A Holistic Approach to IoT Monetization

The monetization capabilities of Internet of Things (IoT) platforms needs a fresh approach beyond standard rating and charging designed for connectivity usage. As communications service providers (CSPs) embrace more innovative IoT business models, they are struggling to address these opportunities with their connectivity-oriented IoT platforms.

IoT digital platforms must be flexible to enable CSPs to accommodate a wide variety of B2B (enterprise), B2C (consumer) and B2B2X (wholesale) business models. As IoT business models evolve, the monetization platform must be able to keep pace allowing CSPs to adopt a “fast-fail” mentality, experimenting with new products and processes. IoT service providers need not only a more holistic solution from a technology perspective, but also a solution that can cater to different business models and different needs within their organization, as typified by the three cases below:

• A line of business with a focused IoT service offering (e.g., fleet management) that wants to ensure a great customer experience and agility to keep its offering fresh.
• An IoT platform offering that aims to enable third parties to sell their industry-specific, niche IoT solutions.
• An operational team that is charged with managing the IoT platform, guaranteeing availability and striving for flexibility while keeping operating costs under control.