B2B customers have spoken. Will telcos listen?

We surveyed more than 3,000 B2B decision-makers from enterprises of all sizes, and nearly 80 percent of these customers surveyed indicated they believe telecom operators should play a larger role beyond core connectivity (Exhibit 1). This demand is especially strong among small businesses, with 36 percent wanting operators to become full-service providers for technology and telecom solutions. While large enterprises prefer operators with specialized expertise that can accommodate complex needs and existing vendor relationships, smaller and mid-sized businesses seek simplicity, integration, and comprehensive support.

Businesses are not just open to deeper engagement—they’re actively looking for partners that can help them navigate an increasingly digital and complex landscape. For telecom operators, this means there is both demand and expectation to expand their role. However, capturing this opportunity requires moving beyond traditional offerings and delivering a broader, more integrated value proposition.

Even with some geographical differences, B2B decision-makers clearly want operators to play a broader role in the industry. The regional variances that our survey found are largely explained by proven successes that have already occurred in markets where telcos have successfully branched out into domains beyond connectivity. In those countries, where telecom providers have begun moving into adjacent technology domains such as cybersecurity, cloud, or IT services, customer expectations have followed suit. For example, in Spain, which is a leader in this regard, over half of B2B respondents indicated they want to see their operators become “one-stop shop” providers (Exhibit 2). Similarly high expectations are seen in Brazil and Mexico, where nearly half of business customers envision operators playing a more integrated tech and telecom role.

In markets where telcos have been more resistant to diversify or where competition from hyperscalers and tech players is more intense, however, perceptions of the role of telcos remain more traditional. In Canada and South Korea, for example, respondents showed stronger preferences for operators to focus on core and selected domains.

An overlooked, yet high-potential segment of customers also exists in the nearly 40 percent of enterprises that currently allocate a limited portion of their non-core spending to telecom operators, though they also indicate a clear willingness to have operators’ play a broader role in their ecosystem. Operators can unlock this latent demand by enhancing their value proposition, whether through expanding solution portfolios, improving integration capabilities, or elevating service levels.

While core connectivity remains essential to enterprise infrastructure, growth expectations for this are just 3.2 percent. However, growth expectations for spending on telecom-related areas beyond the core are in the 6 percent range, as the need for cybersecurity, cloud services, and other business applications continues to expand (Exhibit 3). Increasingly, businesses need integrated, intelligent solutions that deliver reliability and competitive advantage.

Large enterprises lead this wave of solutions growth, with aggressive investment plans across all domains reflecting a growing awareness that future competitiveness hinges on the ability to shape the market through investments and innovation. As larger players scale up their spending, they pave the way for broader market transformation and set new benchmarks for what best-in-class technology strategy looks like in 2025 and beyond.

Over 20 percent of global respondents see security as their most compelling priority, a finding that remained consistent across all regions (Exhibit 4). This highlights cybersecurity’s universality as a strategic imperative in diverse regulatory and technological landscapes.

The focus on cybersecurity becomes even more pronounced when segmented by company size. It is the top priority for 24 percent of large enterprises, followed by 20 percent of medium-sized firms and 17 percent of small businesses. While smaller companies place slightly more emphasis on customer engagement, the cross-segment consistency affirms that security is no longer an IT concern—it’s a business-critical priority.

Notably, cybersecurity is often cited as the top reason for switching providers, outranking brand, product capabilities, and even price. Security is becoming not only a top-of-mind priority of B2B decision-makers but also an imperative to compete, proving that trust and protection now sit at the core of B2B technology decisions.

Although telcos continue to play a central role in the enterprise technology ecosystem, their position may be under threat. About one in four B2B customers plans to switch their telco vendors in the next 12 months, with cloud providers and tech manufacturers standing to gain the most (Exhibit 5). This trend goes beyond a single product line, with respondents showing declining preference for telcos when it comes to security, business applications, and next-gen connectivity.

As core connectivity—a domain exclusively dominated by telcos—is increasingly viewed as a commoditized offering, buyers are considering alternative vendors who can bundle connectivity with adjacent services. Nearly 60 percent of enterprise customers now prefer to procure core connectivity as part of an integrated solution, which often includes cloud, security, or collaboration tools. While actual switching activity has yet to match intent, and operators remain the sole providers of connectivity services, the shift in intention should be a wake-up call.

For the second year in a row, Africa led all geographies with 69 percent of enterprises planning to increase their spend across most product categories (Exhibit 6). This sustained optimism reflects a growing appetite for digital infrastructure and a continued push to accelerate transformation across industries. Asia–Pacific and the Middle East also reported healthy investment outlooks, with over half of enterprises signaling budget increases, while the Americas maintained steady confidence levels.

Europe was the only region showing an upward trend in spend compared to 2023, suggesting a potential turning point in sentiment after a period of economic caution. The contrast between regions points to a dynamic global market, where some economies are seizing the opportunity to scale and modernize rapidly, while others are beginning to reengage with longer-term digital priorities.