A summary of key insights and discussions from the quarterly CPaaS Acceleration Alliance CSP roundtable with industry leaders from IntelePeer, Syniverse, Telia, Zain, and Enreach.
Introduction
The CPaaS Acceleration Alliance organized another CSP roundtable session to explore the rapidly growing Communication Platform as a Service (CPaaS) community, which is expected to become a $100 billion industry in the next few years. Industry leaders from service providers IntelePeer, Syniverse, Telia, Zain and Enreach participated in this engaging and informative discussion, which covered a range of topics, from defining CPaaS to exploring its challenges, opportunities, and future plans.
Defining CPaaS
During the roundtable, participants provided their perspectives on what CPaaS means and how it can be understood. CPaaS was described as a platform for contact center and business user automation solutions, an orchestration layer for telcos, and a messaging service for enterprises. Clearly CPaaS means many different things to different people, depending on their position as a provider or user of CPaaS!
One participant noted that CPaaS is often viewed as “everything and nothing,” making it challenging to differentiate. The discussion then highlighted various benefits of CPaaS, including greater stability, faster time-to-market, and the potential to replace traditional infrastructure.
Challenges in the CPaaS Industry
The participants shared the challenges they face in the CPaaS industry, which include:
- Difficulty in selling CPaaS compared to other cloud communication services like UCaaS and CCaaS.
- A strong focus on the technical aspects of CPaaS, often at the expense of understanding its broader value proposition.
- Sales challenges, particularly the need for engineering and consultative overlays to guide customers in understanding CPaaS’s potential.
- Balancing short-term sales goals with long-term business opportunities in the CPaaS market.
Exploring CPaaS Pricing Models
One particular challenge discussed was the complexity of CPaaS pricing models. The participants discussed various approaches, such as offering flat-rate pricing with different tiers for carriers, as well as the need to balance operational expenses and capital expenses. One participant suggested that telcos could take a premium pricing approach due to their known brand and trusted relationship. They suggested further research and collaboration to develop more effective and sustainable pricing models for the industry.
CPaaS Use Cases and Verticals
The roundtable participants delved into various use cases and verticals where CPaaS can make a significant impact. They highlighted the important role that telcos play in regulated and complex verticals like healthcare, logistics, and finance, and the potential for verticalization in messaging services. Some of the benefits of CPaaS in these use cases include cost reduction and increased efficiency.
It was interesting to hear from incumbents Telia and Zain about their successes bringing CPaaS solutions to their markets. One participant highlighted the role of telcos in healthcare, specifically mentioning hospitals, reminders, booking appointments, and scheduling as slowly changing but growing business opportunities.
Looking Ahead: Plans for 2023
The participants shared their plans and goals for 2023, which include:
- Accelerating sales and expanding market reach.
- Experimenting with new opportunities in the CPaaS industry.
- Educating the market, customers, and channels about the value of CPaaS.
- Investing in training and platform development to further enhance their offerings.
- Working and commercializing Telco API standardization as explored by Project Camara.
The CPaaS Acceleration Alliance helps with all of these, and at the upcoming CPaaS Conference & Expo in Amsterdam in September all of these subjects will be addressed extensively!
CPaaS Acceleration Alliance: The Community for CPaaS Growth and Innovation
The CPaaS Acceleration Alliance is a community dedicated to promoting the growth and innovation of the CPaaS industry. Through events like the roundtable session, the alliance provides a platform for sharing lessons learned, raising awareness, and fostering education about CPaaS. With the industry expected to reach $100 billion in the next few years, the alliance is poised to be the voice of this fast-growing industry.
In conclusion, the CPaaS Acceleration Alliance roundtable session provided key insights into the CPaaS industry, from its definition to the challenges facing it, pricing models, use cases, and plans for 2023. The importance of education, verticalisation, and pricing models, especially for telcos, emerged as key takeaways from the session. As the CPaaS industry continues to grow and evolve, the CPaaS Acceleration Alliance remains committed to promoting its growth and innovation.
My lifetime in IT and telecoms has been dedicated to innovation, building bridges and creating change. From the early days of cloud communications to working with operators on innovations and business development, and currently emphasizing APIs, CPaaS/CX and AI, my journey has been one of continuous evolution.
As founding partner at CPaaS Acceleration Alliance and The Next Cloud I'm privileged to help global telcos and techcos thrive in a fast changing world - through events, community building, strategy and global business development. I thrive on challenges and change, strategizing in cloud communications, and bringing people together for mutual success. Travel and continuous learning are my passions.
I believe the global communications industry is pivoting to prioritize customer experience and impactful solutions over mere technology and platforms, and we can tackle societal challenges by merging the strengths of corporates and innovators within new ecosystems.
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