Telecom’s next frontier: Delivering hyper-personalised experiences

In an era where consumers expect tailored experiences in every digital interaction, the telecom industry is undergoing a dramatic transformation. From AI-powered customer service to satellite-enabled rural connectivity, telecom providers are racing to meet the demands of increasingly tech-savvy users while grappling with the complexities of data privacy and infrastructure upgrades.
“Today’s consumer is an individual in a global city,” says Nishtha Kapoor, regional director at Eutelsat OneWeb, a provider of broadband internet via satellites.“Personalisation has become a major focus because each of us wants our own thing in today’s world. Whether it’s customer service, product offerings, or special deals, it needs to be dedicated to you as an individual.”
This shift towards hyper-personalisation is being driven by rapid advances in AI/ML. Telecom carriers are leveraging these technologies to understand customer behaviour patterns and preferences at a granular level.
“Most telecom carriers are offering AI and ML in their own manner,” says Vinod Hingorani, regional director for south asia at Telecom Italia Sparkle. “Automation is being offered in terms of chatbots for customer service and support. ML is being used to understand behavioural patterns and customer preferences.”

The goal is to achieve what industry calls an “omnichannel strategy” – providing a seamless, personalised experience across all customer touchpoints (how many of us switch over constantly between our laptops and smartphones). This extends beyond just customised product bundles to include predictive maintenance, proactive issue resolution, and even personalised content recommendations.
Sandeep Arora, industry platform leader for telecom at Capgemini India, sees telecom providers evolving into far more than just connectivity providers. “They have become almost a gateway to your digital life,” he says. “You think of streaming, gaming, your smart home tech – telecom providers are increasingly working on ways to be more relevant in the lives of consumers.”
Infra challenges & opportunities
Meeting these heightened consumer expectations requires significant infrastructure upgrades. The rollout of 5G networks is a critical piece of this puzzle.
“With 5G, you’ve got 100 times faster download speed, 10 times reduced latency, 100 times network capacity for greater traffic, and you’re able to cater to millions of end users,” Hingorani says.
However, these upgrades have challenges. Telecom providers must ensure robust data protection measures as they handle increasing volumes of sensitive customer information. They also need to improve their cloud infrastructure to support a wide array of new services.
Interestingly, the industry is taking cues from the IT world as it navigates this transition. “They’re going through this ‘telco to tech co’ kind of transition,” Arora says.
One example is the move towards more self-healing, autonomous networks – similar to how modern laptops handle software updates and fixes with minimal user intervention. Another key development is the concept of “network slicing” in 5G, which allows operators to create multiple virtual networks on a single physical infrastructure, each optimised for different use cases like smart factories or autonomous vehicles.
Digital divide
While urban areas race ahead with 5G and AI-powered services, a significant portion of the global population still lacks basic connectivity. This digital divide presents both a challenge and an opportunity for the telecom industry.
Satellite technology is emerging as a key solution to this. Companies like Eutelsat-OneWeb are deploying constellations of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to provide highspeed, low-latency internet access to previously underserved regions.
“We are currently providing 100 megabits per second kind of speed on a satellite,” says Kapoor.
The impact of this technology extends far beyond basic connectivity. It has the potential to enable essential services like telemedicine and distance education in remote areas, potentially transforming rural economies.
“They are really beaming hope to those corners,” Arora says.
AI & AR
However, all of these advances are also generating concern about whether enough talent is being created. Dileep Reddy Bolla, assistant professor at Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology, stresses on the need for a more dynamic, industryaligned curriculum.
“We need to upgrade ourselves, for example, in the case of 5G, which we are teaching now,” he says. “Down the line, we have to teach advanced 5G and we have to be ready with 6G specs that will come up in the future with AI.”
AI is emerging as the dominant theme in telecom too. However, other technologies are also poised to make significant impacts. The combination of 5G and augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR) technologies could usher in a new era of immersive experiences.
“I’ve been following AR/VR technology for the last 15 years. I think we are very close to this tech having its day in the sun,” Arora predicts.