Complete mobile access to internet services available on most PCs and laptops has become a requirement for most of us and at the center of this movement are 4G networks. 

Without the ability to have open bandwidth packages, we would not have been able to stream every game available during the World Cup nor would have smartphones enjoyed their massive popularity…  but what are the implications of a 10,000 percent increase in mobile data downloaded by smartphones by 2015, as claimed by Rajeev Suri, Nokia Siemens Networks CEO?

Network providers need to deal with the challenge of keeping up with the mass usage of 4G capabilities once implemented on a wider scale.  With mobile data and wire line bandwidth demand predicted to grow with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of respectively 130 percent and 34 percent, stronger infrastructure is needed across the industry. 

Operators can address the growth in bandwidth demand with increasing capital expenditures (Capex), but, Eric Kuisch, GM Network Services at KPN and attendee of NG Telecom Summit 2010, believes the only sustainable way forward is proactively controlling bandwidth supply and demand. At peak time, a small percentage of customers utilize most of the bandwidth. Dynamic Bandwidth Control improves customer experience, while operators benefit from reduced Capex and additional revenue streams from new services. 

It’s going to be a 4G world – ubiquitous broadband everywhere (LTE/WiMax, FTTX, femtocells) plus ubiquitous cloud services providing service applications, computing horsepower and storage. This will make today’s iPhone/ app stores look like clunky prototypes and further questions arise for the role and development of Telecom’s.

What kind of business models might exist; how will money flow round?  What are the implications for today’s communications service providers and how can they avoid being relegated to the sidelines as bit-pipe providers?   These are just a few of the questions getting tackled at NG Telecom Summit 2010 by leaders in the industry like Jens Backes, VP Mobile Broadband at T-Mobile International, Javier Garcia De Castro, Director of Strategy at Telefonica, Ger Coolen, CTO at Vodafone Netherlands, and Felix Frueh, VP Technology & Products, Deutsche Telekom.

There are a number of areas where cooperation is going to be what provides Mobile Network Operators with the competitive edge over the newest entrant to the mobile world of companies like Google and Apple.  When MNOs do not provide value to the customers and new common initiatives seem to instigate new chances to provide value to customers, a consequence could potentially be the inability to improve the revenue potential of Telecom operators.