< Previousand capital efficiency. Many such efforts will focus on cloud migration programs, especially Operational Support Systems (OSS) transformation. We also expect increasing service provider focus on automation. Initially, most automation initiatives will be dominated by basic machine learning (ML), as AI applications for automating complex service provider networks are still in their infancy. For many operators, big questions remain around the costs of building and training models, the risks of training on poor or biased data, and looming regulatory uncertainty around AI in some markets. As a result, we expect 2024 automation efforts to focus on lab consolidation, automating specific network lifecycle and DevOps processes, and cloud migration, where automation will become increasingly important as service providers embrace more complex multi-cloud/ hybrid cloud environments. One particularly exciting area for service provider automation: improving energy efficiency. We expect intelligent automation to provide early wins in 2024 for service providers seeking to lower energy costs and reduce CO2 emissions. As these efforts evolve, especially paired with more advanced AI, operators will have an opportunity to achieve huge sustainability gains across their entire network and operational footprints in 2025 and beyond. Prediction: AI will continue to drive data centre evolution AI is already transforming data centres, triggering massive investments by large and medium-size cloud service providers to build out AI fabrics to keep pace with demand. In 2024, look for intense focus and investment in GPUs and other back-end infrastructure for large learning clusters. Cloud service providers will also be looking to beef up front-end inferencing and investing in faster interconnect technologies to enable it. We expect Ethernet to dominate these front-end networks, and for 800G adoption to grow rapidly among Tier-1 cloud service providers next year as 51.2Tbps switches reach the market. Even in the back-end, during 2024 and 2025 we will see new network designs come to the fore that allow for high-speed Ethernet as a viable alternative to InfiniBand. Designed for high-performance computing, proprietary InfiniBand technology can deliver the needed throughput and latency, but Ethernet offers a secure, ubiquitous, and cost-effective option. Look for a gradual evolution beginning next year, as cloud service providers start deploying Ethernet in parallel to InfiniBand. Indeed, we expect more cloud service providers to view Ethernet as essential for the long-term evolution of AI infrastructure within the data centre, both front- and back-end, simply due to the huge volume of processing that AI demands. Prediction: More service providers will start using network digital twins Across the telecom industry, service providers are advancing towards the end-to-end, AI-powered, self- driving networks of the future. They won’t reach the end of that journey overnight, but in 2024, they will take a major step forward with growing adoption of Network Digital Twins. Digital Twins can help service providers overcome some of their most pressing operational challenges - chiefly, the time-consuming, error-prone manual processes that they typically rely on today in areas like maintenance engineering. Traditionally, maintenance upgrades and changes to the live network must be performed during maintenance windows. Even then, manual maintenance processes still frequently introduce errors and disrupt customers. This is because modern, real-world networks are just so complex, it’s impossible to fully test out many changes in-depth before implementing them. Enter Network Digital Twins. By maintaining highly accurate, real-time virtual models of the network, service providers gain the flexibility to more thoroughly validate changes before applying them. Paired with growing use of automation, they can experiment, evaluate, and learn more quickly how to optimise new service deployments, all while reducing errors and outages in the live network. Prediction: private networks will continue gaining ground as both customer demand and service provider capabilities advance The market for Enterprise Private Networks saw slow but steady adoption throughout 2023. In 2024, we expect Private Networks to see significant growth - and become a meaningful source of incremental revenue - thanks to rising demand from enterprises, as well as government and military customers. Among early adopters last year, commercial Private Networks typically showed an ROI within 6 months or less. Indeed, for certain 5G-enabled use cases, customers demonstrated impressive business outcomes in reducing downtime and improving productivity. Customers saw big wins in areas like: Ultra-high-definition video monitoring: Private Network- enabled ‘AI vision’ solutions have many potential applications, but customers have found it extremely valuable in areas like factory supply line monitoring and fault detection. Ultra-HD video monitoring can detect damage to manufactured components in real time, that would be difficult or impossible to notice with the human eye. These solutions can prevent costly production errors or damage to manufacturing equipment, avoiding hugely expensive repairs and downtime. Augmented reality: Many large enterprises - including service providers - face extremely high costs for remote maintenance. For communication networks, pipelines, power grids and other infrastructure with a large, FEATURES 20distributed footprint - faults or breakages typically require expert engineers to be dispatched out to remote locations. As a result, repairs often translate to multiple days of expensive downtime and lost productivity. With private networks capable of supporting AR however, onsite personnel can use AR to do things like overlaying schematics on equipment and performing real-time guided repairs. Use cases like these allow less skilled local employees to fix more problems, much more quickly and inexpensively. Government and military: Military agencies have also been exploring 5G Private Networks and AR tools to support maintenance and training activities in the field. At forward operating bases, for example, they have urgent requirements to deploy and maintain machinery and vehicles, and may not be able to wait for an expert engineer. With Private Networks and AR, military and government agencies can extend enhanced capabilities and insights anywhere, even to the most remote, inhospitable locations. These use cases hold enormous potential for the service providers, enabling them, as well as their customers. In a recent survey conducted by STL Partners, enterprise stakeholders expressed willingness to pay a premium for Private Networks - provided that operators can guarantee business outcomes under SLAs. As demand grows in the coming year, look for service providers to build up their SLA management and monetisation capabilities for Private Networks, with a focus on providing clarity into the ROI of new use cases, and peace of mind around their sustainable long-term value. Relatedly, growth in enterprise private networks will also fuel increased investment in Edge Computing. It’s already clear that many enterprises have stiff requirements for controlling security and data privacy onsite. At the same time, many of the most compelling private network use cases - especially those using latency-sensitive or AI-/ML-driven applications - will benefit from local application processing. To meet this growing demand, look for service providers to increasingly bundle private network connectivity with edge computing as part of a combined offering. FEATURES 21THE TELECOMS INDUSTRY TRENDS THAT WILL DOMINATE 2024 Nick Poyner, managing director, Rubix VT www.rubixvt.com FEATURES 22As we hurtle towards 2024, telecoms professionals should take stock of the trends which look set to gather momentum next year to position their businesses for success. The exciting technologies of standalone 5G and cloud computing will be two of the main key drivers of change within the industry next year. Both promise to improve speed and scalability, data latency and general efficiency, while also driving the development of other technological applications in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, the internet of things and edge computing within the telecoms industry. These innovations will herald a new era for business change. Sustainability also looks set to be a key trend which telecoms businesses should embrace to stay ahead of the curve. Standalone 5G Standalone 5G will be a major trend to watch for 2024. Currently 5G must rely on 4G, but it will soon evolve into standalone 5G, increasing the potential applications, as well as speed and data latency. Standalone 5G also has the benefit of supporting edge computing and network slicing technologies that can improve the speed at which users can send and receive data, improving business efficiencies. Cloud computing The worldwide end-user spending on public cloud services is forecast to grow 20.4% to a total of $678.8 billion in 2024, up from $563.6 billion in 2023, according to the latest forecast from Gartner. Sid Nag, VP analyst at Gartner said cloud has become essentially USTRY TRENDS THAT NATE 2024 FEATURES 23indispensable but forecasted cloud innovation showed no sign of slowing down and will be especially important as GenAI adoption expands. Cloud computing promises more flexible, safer and scalable options for both businesses and public services. The flexibility of cloud computing is emerging as a major telecom trend in 2024 as cloud-based infrastructure and business platforms will now have the potential to expand and contract their cloud resources to meet demand. Its cost-effectiveness improves customer experience and improves the latency of platforms with improving efficiency and reduced service slowdowns during periods of high demand. Both standalone 5G and cloud computing will drive telecommunication technology in 2024 by offering mobility, speed, scalability and innovation in the following areas: Artificial intelligence (AI) AI has been a hot topic for 2023 and it will dominate the telecoms news agenda next year too. It has the potential to deliver large quantities of data to telecom operators which will offer telecoms businesses the chance to improve customer service, as well as develop new products at speed. Telecoms companies will also be able to harness the power of AI to monitor their network and recognise network operating problems that could disrupt service and therefore mean they can enrich the customer experience by providing a more seamless and uninterrupted service. Cybersecurity Security looks set to be a major focus for 2024 thanks to the sheer volume of private, personal and commercially sensitive data which is managed by telecoms companies. Of course, this also requires protection from unauthorised and criminal activities. Cybersecurity has become a prominent trend in the telecoms industry in terms of prevention, but also in terms of responding to threats and restoring services and data effectively. Telecoms companies will need to implement 360° cybersecurity FEATURES 24strategies, in areas such as mesh architecture where every connected device has its own security context rather than within the confines of an overall IT framework. Internet of Things (IOT) Telecommunications enables IOT (device to device connectivity), which allows for information to be exchanged, collated and monitored between different equipment and locations locally and at a distance. IOT has many applications in both the B2B and B2C sectors, but with the advance of standalone 5G and the increased implementation of edge computing there are a number of IOT activities which will be supported more effectively. These include the collection of real time data, streamlining inventory and HR management activities, increasing the speed and efficiency of data transfers and gathering better quality customer data to improve the customer experience. Sustainability Sustainability in the telecoms sector promises to be big news as customers become increasingly environmentally aware and seek out businesses which mirror these views. Telecoms companies should introduce schemes which support the right to repair hardware for consumers and reduce their carbon footprint through energy-saving initiatives by using green energy sources. As the climate emergency continues, this is a trend which will only gather momentum. Consider businesses such as Swisscom, which is a sustainable company that aims to be climate neutral across its entire value chain by 2025. It hopes to achieve this through avoidance, reduction and offsetting emissions. It hopes to achieve this ambition by empowering its customers to reduce their own carbon footprint through Swisscom products and services. The pace of change in 2024 will be fast. But it’s the businesses that can pivot and embrace standalone 5G and cloud computing, as we herald in the age of artificial intelligence and work together to reduce our environmental impact that will stand the best chance of success. FEATURES 25Back to the future: Bringing the cloud back on-premise The shift from on-premise to the public cloud appears inexorable. Vast numbers of organisations continue to take the strategic decision to exploit the storage and applications provided by hyperscalers, won over by the ostensible benefits of flexibility and cost models. But is this really the most operationally cost effective, efficient and secure approach to building a technology infrastructure? Far too many companies have fallen foul of the extra costs required for support and security and the hidden costs in storage models. They have failed to realise the promised operational flexibility. Add in escalating security risk, serious latency problems and concerns about vendor lock in, and there is a growing recognition that a public cloud strategy is, in fact, both more expensive and higher risk. So, what is the alternative? While on-premise is clearly a solution to both security and latency concerns, few companies could even consider either significant capital investment in new hardware or the need to rebuild in- house IT teams. How can companies retain the benefits of flexible, usage-based pricing yet reduce costs and improve security? Mark Grindey, CEO, Zeus Cloud UKBSS, explains why it’s time to go “back to the future” and build an in-house, on-premise private cloud. Buying the myth Organisations of every size, across private and public sector, have bought into the idea that a shared IT infrastructure offers better value for money than a dedicated, on-premise set up. As a result, the UK cloud computing market is now worth £7.5 billion - and its domination by just three vendors is being investigated by the CMA. But this review, designed to address concerns raised by Ofcom about exit fees, the lack of flexibility and the structure of financial agreements, while valid, is a distraction from the biggest problem: the cost of public cloud services is typically double the equivalent on- premise set up. Every single organisation using one of the big three hyperscalers is effectively paying twice as much as they should for essential IT systems, including storage and application hosting. Even worse, they are paying for a service that is significantly less secure and typically less well supported than an on-premise alternative. Security is becoming a very real concern for business reliant on the public cloud. By default, the dominance of the big three hyperscalers makes them a prime target for hackers. Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks on these organisations are occurring almost continuously, creating huge security vulnerability. Not only can a DDoS attack prevent access to key Mark Grindey, CEO, Zeus Cloud UKBSS – www.zeuscloud.co.uk FEATURES 26services, causing serious operational issues; but, more dangerously, expose vulnerabilities in the security posture that can be used to access critical data. So why are organisations still opting, in large numbers, to pay through the nose for a service that is less secure and less flexible than on-premise alternatives? Hidden costs Of course, at first glance, the cloud model is appealing, especially the shift from capital expenditure (capex) to operational expenditure (opex). The idea that costs are known, with a set monthly subscription, is compelling. The option to scale up and down in line with demand is appealing, especially when compared to the challenges of spinning up new servers within traditional on-premise models. However, it is the hidden costs of the cloud that have caught so many companies by surprise. The hyperscalers’ financial calculators look simple; but buried in the small print is the information that every additional slice of service and support costs more. The extra - and much needed - security, costs more. Storage cost models are also disturbingly opaque: the promised price per terabyte looks great, until a company discovers it is being charged not just to store data but also to delete it; that uploads are free but the business is then charged for every object downloaded. The monthly bill can often be two, even three times the expected amount, and that creates a huge hole in the planned budget. Add in the limitations on bandwidth, the additional charges for cpu or RAM, plus the fact that if the business is using VMWare, it will be paying again based on those same usage factors, and it is little wonder that the cost of the public cloud has far exceeded any CTO’s original expectations. New model gaining ground So how can businesses achieve the required level of security at an affordable cost, without having to revert to large and unaffordable capital expenditure? The answer is to retake control and bring equipment back on premise - while also retaining the benefits of cloud technology, including remote support and flexible finance and usage models to meet operational requirements. A growing number of Service Integration and Management (SIAM) companies have recognised the fundamental issues associated with public cloud services and are offering this ‘back to the future’ on- premise model with the essential flexibility. Servers can be spun up on-premise as required, with costs linked to usage. Support is included and, by moving back on- premise, the security risks are allayed. For any business concerned about the need to rebuild a server room or employ dedicated tech experts, neither is an issue. The latest generation of servers can be run at higher temperatures, which means there is no need to recreate the air-conditioned server rooms of the past. The servers can simply be located within existing network rooms or offices. Or, if the business lacks space, the entire system can be securely co-located within a dedicated and locked rack. Tech support is included as part of the service, with providers leveraging the remote, open source technology used to deliver cloud services to cost effectively ensure the on-premise systems are working effectively. Future-proofing Bringing this vital infrastructure back into the business is not just cheaper, but inherently more secure. Rather than the open, public access model required by the large hyperscalers, an on-premise set up takes the opposite approach: everything is locked down first, with access opened up only as required using highly secure tunnels to safeguard the business. Further, because the entire private cloud set-up is owned by the company, any required security changes can be made immediately. There is none of the interconnected public cloud risk that has led to devastating, extended attacks across key public services in recent years. The ability to regain this level of control is encouraging growing numbers of organisations across both the public and private sectors to actively bring data and systems back in house. These organisations have serious concerns regarding data security. They are unhappy about the growing latency issues associated with the additional layers of security the hyperscalers are having to implement, a problem that vanishes when systems are on-premise. In addition, there is a recognition that a reliance on the public cloud adds operational risk: any interruption to the internet connection leaves an entire organisation unable to operate. The tide is turning. The public cloud has its place. It is an ideal location for hosting a web site or public-facing apps. But with growing recognition that every single IT deployment would be both cheaper and more secure with an on-premise set up, attitudes are changing. It’s time to regain control, go back to the future and implement an on-premise private cloud. FEATURES 27FEATURES 28As the world progresses to create connected cities of the future, the everyday use of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the metaverse is only expected to grow. However, it is significant to note that these innovations have high power and bandwidth requirements. In fact, according to a recent report published by Proximity Data Centres (PDC), an AI rack today could use the same energy as 25 residential homes. To harness the power of these bandwidth-intensive innovations in the long term, data centres must leverage dark fibre networks. These reliable networks consume less power and have high capacity, proving to be highly beneficial. Delivering high-capacity and low-latency, darkfibre networks lay the foundations for these technologies to bring futuristic cities into reality. In fact, the global dark fibre market, which is currently valued at $6.6 billion in 2023, is estimated to reach $11.9 billion by 2028, recording a staggering CAGR of 12.5% throughout the forecast period. Dark fibre creates a vast wealth of benefits for businesses, an advantage which is elevated further through the use of edge computing. Edge computing is a form of IT architecture in which computing and storage resources are deployed, using data centres, at the location in which the data is produced. This type of architecture eliminates the time lag in data sharing, as data does not need to travel to and from the cloud, reducing the reliance on high internet bandwidth and connectivity speeds. This can be implemented into a myriad of use cases. For example, to support the gaming industry, which is set to be worth $300 billion by 2025, or to aid in the continued research and emergence of technologies such as AI and VR. Rising pressures Recent years have seen a sharp increase in bandwidth requirements, with the popularity of streaming services such as Netflix and YouTube placing enormous strain on networks. These applications require substantial bandwidth in order to provide high-quality and seamless streaming. With the focus continuing to By Sean Lowry, Chief Technology Officer at Glide, glide.co.uk Dark Fibre: Preparing the fibre cities of the future FEATURES 29Next >