multi-tenant SaaS software is changing the game [05:29];
* Why MVNOs should stop using pricing to win subscribers, and start using their crown jewel – the network! [12:52]; and
* The supercharged power of Totogi Auto Plan [14:42].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Check out the video version of my MVNO Summit talk.
* Learn more about Totogi and…
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Feb 21, 2023
Ep 60 - The American dream: Building a killer MVNO
I spend a lot of time talking to telcos about how public cloud technology can help them delight subscribers and boost ARPU. Ahmed Khattak, founder and CEO of US Mobile, knows exactly what I’m talking about. He built the Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) natively on the public cloud from day one. In this episode, we talk about his vision for the company and how it benefits from its public-cloud-first design. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* How Ahmed’s experience coming to the United States from Pakistan shaped his vision for US Mobile [01:50];
* What sets the company apart from other US-based MVNOs [02:28];
* The benefits of building in the public cloud [04:12]; and
* The key public cloud attribute that Ahmed thinks is underrated by telcos [09:54].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Visi…
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Feb 7, 2023
Ep 59 - Get ready for MWC 2023!
Mobile World Congress 2023 is right around the corner, running from February 27 through March 2. This is the biggest event of the year for the telco industry, a place where the movers and shakers come together to discuss policy, see innovative ideas from exhibitors, and get deals done.
In this episode, I talk with Lara Dewar, chief marketing officer for the GSMA, which puts together MWC each year. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* What’s in store for this year’s event [01:58];
* The inside scoop on the GSMA’s ministerial program, which gathers policy makers from more than 160 countries to discuss and shape industry policies and regulations [07:45]; and
* The down low on this year’s inaugural MVNO Summit, where Totogi is the gold sponsor [10:01].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Make your…
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Jan 24, 2023
Ep 58 - Live and Learn: A new MVNO approach with Peter Adderton
Telcos have a ton of subscriber data at their fingertips, yet most never tap its value. MobileX is ready to show them the way. It’s using AI and subscriber usage insights to price personalized plans with transparency, and hoping to build trust between telco and customers in the process.
In this episode, I talk to MobileX CEO and serial entrepreneur, Peter Adderton. He’s going to tell us what MobileX is up to and how it’s filling an unmet need. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* Why Peter started MobileX [03:10];
* Why customer trust is key to its brand [06:23];
* How the company benefits from being a digital first, app-driven business [08:38]; and
* The economics behind MVNO success [13:57].
Listen now by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform—see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Visit the MobileX website to learn more about the company.
* Fol…
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Jan 10, 2023
Ep 57 - Catch the public cloud train with TELUS
Telcos around the world are signing strategic deals with hyperscalers, setting big goals for public cloud transformation, and finding ways to cross the finish line. A great example is TELUS, which signed a 10-year strategic agreement with Google Cloud and is on a path to become a cloud-native organization.
For this episode, I talk with Hesham Fahmy, chief information officer at TELUS, about how the telecom built momentum for its cloud journey, what happened along the way, and what it learned that other telcos should know. Hit play to hear our conversation about:
* TELUS’ plan to move 80% of workloads to the cloud by 2025 [03:56];
* Where and how it decided to start its move [06:16];
* How TELUS brought its team along on its public cloud journey [08:42].
* Refactoring applications for the public cloud [12:18].
Listen to the episode by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resour…
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Dec 13, 2022
Ep 56 - Best of 2022 – DISH: The Telco Pioneer
I had some amazing conversations this year, but none grabbed more ears than my in-person interview with DISH Wireless Executive Vice President and Chief Network Officer Marc Rouanne. He offered a behind-the-scenes look at DISH’s new 5G network, its work with AWS, and more. The original episode went live in June, and since then it’s been listened to thousands of times. Hit play to hear:
* How hyperscaler investments made DISH’s project possible [02:34];
* What Marc would change about the AWS platform [04:20];
* His experience working with software vendors’ cloud-native solutions [05:46];
* How building on AWS changed the economics of network operations [07:26]; and
* Marc’s vision for using open APIs to grow the business [9:55].
A few weeks ago at AWS re:Invent 2022, DISH released its first batch of Network APIs, just as Marc envisioned. It’s so exciting to watch it unfold! Listen to our conversation by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podca…
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Nov 29, 2022
Ep 55 - Supercharge your MVNO (and your ARPU) by delivering a personalized subscriber experience
Last week I gave a keynote at the first-ever in-person MVNO Nation Live conference in beautiful Valencia, Spain. It was thrilling to talk to all of the entrepreneurial leaders at this event. They clearly see the huge upside of embracing public cloud technology and are poised to use it to become some of the world’s greatest brands. I’ve turned my keynote into this podcast episode. Listen now to hear:
* Examples of how telcos and MVNOs are benefiting from public cloud technology [02:48];
* How cloud-native telco tools (like Totogi!) can help MVNOs streamline work, increase speed to market, and lower costs [05:21];
* Why giffgaff put data at the heart of its business [12:53]; and
* How MVNOs can boost their NPS and ARPU by delivering an amazing, personalized customer experience [13:55].
When you’re done listening, check out the links to Totogi and the AWS Marketplace below, and contact us for a demo. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources…
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Nov 15, 2022
Ep 54 - Bye-bye, private cloud; hello, public cloud
Every telco leader, consultant, and analyst I talk to these days says the telecom industry’s move to the public cloud is in full swing. Today’s guest, Davide Bellini, agrees. As Accenture Applied Intelligence lead for the communications and media industry, he has his finger on the pulse of telcos around the world—what they’re thinking about, how they’re navigating challenges, and their vision for a future powered by the public cloud. Click play to hear Davide’s thoughts on:
* Public cloud adoption trends around the globe [03:40];
* What’s changed to make telcos more open to cloud transformation [11:28];
* Their greatest hurdles to migration success [13:56]; and
* Why freeing data from siloed databases has become a business imperative [19:29].
You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* Read the TelcoDR blog Think twice before building your own public cloud
* Listen to an early Telco in 20 podcast episode featuring Forrest Braze…
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Nov 1, 2022
Ep 53 - I scream, you scream, we all scream for MVNOs
The signs are everywhere—the MVNO segment of telco is picking up steam. On November 16-17, 2022, MVNO leaders from around the world will gather at the inaugural MVNO Nation Live conference in Valencia, Spain, while 800-pound gorilla GSMA has plans to host its first MVNO Summit as part of the big show at next year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. This makes it a great time to explore the ins and outs of launching a successful MVNO or digital brand. In this episode, I’m talking with Scott Venuti, General Manager at Plum, a mobile virtual network aggregator (MVNA). He helps MVNOs get their businesses launched and ready for success. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* How long it takes to get an MVNO set up [07:47];
* Why being nimble is key [09:28];
* Why getting plans to market is so important for successful MVNOs [10:51];
* The importance of making the right decisions at the beginning of the journey [13:23];
* Thoughts on MVNO profitability and margins [15…
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Oct 18, 2022
Ep 52 - Born to run (in the cloud) with Nathan Bell
A couple of years ago, I learned that M1, a Singapore-based MNO, was doing exactly what I had been evangelizing about—going ALL IN on the public cloud. Leading the charge was then-Chief Digital Officer Nathan Bell. I’ve been hoping to have him on the podcast ever since I heard about what he was doing. Today, my wish comes true. In this episode, he joins me to talk about:
* How Nathan and M1 got the idea—in 2019!— to go all-in on the public cloud [03:47];
* The moment they knew they were going to be successful [14:41];
* How they brought the team along on the transformation journey [16:11]; and
* What Nathan would do differently if he had to do it all over again [19:01].
A quick side note: Nathan recently shared exciting news – a few weeks ago he accepted the role of Digital Practice Partner at Kearney. Congratulations, Nathan!
Links and Resources
* Take a look at M1’s February 2021 news release about its digital transformation
* Watch the TM Forum panel wher…
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Oct 4, 2022
Ep 51 - Catching up with Azure and AT&T
For the last year and a half, I’ve been obsessed with one of the biggest collaborations worldwide between a telco and a hyperscaler: AT&T and Microsoft Azure. In 2021, the CSP sold its network cloud to Azure. Since then, people in the industry have been wondering what’s been going on, who’s doing what, and how things are going. For this episode, Shawn Hakl, Microsoft VP of 5G Strategy, joins me to answer these questions and talk about:
* Why the partnership made sense for both sides [02:37];
* The benefit of handing over infrastructure management to a hyperscaler [04:22];
* How Azure and AT&T collaborate and divide responsibilities [05:52]; and
* The challenges of bringing it all together and adopting a new playbook [12:03].
Links and Resources
* Read AT&T’s June 2021 announcement about Microsoft’s acquisition of its Network Cloud
* Check out this Protocol article from July 2021, _Why AT&T moved its core tech — but not everything — to Microsoft Azure_
* H…
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Sep 20, 2022
Ep 50 - The public cloud is PERFECT for India
India is a fascinating place for telco operators. It’s home to more than a billion subscribers, while also having some of the lowest ARPU on the planet. This means mobile operators there not only need carrier-grade software products, they need to get them for a low, low price.
Last week I delivered a keynote at Voice & Data’s “5G and the future of mobile data” conference in Delhi, India. I’ve turned that talk into this podcast episode to share why the public cloud is perfect for India’s unique telco market and how to unlock its full potential. Listen now to hear:
* Why the public cloud is such a good fit for India’s operators [04:47];
* Why using cloud native telco software is critical to success [06:40]; and
* The simple way to tell if a telco software solution is truly cloud native, and not just “cloud washed.” [07:44]
Links and Resources
* Read the article in Voice & Data or on my blog about why the public cloud is perfect for India
* Watch Voice & Da…
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Sep 6, 2022
Ep 49 - What’s up with Totogi? What it takes to deploy a telco charging system
When it comes to rolling out enterprise software, no one takes one for the team like the guys and gals in charge of delivery. They’re always on the front line, ready to battle any obstacle to get the system up and providing value to customers.
Up until now, rolling out a telco charging engine has been a huge, heavy lift for the delivery folks. But not anymore, because the public cloud-based Totogi Charging System is delivered in a completely different way. For this episode, I’m joined by Totogi’s global head of delivery, Damon Wheaton, to talk about:
* Why it’s so hard for telcos to deploy a traditional charging system [03:12];
* What’s so different about deploying Totogi’s Charging as a Service [08:06];
* Why building on the foundation of the public cloud is a total game changer [09:16]; and
* Why Totogi is PERFECT for telcos in India [15:14].
Links and Resources
* Check out the Totogi website and find us on AWS Marketplace
* Read this piece by Light Readin…
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Aug 23, 2022
Ep 48 - Tips for a successful cloud transformation
Moving to the public cloud is a major transformation for most telcos. There’s a lot at stake, and failure can spell disaster for an organization and its leaders. But the hard truth is that 70% of big transformation projects fail according to research from McKinsey & Company. In this episode, I sit down with Teena Piccione, a change management expert at Google, to dig into what telcos can do to keep their public cloud journey on track. Click play to hear our conversation about:
* The reasons big projects fail [03:15];
* How to build support for change in your organization [04:14];
* What to do to get a derailed project back on track [07:59]; and
* How to handle resistance to change [12:14].
Listen to our conversation by clicking play above or subscribe through your favorite podcast platform – see the links in the right column above. You can find the transcript for this episode here.
Links and Resources
* This episode combines two topics I love – transformation and hu…
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Aug 9, 2022
Ep 47 - Half measures
Let’s be real: shifting workloads to the public cloud is no easy task. I’ve met a bunch of telecom leaders who debate about what is the best approach - should we go in one giant leap, or a series of steps? Their hesitancy to go all-in has left telco vendors designing and supporting multiple solutions—including private and hybrid cloud offerings—to meet them where they are, wherever that may be.
If the shortest path between two points is a straight line, and if we all agree that the destination is the public cloud, why take a half measure? I think it’s a waste of time and money. Why spend on interim steps when you could be investing in gaining public cloud know-how and competitive advantages immediately?
Everyone knows how much I like to dig into topics like these with people who don’t see eye-to-eye with me. That’s why I’m super psyched to have Shaun Whalon, VP of digital monetization at CSG, on the podcast. There’s a lot Shaun and I agree about—like that the move…
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Jul 26, 2022
Ep 46 - The nitty gritty about public cloud security
One thing I’ve learned from talking to telco execs across the globe about the public cloud is that security is top of mind. Another thing I’ve learned is that many of them don’t know a lot about just how secure the public cloud is. So for this episode, I’m joined by Amy Zwarico, director of cybersecurity at AT&T, one of the world's largest and oldest telcos. She’s here to explain why the public cloud is more secure than the way many telcos are doing business today, and how AT&T has been preparing for its transition to use Azure. Hit play to hear our conversation about:
* What convinced AT&T that the public cloud and Microsoft Azure were the path to the future [02:32];
* How AT&T shifted operating models to run workloads in the public cloud [04:47];
* What advice Amy has for teams starting their cloud move [08:23];
* Why developing security patterns ahead of time is critical [09:11];
* How AT&T has benefited from its cloud migration [10:40].
Fun fact: Amy is our fi…
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Jul 12, 2022
Ep 45 - Drumming up ways to increase ARPU with McKinsey
Telco leaders have been scratching their heads about how to monetize their 5G network. One of the world’s top think tanks, McKinsey & Company, has opinions on this topic—and research to back them up.
For this episode, I’m joined by McKinsey Partner Ferry Grijpink, founder of the McKinsey Center for Advanced Connectivity. He’s got great insights into how data analytics can help telcos personalize the subscriber experience and boost ARPU. Listen now to hear our conversation about:
* What McKinsey’s research reveals about monetizing 5G investments [03:19];
* Why telcos need to un-commoditize their products [04:36];
* How delivering more personalized offers can boost ARPU [09:30]; and
* Why the public cloud, AI, and ML are critical to achieving ARPU growth [16:19].
Links and Resources
* Check out these resources from McKinsey & Company:
* The value of getting personalization right—or wrong—is multiplying
* How AI is helping revolutionize telco service opera…
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Jun 21, 2022
Ep 44 – DISH: The Telco Pioneer
DISH Wireless EVP and Chief Network Officer Marc Rouanne talks about DISH’s cloud-native 5G network, its partnership with AWS, and more.
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Jun 14, 2022
Ep 43 – Telco’s Pinball Wizard: Neil McRae
BT Chief Architect Neil McRae talks about the company's digital transformation and strategies for working with hyperscalers ... and pinball, of course!
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May 31, 2022
Ep 42 – Talking Telco with Google Cloud
Amol Phadke, Google Cloud's MD & GM for the Global Telecom Industry, talks about what the hyperscaler is doing in the telco space.
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May 17, 2022
Ep 41 – Telco Religious Wars: Charging Databases
When it comes to charging, the database you use is critical. Database expert Alex DeBrie talks about the pros and cons of database options.
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May 3, 2022
Ep 40 – New ways to build your future-ready workforce
Telcos need to hire a gazillion people with cloud skills. How can CSPs cultivate the talented teams they need? Good news – there are new workforce management strategies and AI tools that can help.
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Apr 19, 2022
Ep 39 – Hacking Cloud Costs
A cottage industry has popped up to help companies optimize their cloud environment and spending. Find out what you can do to hack cloud costs.
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Apr 5, 2022
Ep 38 – What’s Up with Totogi? The Future of Charging
Nothing new has happened in charging in decades – until now. Find out why Totogi’s API-based, pay-by-the-use system is a game changer for telcos.
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Mar 22, 2022
Ep 37 – A Chat with AWS about the Future of Telco Tech
I had a great conversation with Claus Verner from AWS at MWC22. We talk about how the public cloud is helping to build innovative telco software companies, the launch of TelcoDR, and more.
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Mar 8, 2022
Ep 36 – The Public Cloud is NOW
Listen to the most exciting talk from MWC 2022 to learn how to turn the public cloud into a competitive advantage.
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Feb 22, 2022
Ep 35 – Azure has private networks, too!
Microsoft Azure’s private network offering unites 5G, edge computing, and a robust partner network to deliver private networks to enterprises. Shriraj Gaglani, GM, Azure Private MEC, tells us what this means for telco.
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Feb 8, 2022
Ep 34 – Get ready for CLOUD CITY 2022!
CLOUD CITY is back, baby! And 100% in the cloud this year. Find out what we’ve done to bring an in-person experience to our virtual platform, and what you’ll find during the event.
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Jan 11, 2022
Ep 33 – Quick and easy real-time communications with Amazon Chime SDK
Amazon Chime SDK general manager Sid Rao shares insights into what this set of real-time communication tools can do for telcos.
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Dec 28, 2021
Ep 32 – 2022 Predictions: All aboard the public cloud train
In this special episode, we take a look at telco and public cloud trends to watch in 2022. Tune in to find out what you need to know.
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Dec 7, 2021
Ep 31 – Verizon’s public cloud journey
Nanda Kumar, executive director of cloud engineering at Verizon, has helped pilot the company’s successful digital transformation. He tells us about the journey, which started back in 2016.
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Dec 7, 2021
Ep 30 – What’s up with Totogi? Achieving Feature Velocity with the Totogi APIs
Totogi APIs can help CSPs bring new features to market fast, and boost customer satisfaction and ARPU in the process.
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Nov 16, 2021
Ep 29 – Telco in 20’s Best of 2021
In our most popular episode from 2021, transformation leader Juha Korhonen shares his experience with the successful launch of Yaqoot, a digital mobile operator in the Middle East.
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Oct 19, 2021
Ep 28 – Talking public cloud with GSMA
Telco in 20 sits down with Mats Granryd, Director General for GSMA, to talk about the future of the public cloud and telco.
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Oct 4, 2021
Ep 27 – Talking public cloud with Telecoms.com
Telco in 20 sits down with Scott Bicheno and Iain Morris of the Telecoms.com podcast to have an awesome conversation about the public cloud and telco.
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Sep 28, 2021
Ep 26 – Avoid vendor lock-in with TM Forum Open APIs
TM Forum’s Open APIs are giving telcos a way to build IT solutions that are easier and cheaper to deploy, integrate, and upgrade. It’s time to change your thinking about the best way to build applications.
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Sep 21, 2021
Ep 25 – Get ready to use the public cloud… in Afghanistan
Former Roshan CFO Imtiaz Esmail and his team refused to be sidelined by two devastating attacks on the Afghan telecom. Instead, they guided the company through a successful digital transformation.
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Aug 24, 2021
Ep 24 – What’s up with Totogi?
Here's the latest on Totogi, the telco software darling built specifically for the public cloud – 80% lower TCO, anyone?
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Aug 10, 2021
Ep 23 – DynamoDB: A tier 0 database
AWS' Rick Houlihan tells us why flexible and scalable NoSQL databases are a great fit for telco.
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Jul 27, 2021
Ep 22 – Meet mediation vendor Digital Route
Jonas Wallenius, Strategic Product Manager at Digital Route, has a clear view of the public cloud's potential for telco, and ideas about how the industry can get there.
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Jul 13, 2021
Ep 21 – How we rocked MWC21
CLOUD CITY shifted the spotlight to the public cloud for telco for the first time in MWC history.
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Jun 30, 2021
Ep 20 – The paradox of the public cloud
There are massive upsides to the public cloud for telcos, but that’s not the whole story. TelcoDR CEO Danielle Royston tells it all in her MWC21 keynote.
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Jun 1, 2021
Ep 19 – Double your ARPU with customer ❤️❤️❤️
Switching from being network-centric to customer-centric is not only necessary, but also the best thing you’ll ever do for your bottom line.
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May 4, 2021
Ep 18 – A digital telco: Meet Yaqoot
Transformation leader Juha Korhonen shares his experience with the successful launch of Yaqoot, a digital mobile operator in the Middle East.
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Apr 6, 2021
Ep 17 – The Software Series: LastMileXchange
LastMileXchange’s cloud-based access quoting solution shines a spotlight on how the public cloud can transform telecom.
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Mar 18, 2021
Ep 16 – #SaveMWC
The rumors are true... Public cloud is taking center stage in Barcelona and TelcoDR is leading the way!
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Mar 16, 2021
Ep 15 – Totogi: The new ant at the picnic
Remember the David-and-Goliath business story of Siebel vs Salesforce? There’s a new public cloud startup in Telco that will change everything – webscale charging engine Totogi.
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Mar 2, 2021
Ep 14 – The Software Series: PortaOne
Andriy Zhylenko, CEO of PortaOne, talks about leading a pivot to the public cloud via Oracle Cloud.
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Feb 16, 2021
Ep 13 – The Software Series: CSG
Jon Fagan, Senior Principal Cloud Architect at CSG, talks about what the billion-dollar company is doing with the public cloud.
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Feb 2, 2021
Ep 12 – Monetizing 5G and IoT
Telcos are making huge investments in 5G. Will ROI follow? Pete Bernard, Senior Director of Azure Edge Devices, Platforms and Services, talks about how 5G, IoT, AI and the edge can work together to help monetize the network.
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Jan 19, 2021
Ep 11 – The Software Series: MATRIXX
The Software Series, Part 1: MATRIXX Software CTO Marc Price talks 5G, designing for the public cloud, and why customizations will be the death of vendors AND telcos.
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Dec 28, 2020
Ep 10 – 2021 Forecast: cloudy with a chance of OpenRAN
In this special episode, we take a look at 2020’s big headlines and trends to watch in the coming year. Tune in to find out who will be in the winner’s circle at the end of 2021.
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Dec 8, 2020
Ep 9 – Microsoft’s big move
Microsoft wants to be THE hyperscaler for the telecom industry. Yousef Khalidi, corporate VP for Azure for Operators, shares exactly what Azure is up to and why telcos need to pay attention.
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Nov 23, 2020
Ep 8 – The HR Series: Pair programming – the most powerful tool you’ve never used
The HR Series, Part 2: What has two heads, two keyboards and two monitors and can help you squash the competition? It’s time to adopt pair programming.
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Nov 10, 2020
Ep 7 – The HR Series: Telcos, get ready for workforce transformation
The HR Series, Part 1: If telecoms are going to survive the inevitable move to the public cloud, they need to start focusing on people - retraining, hiring, and yes, letting some workers go.
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Oct 27, 2020
Ep 6 – The BFCs: Is Google Cloud Platform (GCP) right for telcos?
Neil Bunn, Head of Customer Engineering, Media and Telco, for Google Cloud Canada, reviews the coolest features of Google cloud technology and offers an unexpected reason why GCP should be at the top of telcos’ list (hint: think, Anthos).
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Oct 13, 2020
Ep 5 – The BFCs: Putting Microsoft Azure to the test for telcos
Rick Lievano, Worldwide Director of Technology Strategy at Microsoft, builds a good case for why Azure should be telecom’s cloud platform of choice, not the least of which is Azure for Operators -- a game changer in the quest for carrier-grade cloud.
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Oct 5, 2020
Ep 4 – Lift Off: Right-size your public cloud spending
Find out how telcos can control public cloud spending and avoid leaving money on the table. Featuring cloud economist and snark-master Corey Quinn.
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Oct 5, 2020
Ep 3 – Lift Off: Telcos moving to the public cloud – beware of lift and shift
Using a lift and shift strategy for public cloud migration demands clear vision around what’s waiting on the other side. Cloud architect Forrest Brazeal explains what you need to know and why.
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Oct 5, 2020
Ep 2 – Lift Off: Taking the first step
Telcos need to start moving to the public cloud, like, yesterday. Migration specialist Troy O’Brien offers his advice on smart planning for a smooth journey.
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Oct 5, 2020
Ep 1 – It starts with…transformational leadership
Telco needs disruptive leaders with the courage to drive change. Find out what sets these trailblazers apart and why it takes big changes to big things to succeed.
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Oct 1, 2020
Telco in 20 – Subscribe now!
You’ve found my podcast! Telco in 20 presents my vision for where the telco industry will be in 20 years and how savvy leaders will get there. New episodes, specifically for telco executives, drop every two weeks. Get the latest insights and best practices – and enjoy a few laughs!
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