The 5G-aliser: May 2022 Update – From Telco to TechCo

Created in collaboration with STL Partners, the 5G-aliser began its life back in 2020, aiming to provide a useful graphic through which to measure the ebbs and flows of 5G development and the individual factors having the greatest impact on this process. Since then, the graphic has become a springboard for the discussion of key issues affecting the wider telecoms industry, with 5G the focal point.

In this instalment of the 5G-aliser, two topics stood out as having risen to prominence, not only in discussions of 5G itself but as part of a wider dialogue around the ever-evolving telecommunications industry: geopolitics and the telcos’ strategic shift towards becoming technology businesses.

Check out the video below for our live discussion surrounding these key topics.

Volatile geopolitics a driving change in the 5G ecosystem
With the increasing politicisation of the telecoms sector in recent years, particularly with regards to ongoing tensions between China and the US, geopolitics has long been an influential wildcard factor on the 5G-aliser. However, none of us could have predicted the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the enormous impact this would have on the global economy and telecoms supply chains.

With regards to 5G, the war has put Russia’s 5G development into a precarious position. One of the big talking points in the last few years with regards to geopolitics in telecoms has been the direct or indirect exclusion of Huawei from a number of Western markets…

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