Monetizing NFV: Why is it So Hard?

Peter Jarich
Peter Jarich

Summary Bullets:

  • Selling NFV as a tool for helping operators grow their revenues – vs. save on OpEx and CapEx – is something vendors have struggled with.
  • Monetizing NFV, however, needs to be seen as a core part of the technology’s value proposition, by vendors and operators, alike.

Last week, in the aftermath of Mobile World Congress, we had a customer reach out to ask about memorable demos and announcements focused on customer experience, monetization and network functions virtualization (NFV). It wasn’t immediately clear if the question was about multiple, distinct topics or about virtualization in the service of customer experience and new revenues. While awaiting a clarification, however, a friendly debate around the relationship between virtualization and monetization developed between our Service Provider Infrastructure analysts. I’m not sure that we all ended up on the same page, but I think it’s fair to say some conclusions and points of agreement were reached. Continue reading “Monetizing NFV: Why is it So Hard?”