The IT Pro Podcast: Making sense of the telco transformation
Network slicing and further 5G optimisation is needed, before we can fully turn to 6G

5G holds major potential for businesses, from improved speeds and the technology it enables such as the Internet of Things. But to unlock its true potential, and lay the groundwork for 6G, a number of new technologies have to be tapped.
To grasp opportunities like open RAN, network slicing, and private network environments, radical overhaul is necessary, to drive both innovation and revenue growth. Networking has never been more important across every aspect of life, and telcos hold a unique opportunity to win tomorrow with the right infrastructure investments today.
This week, we spoke to Manish Vyas, President, Communications, Media & Entertainment and CEO, Network Services at Tech Mahindra, to outline the future of the telecommunications industry, 5G/6G, and the opportunities provided by leading edge methodology.
Highlights
“And it's very clear that as they write, curate and architect software differently, it's going to just make deploying newer technologies, whether it is 6G, or it is anything around new products or new artificial intelligence type platforms, it will just become better because you just won't be able to drive a fast car on a very, very slow highway, right? And highway, in this case, is a high quality, open digital, very flexible digital architecture.”
“5G is really more of an overhaul, of not just the network, but also of the OSS and BSS. And unless everything is completely overhauled, and changed and dramatically transformed, one will not be able to derive the value from slicing as much as people want to, because we are as good as the weakest link in the food chain, right?”
“Some countries are already experimenting saying "okay, this is not just a spectrum licence, revenue opportunity for us. Maybe there is a lot more that can be done here". So I'm truly excited, so for anybody who says that hey, telco is an old industry, I like to say "wake up, telco is a very new industry", because our ability to connect, and their ability to connect and and create more value in this food chain is like tremendous. It's phenomenal.”
Read the full transcript here.
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Footnotes
- What is 5G and how far are we from rollout?
- What is 6G and how far are we from rollout?
- How will 6G transform the workplace?
- What 5G rollout failures mean for 6G
- What are the pros and cons of AI?
- UK and India align closer with tech investments ahead of FTA negotiations
- Cutting-edge 5G Open RAN lab set to open in the Midlands
- Vodafone partners with industry giants to develop Open RAN network
- UK government initiative will fund disruptive telecoms tech
- Vodafone and Ericsson complete UK's first 5G network slicing trial
- Nokia and Google score breakthrough in Android 13 network slicing
- Marketing and finance skill shortage is holding channel partners back – BT Wholesale
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