As behemoths like Google, Meta and Netflix continue to devour bandwidth across the network value chain, the common refrain among network providers who are investing so much to build the infrastructure on which platforms like these rely has been, “What about us?”
“Over the past six years, average total shareholder returns have been almost flat across the internet access connectivity segment, while other segments have at least doubled investors’ stakes and some user interface players have delivered almost six-fold returns over the same period,” the network trade organization GSMA states in its Internet Value Chain 2022 report. “At a time when a greater load is being placed on internet connectivity infrastructure, requiring network operators to increase speed, capacity and coverage, their business model is being squeezed.”
