GSMA's API report flags subdued hyperscaler activity

GSMA Intelligence has published an Open Gateway status report covering the second half of this year, and while there have been plenty of encouraging developments over the last six months, there is one potentially significant shortcoming that needs to be addressed.

According to the report, there is a seeming lack of meaningful progress on the hyperscaler front. Cloud giants like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud – with their scale, marketplaces, large developer communities, and reseller networks – are considered to be important API distribution channels and a vital part of the ecosystem.

"Hyperscaler activity remains subdued despite the fanfare at MWC (Mobile World Congress)," says the GSMA.

Back at February's mobile mega-show, the GSMA highlighted the strong support among operators for Open Gateway since its launch a year earlier, and proclaimed that 2024 would be the year for driving developer engagement through various go-to-market channels, including hyperscale cloud providers.

It lined up representatives from AWS, Microsoft and Google, who all, broadly speaking, espoused the virtues of monetising APIs, and said they were looking forward to working with CSPs to bring innovative new use cases to market.

The GSMA said the lack of meaningful activity since then "may reflect a focus on other priorities (notably AI investments)."

Telco vendors have been doing their part, developing in-house API expertise and distribution platforms of their own. Ericsson via its Vonage unit, for example, and Nokia with its Network as Code platform, its partnership with Infobip and its recent acquisition of API specialist Rapid.

However, without hyperscalers chipping in too, "the impact is a brake on Open Gateway API dissemination, given hyperscalers' vast scale and existing developer cadres," the GSMA said.

"Momentum from hyperscalers over the next six months will be key to driving commercial volumes. Important here will be proof points where operators can cite revenues earned through APIs within the GSMA Open Gateway."

Hyperscalers aside, plenty of progress has been made on other fronts.

67 mobile operators representing 75% of global mobile market share have now signed up to Open Gateway, and the library boasts 23 APIs, spanning use cases from quality-on-demand, edge compute and anti-fraud.

That last one is proving particularly popular among developers, which are using APIs like SIM Swap and One Time Password to stamp out any dodgy goings-on. Perhaps this is because, according to the GSMA, 60% of enterprise buyers rank security and fraud prevention as more important to their projects than 5G, fibre, cloud and edge.

Open Gateway is also doing a good job of educating developers, with the report finding that 68% have a clear understanding of network APIs. China is slightly behind though, with only a third of developers there claiming to have a clear understanding.

"Focus must now be on delivery," said Henry Calvert, the GSMA's head of networks, in the report.

"There is a window of opportunity, but this will not stay open forever. We want to encourage more operators to participate, and a deeper set of engagement with developers and other distribution partners, as that collaboration is needed for success. It also requires visible markers of progress, including the number of operators, API usage and the extent to which usage is monetised," he said.

It seems a little more enthusiasm from hyperscalers would also go a long way.