IoT Goldmine Mobile Ecosystem Forum Webinar: Where the Real Wholesale Opportunities Are Hiding

Jun 22
4 min read

TecFutures recently participated in an expert panel to discuss this topic in detail. Moderated by Isabelle Paradis of MEF, she was joined by Sylvestre Becker-Babel of iBasis, Raphael Glatt of A1, Cedric Mauvielle of PCCW and Andrew Parkin-White and Phil Todd of TecFutures. Below is a summary of the key points of the discussion.

IoT is no longer in its infancy but the opportunities have not disappeared - it has fragmented, diversified, and scaled across hundreds of real-world deployments.

In an expert panel discussion, moderated by Isabelle Paradis of MEF and comprising Sylvestre Becker-Babel of iBasis, Raphael Glatt of A1, Cedric Mauvielle of PCCW and Andrew Parkin-White and Phil Todd from TecFutures, the panel discussed the drivers and dynamics of Wholesale IoT.

The discussion drew on a database of 325+ live cellular IoT use cases from TecFutures and broke down where value is actually being created today, and more importantly, where wholesalers are still missing out.

WATCH THE FULL WEBINAR ON DEMAND HERE

The IoT Wholesale Market Stands at an Inflection Point

After years of incremental growth, traffic volumes are accelerating driven by high-data use cases such as video streaming, vehicle telemetry, and large-scale device deployments, even as the traditional connectivity slice of total IoT value is shrinking disproportionately. That paradox creates both strategic risk and new opportunity for wholesalers. This article synthesizes the webinar discussion and outlines a pragmatic agenda wholesalers can follow to capture differentiated, sustainable revenue.

The State of The Market: More Traffic, Concentrated Value

Panellists agreed on two empirical trends. First, traffic growth is substantial: the group cited forecasts of a fourfold increase in traffic over the next five years and pointed to a recent 18‑month step-change in volume. Second, value is concentrated unevenly across use cases. Analysis of the TecFutures 325‑use‑case dataset showed many applications consume data but only a smaller subset delivers attractive ARPU and low-to-moderate competitive intensity (the combination of which sustains wholesale margins).

The implication of this is that not all traffic is equal. Wholesalers must distinguish between high-volume, low‑value use cases that tend to commoditize connectivity (for example, basic sensors or mass smart‑meter rollouts where integration locks in OEMs) and high-value cases that justify premium network treatment (such as high-definition video, critical telematics, and safety systems).

The Shifting Role of Connectivity

A core thread was that connectivity is evolving from a standalone differentiator to a foundational enabler in a broader value stack dominated by software, cloud analytics, and AI. As one panellist summarized: coverage alone is no longer the key competitive advantage. Ubiquitous coverage reduces differentiation; what matters now is how data is carried, orchestrated, secured, and integrated into cloud workflows where monetization occurs.

Yet connectivity remains indispensable. While its percentage share of the total IoT value chain may fall, absolute connectivity demand and nominal revenue continue to grow. The challenge for wholesalers is to retain relevance and margin as more of the monetization occurs in higher layers of the stack.

Strategic Responses: Specialization, Orchestration and Automation

The panel coalesced around three complementary strategic responses:

Specialize rather than generalize. Fragmentation across verticals and use cases is both a curse and an opportunity. Wholesalers cannot be everything to everyone; successful players will pick their battles in sectors or functional clusters where they can build domain expertise, tailored SLAs, and operational processes. Examples include high‑bandwidth video streaming for security and rail, telematics for automotive fleets, or global logistics where orchestration and continuity matter.
Move up the value chain pragmatically. Wholesalers do not need to become full‑blown software companies to capture more value. Instead, they can offer services that sit between raw connectivity and application platforms: SLA‑backed quality tiers, local breakout and latency optimization, data routing and secure ingest, lifecycle management, and device orchestration. These are differentiated, operationally intensive services that augment connectivity without requiring wholesale firms to pivot to end‑user software business models.
Automate and standardize processes. Much wholesale settlement, provisioning, and traffic orchestration remains manual. Standardization and automation, including software‑defined networks, AI‑driven routing, and API‑based orchestration, will be table stakes to scale differentiated offerings and support complex pricing and settlement models for diverse use cases.

Pricing: Evolve to Match Use‑Case Economics

Panellists critiqued the legacy per‑MB pricing model as increasingly misaligned with modern IoT use cases. High‑data applications (robotaxis, HD video) make pe r‑ MB pricing unattractive while low‑data massive deployments make per ‑ MB pricing inefficient. The consensus: pricing must become multi‑dimensional and use‑case aware.

Practical paths include outcome‑based pricing, capacity or pipe models for high‑bandwidth use cases, per‑device or lifecycle pricing for massive deployments, and modular bundles that combine connectivity with orchestration or analytics. Importantly, wholesale pricing must remain simple and scalable to support settlement across many partners; complexity should be handled via product bundles and clear SLAs rather than bespoke billing in every deal.

Tactical Priorities: Immediate Moves for Wholesalers

From the discussion, four near‑term priorities emerge:

Identify and target the top‑right use cases. Use the competitive‑intensity vs. revenue‑opportunity matrix to prioritize segments with above‑average ARPU, manageable competition, and data volumes that justify premium treatment.
Build modular “connectivity+” offerings. Package connectivity with orchestration, SLA tiers, security, and lifecycle management to protect margin and make switching harder for customers.
Invest in automation and API ecosystems. Reduce manual negotiation and settlement friction; enable dynamic quality placement and software‑defined provisioning where capacity is automatically deployed to where it is needed.
Choose battles and scale. Decide whether to compete for deep share in a niche vs. a small share across multiple niches. Both are viable strategies but they require distinct product, go‑to‑market, and operational models.

Conclusion: A Selective, Capability‑Driven Future

The wholesale IoT market is not disappearing - it is being redefined. Traffic growth presents scale opportunities, but value accrues to those who understand use‑case economics and can operationalize differentiated, outcome‑oriented services. Wholesalers who specialize, automate, and offer modular, SLA‑backed connectivity stacks will sustain and grow margins even as software and cloud layers claim a larger share of the overall IoT pie. The imperative is clear: move from a one‑size‑fits‑all connectivity seller to a capability‑led partner that helps customers unlock and reliably monetize IoT outcomes.

About TecFutures

TecFutures is a specialist consulting and advisory firm focused on helping telecoms players and IoT connectivity service providers accelerate enterprise IoT revenue. Our use case database is structured to support strategy, sales enablement and market intelligence by finding new and adjacent revenue opportunities.

This webinar draws upon the TecFutures IoT Growth Opportunity Matrix – our proprietary database of over 300 enterprise cellular IoT use cases developed through extensive primary research, CSP interviews, and in-depth expert market analysis and verification.