Ericsson CEO envisions Networked Society

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Ericsson President and CEO Hans Vestberg stressed the power of a Networked Society in driving creativity and transforming lives, businesses and society during his keynote address at International CTIA Wireless 2011.

Speaking during the conference's "Wireless Health Day," Vestberg also cited the opportunities for health care and other industries to benefit from mobility, broadband, and cloud computing.

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Explaining that the world is in the midst of a technology revolution in which IT and telecommunications are coming together to create a Networked Society, Vestberg said:

"We see the benefits that are possible when things, as well as people, are connected intelligently," Vestberg said. "When one person is connected, their life changes; when everything is connected, the world changes. That is the essence of the Networked Society."

The average hospital today operates thousands of systems, computers and devices that often can't communicate with one another to share information, Vestberg said. Interoperability and standards would be one way to start solving this fragmented system.

"Our industry has the potential to bring solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges, not only in health care, but also in education and CO2 emissions," he said. "We can provide the tools to improve efficiency and spark innovation and creativity."

Vestberg called for collaborative efforts among peers, saying it is more important what we as an industry can do in the future than what Ericsson as a company can do today.

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Three waves of revenue for the mobile broadband

At the 5th Annual OSS BSS APAC Summit, networking company Ericsson spoke of the evolution of the mobile broadband market and outlined strategies that will enable operators to transform their operations to capture the full revenue potential of these changes. 

At the summit, Ericsson’s head of OSS/BSS Engagement Practice in South East Asia & Oceania, Tom Darell talked about the three waves of revenue development for the mobile broadband market, with the third wave characterised by a need for new business models to meet a “Networked Society”.

Ericsson envisions that the “Networked Society” will change the way people and society work, that by the year 2020, there will be 50 billion connected devices. This will bring about a wave of new services and devices, and different subscribers that will present a challenge for mobile operators to deliver the best user experience. 

Darell added, “In the new broadband-enabled and internet-hosted world, extensive coverage, speed and quality of the user connection are important differentiators for users, as with the desirability of devices, the coolness of the apps, and the cost of subscriptions.

"Today’s mobile broadband market is unlike the first wave where consumers were contented to be connected to the internet at the highest available speed. Now, as we move along the second wave, where the strong growth of mobile connected devices is creating usage of new and different types of services and applications, consumers are expecting similar levels of performance from a fixed internet connection on a mobile network.”

Differentiated services are the key to succeeding in a market with an ever-increasing variety of demands and expectations.

“Mobile broadband differentiation is about giving people exactly what they need and are willing to pay for — no more, no less. Optimised, scalable and cost efficient OSS and BSS systems are a crucial part of an operator’s success. They are the connection points between customers and partners, and an operator’s products and services, which is vital to meet and exceed user QoE."