Monetization beyond connectivity: 2025-2026 trends

The Platform Revenue Shift

Operators are evolving from connectivity providers to digital platform companies. Beyond traditional data plans and network APIs, new revenue streams are emerging. Edge computing as a service lets enterprises run workloads on operator edge infrastructure co-located with cell sites, reducing latency for AI inference, AR/VR rendering, and IoT processing. Network-as-a-Service offers enterprises programmable network capabilities through self-service portals where they configure slices, QoS policies, and security rules without operator intervention. Data insights products — anonymized and…