Editing Telecommunications industry

{{Short description|Telephone companies and Internet service providers}}
The '''telecommunications industry''' within the sector of [[information and communication technology]] comprises all [[telecommunication]]/[[telephone company|telephone companies]] and [[Internet service provider]]s, and plays a crucial role in the evolution of [[mobile communication]]s and the [[information society]].

[[Telephone call]]s continue to be the industry's largest revenue generator, but due to advances in network technology, telecom today is less about [[Telephone call|voice]] and increasingly about text ([[messaging]], [[email]]) and images (e.g. [[video streaming]]).{{cn|date=March 2025}}
[[High-speed Internet]] [[Internet access|access]] for computer-based data applications such as [[Broadband service provider|broadband information service]]s and [[Interactive media|interactive entertainment]] is pervasive. [[Digital subscriber line]] (DSL) is the main broadband telecom technology. The fastest growth comes from ([[value-added service|value-added]]) [[network service|service]]s delivered over [[mobile network]]s.<ref name=investopedia/>

{{quote|The [[telecommunication|telecom]] sector continues to be at the epicenter for growth, innovation, and disruption for virtually any industry. [[Mobile device]]s and related [[broadband]] [[internet connectivity|connectivity]] continue to be more and more embedded in the fabric of society today and they are key in driving the momentum around some key trends such as [[video streaming]], [[Internet of Things]] (IoT), and [[mobile payment]]s.|Deloitte<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/technology-media-and-telecommunications/articles/telecommunications-industry-outlook.html|title=2017 Telecommunications Industry Outlook - Deloitte US|website=Deloitte United States}}</ref>}}

{{quote|Think of telecommunications as the world's biggest machine. Strung together by complex [[telecommunications network|network]]s, [[telephone]]s, [[mobile phone]]s and [[internet]]-linked [[personal computer|PC]]s, the global system touches nearly all of us. It allows us to speak, share thoughts and do business with nearly anyone, regardless of where in the world they might be. Telecom operating companies make all this happen.|Investopedia<ref name=investopedia>{{cite web|url=http://www.investopedia.com/features/industryhandbook/telecom.asp|title=The Industry Handbook: The Telecommunications Industry|date=7 January 2004}}</ref>}}

Insight Research<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.insight-corp.com/reports/review15.asp|title=Insight Research - Telecom Market Research Reports, Industry Analysis, Custom Consulting Services|website=www.insight-corp.com}}</ref> projected that telecommunications services [[revenue]] worldwide would grow from $2.2 [[Trillion (short scale)|trillion]] in 2015 to $2.4 trillion in 2019.<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/worldwide-telecommunications-industry-revenue-to-hit-24-trillion-in-2020-says-insight-research-300047963.html|title=Worldwide Telecommunications Industry Revenue to hit $2.4 Trillion in 2020, says Insight Research}}</ref>

==Market segmentation==

Of all the [[customer]] [[market (economics)|market]]s, residential and [[Small and medium-sized enterprises|small business]] markets are the toughest. With hundreds of players in the market, competitors rely heavily on price; success rests largely on brand name strength and investment in efficient [[telecommunications billing|billing]] systems. The [[corporation|corporate]] market remains the industry's favorite. Big corporate customers are concerned mostly about the quality and reliability of their telephone calls and data delivery while being less price-sensitive than residential customers. [[Multinational corporation|Multinationals]], spend heavily on telecom infrastructure and premium services like [[Network security|high-security]] [[private network]]s and [[videoconferencing]]. Network connectivity can also be provided to other telecom companies by wholesaling circuits to heavy network users like internet service providers and large corporations. 
<ref name=investopedia/>

===Value chain===
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+ 2018 share of revenues by segment<ref>{{cite web|publisher=EY|url=https://webforms.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/ey-global-telecommunications-study-navigating-the-road-to-2020/$FILE/ey-global-telecommunications-study-navigating-the-road-to-2020.pdf|title=Global telecommunications study: navigating the road to 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409202712/https://webforms.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/ey-global-telecommunications-study-navigating-the-road-to-2020/$FILE/ey-global-telecommunications-study-navigating-the-road-to-2020.pdf|archive-date=2016-04-09|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
!segment
! % share of revenues
|-
|Infrastructure and platform vendors || 5
|-
|Device vendors || 20
|-
|Operators || 55
|-
|[[Over-the-top content]] (OTT), content, advertising services || 10
|-
|Retail and distribution || 10
|}

==Global players==
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Top global telecom companies in 2013 <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mbaskool.com/fun-corner/top-brand-lists/7573-top-10-telecom-companies-of-the-world-2013.html|title=Top 10 Telecom Companies of the World 2013}}</ref>
|-
! scope="col" | Company
! scope="col" | Country
! scope="col" | [[Market value]] ($ Bn)
! | [[Revenue]]
! | [[Profit (accounting)|Profit]]
|-
|[[China Mobile]] || China || 213.8 || 88.8 || 20.5
|-
|[[AT&T]] || USA || 200.1 || 127.3 || 7.3
|-
|[[Verizon Communications]] || USA || 137.3 || 115.7 || 0.9
|-
|[[Vodafone]] || UK || 135.7 || 74.4  || 11.1
|-
|[[América Móvil]] || Mexico || 70.7 || 60.2 || 7.1
|-
|[[Telefónica]] || Spain || 67.1 || 82.3  || 5.2
|- 
|[[Telstra]] || Australia || 58.4 || 25.8 || 3.5
|-
|[[Nippon Telegraph & Tel]] || Japan || 58.2 || 127 || 5.6
|-
|[[Deutsche Telekom]] || Germany || 48.8 || 76.7 || -7
|-
|[[Softbank]] || Japan || 47.2 || 38.78|| 3.8 
|}

== Mergers and acquisitions ==
Around 24,800 M&A deals have been conducted in the telecommunication industry with either the acquirer or the target company coming from the telecommunications sector. In total over 5.712 bil. USD have been spent on M&A between 1985 and 2018 in this industry.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://imaa-institute.org/m-and-a-by-industries/|title=M&A by Industries - Institute for Mergers, Acquisitions and Alliances (IMAA)|work=Institute for Mergers, Acquisitions and Alliances (IMAA)|access-date=2018-02-28|language=en-US}}</ref> There has only been one big M&A wave around 1999 and 2000. In most other industry there are three waves between 1990 and 2018. Since 1999 deal value shrunk by -90.12% and is expected to stagnate in 2018.

Here is a list of the top ten telecommunication deals in history ranked by volume:
{| class="wikitable"
! Date Announced
! Acquiror Name
! Acquiror Mid Industry
! Acquiror Nation
! Target Name
! Target Mid Industry
! Target Nation
! Value of Transaction ($mil)
|-
|11/14/1999
|Vodafone AirTouch PLC
|Wireless
|United Kingdom
|Mannesmann AG
|Wireless
|Germany
|202,785.13
|-
|09/02/2013
|Verizon Communications Inc
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|Verizon Wireless Inc
|Wireless
|United States
|130,298.32
|-
|03/05/2006
|AT&T Inc
|Wireless
|United States
|BellSouth Corp
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|72,671.00
|-
|05/11/1998
|SBC Communications Inc
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|Ameritech Corp
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|62,592.54
|-
|01/15/1999
|Vodafone Group PLC
|Wireless
|United Kingdom
|AirTouch Communications Inc
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|60,286.87
|-
|01/26/2000
|Shareholders
|Other Financials
|Canada
|Nortel Networks Corp
|Telecommunications Equipment
|Canada
|59,973.57
|-
|06/14/1999
|Qwest Commun Intl Inc
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|US WEST Inc
|Other Telecom
|United States
|56,307.03
|-
|06/24/1998
|AT&T Corp
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|Tele-Communications Inc
|Cable
|United States
|53,592.49
|-
|07/28/1998
|Bell Atlantic Corp
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|GTE Corp
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|53,414.58
|-
|04/22/1999
|AT&T Corp
|Telecommunications Services
|United States
|MediaOne Group Inc
|Cable
|United States
|49,278.87
|}

==Recent developments==
The telecommunications sector has seen a large increase in the recent years. Whereas in 2015 there were 3.3 billion active mobile broadband subscriptions worldwide, in 2020 there were around 7.7 billion. This increase was due, in part at least, to the deployment of [[4G LTE]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/2103396/intelligence_report_key_global_telecom_industry |title=Intelligence Report - Key Global Telecom Industry Statistics |publisher=researchandmarkets.com |accessdate=2021-12-12}}</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], telecommunications was used to track the spread of [[COVID-19]] and was use by [[remote work]]ers to conduct business during the [[COVID-19 lockdowns]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/technology-media-and-telecommunications/our-insights/the-telecom-sector-in-2020-and-beyond |title=The telecom sector in 2020 and beyond |publisher= www.mckinsey.com |accessdate=2021-02-05}}</ref>

==Societies==
*[[Telecommunications Industry Association]]
*[[IEEE Communications Society]]
*[[:Category:Telecommunications organizations]]

==See also==
*[[List of mobile network operators]]
*[[List of telephone operating companies]]
*[[Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on science and technology#Telecommunications]]
*[[:Category:Telecommunications companies]]
*{{in title|telecommunications in}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{industries}}

[[Category:Telecommunication industry| ]]
[[Category:Telecommunications economics]]
[[Category:Industries (economics)]]