Is a more open telco at odds with the simplification of the supplier roster?

• Operators want open, multivendor, best-of-breed networks
• They also want a broader set of vendors from which to choose
• But is this possible without making the supplier roster way more complex?
• This is just one of the topics being discussed during this year's Great Telco Debate

As network operators lean towards more open, disaggregated, best-of-breed architectures in the hope of gaining efficiencies and engaging with a broader more competitive vendor ecosystem, will they end up with a far more complex supplier roster that’s more trouble than it’s worth?

That’s just one of the topics in the spotlight during the Great Telco Debate, during which motions linked to key industry trends are debated and then voted on by you, the TelecomTV community, to decide whether each motion is carried or rejected. 

With regards to the open network debate, the motion being debated is: 

• A more open telco is at odds with the simplification of the supplier roster

You can check out the on-demand debate on this topic – The Open Telco: How do we harness the innovation required to revamp the network? – where you can also vote for or against the motion: Then put a note in your diary for the live debate session on the same topic, which takes place on Tuesday 8^th December at 11:00 EST / 16:00 UK / 17:00 CET.

Just as importantly, please do register for the event (it’s free, quick and easy) and submit a question that can be put to our ‘expert witness’ speakers during the live session.

The open telco motion is one of six being tackled during the Great Telco Debate, which is now in its eight year and, as ever, hosted by renowned industry analyst Chris Lewis and Graham Wilde, CEO and co-Founder, BWCS. The other motions are:

• 2020 has been a pivotal year for the telecoms industry
• The sustainability journey will have a major impact on the telecoms industry
• Telcos are in the optimum position to manage customer happiness in an increasingly digital world
• Motion: Telcos need to move quickly to stop the hyperscalers encroaching on their turf
• Investors will drive a separation of the industry into ‘infraco’ and ‘servco’ models

Each motion has its own on-demand debate that can be viewed right now: You will find the full agenda and links to the debate videos right here.

And each of our three live debate sessions running 8^th-10^th December will tackle two of the motions, so there’ll be plenty to discuss and lots of experts ready to answer your questions.

Check out the full details of the motions, the speakers and the times of the live sessions at The Great Telco Debate 2020.

-       Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV