2021 telecoms preview: open RAN, towers and enterprise digitisation

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Before the pandemic, the telecoms sector was already undergoing significant changes from a raft of trends, including new network models, 5G commercialisation and servicing enterprise verticals. While the pace of change has continued in some respects, in others it has been masked, subdued or delayed as the reverberations from the pandemic occurred.
As we look ahead to 2021, a number of storylines will continue to run: the pandemic impact, commercialising 5G, new ways of designing/running mobile networks and the digitisation of the enterprise. This Insight Spotlight addresses the latter two, the others having been discussed in our previous piece.
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Throughout 2025, GSMA Intelligence has analysed developments and innovation spanning all areas of the telecoms industry and wider digital ecosystem. As the industry continues to evolve in 2026, how will the Research Themes change?
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