Diversification beyond a telco’s core connectivity business is a necessity as various traditional services (e.g., fixed-line telephony, wireless telephony, and broadband offerings) commoditize. Telcos that successfully transition their business to newer edge computing and digital content services will remain relevant and succeed in the market.

The metaverse arena is expected to offer telcos a new battleground to position themselves as digital content aggregators and recoup their investment in evolving network infrastructure. A growing number of information and communications technology (ICT) megatrends are gaining force and helping to unlock the power of the metaverse.

The evolution of 5G, IoT, cloud-based technologies, low-code and no-code platforms, blockchain, edge computing, and 3D engines are some of the main building blocks of the ongoing digital transformation. Telecommunications operators need to capitalize on the technological developments shaping the evolution toward immersive experiences.

Telcos can leverage powerful technologies to bring the metaverse to life to create new business models, drive customer engagement, gain a competitive edge, and monetize existing network infrastructure.

This study explores the opportunities for telecommunication operators to become metaverse content aggregators in a market still in its nascent phases, but showing clear signs of growth. Frost & Sullivan expects that this analysis will provide telco operators with valuable insights to increase their footprint and penetration opportunities within the emerging metaverse space