With the world population reaching 8 billion, the significance of connectivity has become more apparent than ever. Surpassing expectations, approximately 5.3 billion individuals, accounting for around 66 percent of the global population, are now connected to the Internet—an increase of 24 percent since 2019. At the heart of this global connectivity lies the wholesale voice businesses, telecom carriers, operators, mobile network operators (MNOs), and other service providers. These entities serve as the foundation of modern communication systems, acting as the backbone that enables seamless connectivity on a global scale.
Wholesale telecom voice businesses are intermediaries that facilitate voice, data, and messaging services between telecom operators and carriers on a large scale. Carriers, on the other hand, provide the underlying network infrastructure that enables voice and data to be transmitted across long distances, both domestically and internationally.
In recent years, the global telecom market has experienced remarkable growth, particularly in the post-COVID era. From $2.87 trillion in 2022, it has risen to $3.04 trillion in 2023, showcasing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.0%. This expansion reflects the increasing demand for telecom services and the crucial role they play in our digital society for communication and data exchange on a global scale.
Moreover, despite the growth in the telecom sector, telecom businesses and carriers have been struggling to maintain healthy profit margins due to settlement issues. The settlement and invoicing process has become increasingly complex and time-consuming, resulting in revenue loss. It's clear that the telecommunication industry is at a critical juncture and needs to undergo a transformation in its settlement process. This transformation holds the key to not only overcoming these challenges but also seizing new opportunities that lie ahead.
Transformation is the Key
Transformation is nothing new to the telecom industry, the industry that has been constantly evolving, transitioning from wired infrastructure to wireless connectivity. It has expanded beyond voice and visual signals to encompass text, audio, and video content exchange across multiple wireless networks. This transformation has been accompanied by significant improvements in data speeds, from GSM and CDMA to 3G, 4G, and the advent of 5G networks. These advancements enable faster data transfer and have paved the way for Over-The-Top (OTT) channels.
The telecom industry is constantly evolving to meet customers' demands and technological advancements. However, wholesale telecom businesses, service providers, and carriers, who are responsible for connecting the dots of global connectivity, are still using outdated methods for their own operations and settlements. In order to thrive in this new era, telcos must embrace technological advancements, capitalize on the opportunities they present, and reimagine their settlement layer by leveraging blockchain technology.
Challenges in Global Telecom Carrier Settlements
The telecom carrier settlement process faces significant challenges arising from a complex network of cross-border agreements involving third parties, lenders, and credit insurance providers. This intricacy leads to an array of issues, including extended remittance times, a lack of transparency, revenue loss due to currency conversion, and high overhead costs.
- Reliance on Intermediaries: One of the key challenges is the industry's dependence on intermediaries for various processes, including settlement and invoicing. These intermediaries can introduce complexities and delays, increasing operational costs and creating a higher risk of errors and discrepancies in transactions.
- Manual Intervention: Manual intervention in telecom processes adds to inefficiencies and introduces the potential for human errors. Tasks like generating invoices, reconciling accounts, and resolving disputes are often handled manually, resulting in delays, increased administrative workload, and a greater likelihood of inaccuracies. The lack of automation limits scalability and agility in business operations.
- Lack of Transparency: Transparency is a crucial factor in building trust within the telecom industry. Unfortunately, the current settlement process lacks transparency, making it difficult for telecom businesses to track payments and as a result, they end up spending time chasing payments.
The Impact of These Challenges on Operational Efficiency
The challenges in the settlement process within the telecom industry have far-reaching implications. They not only consume valuable time and resources but also hinder operational efficiency. The resulting inefficiencies contribute to increased costs, slower service delivery, and missed business opportunities. Moreover, settlement delays and disputes directly impact the revenue and margins of the businesses involved. This financial strain prevents them from focusing on evolving to meet customer demands, leading to substandard results and a negative impact on the overall customer experience.
Zeebu: Addressing Challenges and Bringing Disruption to the Telecom Carrier Industry
The telecom carrier industry is ripe for disruption by blockchain technology. The industry is large and complex, with transactions that are often slow, expensive, and opaque. Blockchain can help to simplify transactions, improve operational efficiencies, and foster trust and transparency among industry players.
Zeebu is an on-chain settlement platform that is specifically designed for the telecom carrier industry. By leveraging the power of Zeebu loyalty consumptive tokens and smart contracts, the platform aims to address the pain points in the telecom carrier industry by transforming the settlement experience.
The platform is built to address the slow and expensive settlement process. ZBU tokens streamline and accelerate settlements by eliminating the need for intermediaries. This can save telecom carriers time and effort, and it can also help to improve transparency and trust in the settlement process.
In addition to speeding up the settlement process, Zeebu also rewards both merchants and customers for successful invoice settlements using Zeebu loyalty consumptive tokens. The Zeebu loyalty program is a unique and innovative way designed to foster long-term relationships and boost profitability for both parties.
Zeebu empowers carriers to embrace the full potential of blockchain and embark on a transformative path toward success in the telecom carrier industry.
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About Zeebu
Zeebu is a pioneering on-chain B2B invoice settlement platform tailored for Telecom Carriers, streamlining cross-border payments with transaction times as rapid as 3-7 minutes.
With robust KYC protocols and non-custodial wallet support, Zeebu guarantees secure and transparent payments between Customers and merchants.
Staying true to the core principles of decentralization, Zeebu is shaping the future of B2B transactions, powered by $ZBU Loyalty Token.