Web3 Reshaping the Telecommunications Industry: From Communication Networks to Value Exchange Networks

In the global wave of digitalization, the traditional business model of the telecommunications industry faces enormous challenges. The promotion of 5G technology brings substantial investments, but the revenue model has not made breakthroughs, resulting in competition within the existing market. Data shows that while leading telecommunications companies in the United States have higher revenues than internet giants, their profitability and market value are far inferior to the latter, reflecting investors' lack of confidence in the industry's prospects.

The telecommunications industry has been seeking transformation. Early attempts by virtual operators failed to address fundamental issues, and their overseas strategies faced numerous obstacles. Currently, the industry is exploring the reconstruction of business through blockchain and Web3 models, upgrading communication networks into value exchange networks.

The Predicament of Traditional Telecom Operators

The core business of telecommunications operators includes basic communication services, value-added services, and digital solutions. Basic services remain the main source of income, but traditional voice and SMS revenues have declined sharply. Value-added services have become a new growth point, such as cloud computing and the Internet of Things.

However, operators face dual pressure from heavy asset investment and refined operations. The construction of 5G, spectrum auctions, and other factors are driving up capital expenditures, with global operators investing more than 300 billion USD annually. To reduce costs, common construction and sharing, as well as AI energy-saving measures, are widely adopted.

The main challenges in the industry come from technological iterations and cross-border competition. The decline of traditional businesses is evident, with the per capita ARPU value dropping by 40% over the past decade. Emerging competitors such as Starlink satellite broadband and cloud vendors' edge computing are intensifying competitive pressure.

Operators are transforming by focusing on technological upgrades and ecological restructuring. On the technical level, network slicing and edge computing have become key. In terms of ecological construction, there is a shift from "traffic pipeline" to "digital service engine," such as South Korea's SKT launching a metaverse platform. The ESG strategy has also become a means of differentiation.

The Direction of Web3 Restructuring the Telecommunications Industry

Reconstructing the telecommunications industry with Web3 is not a simple "blockchain +" approach, but rather upgrading the communication network to a foundational value exchange layer through globalization, token economics, distributed governance, and open protocols.

At the infrastructure level:

• Tokenized distributed sharing of physical network resources
• Spectrum resources are governed by DAO.
• User identity management innovation, such as decentralized identity ( DID ) solutions
• Data sovereignty returns to users

Automation of Cross-Border Services and Settlements:

• Blockchain reconstructs international roaming settlement, significantly shortening the settlement cycle.
• The DeFi model introduces a fee system.
• In the field of the Internet of Things, the combination of blockchain and edge computing has given rise to autonomous device networks.

In terms of economic models, communication and finance achieve atomic-level integration:

• Users can earn profits by sharing resources, forming a "consumption-production" closed loop.
• The DeFi mechanism has given rise to innovative services such as communication insurance and cross-chain roaming.

Web3 Decentralized Telecom Operator Roam Case

Roam is committed to building a global open wireless network to ensure free, seamless, and secure network connections for humans and smart devices. Based on the advantages of blockchain, it has established a decentralized communication network of the OpenRoaming™ Wi-Fi framework and integrated eSIM services.

Roam has over 1.7 million nodes in 190 countries worldwide, with over 2.3 million users performing 500,000 network verifications daily. Its innovations include:

1. Combine OpenRoaming™ technology with Web3's DID+VC technology to build a decentralized communication network.
2. Encourage users to participate in network co-construction, share Wi-Fi nodes or upgrade to OpenRoaming™ Wi-Fi
3. Provide eSIM services, covering over 160 countries worldwide
4. Promote rapid network development through diversified incentive mechanisms.

Communication-Based Value Exchange Network

The essence of blockchain and Web3 reconstructing the telecommunications industry is to upgrade communication networks to value exchange networks, achieving the integration of "information + value + trust". This transformation is mainly reflected in:

1. Improve the efficiency of information transmission, deconstruct the barriers of value transfer in time and space.
2. Expand connection boundaries and build the neural terminals of inclusive finance.
3. Reconstruct the trust mechanism to achieve "InTrustlessWeTrust"

In the future, a hybrid model of "centralized facilities + decentralized services" may emerge:

• Basic communication operators continue to serve as "pipeline workers", but open network capabilities through APIs.
• Service operator ( such as Roam ) is reconstructed as a value routing hub based on communication networks and blockchain technology.

This transformation will provide a digital foundation for building the ideal Network State and promote the development of the Web3 communication ecosystem.