Profits take a hit as S'pore telcos race to reinvent themselves

TECHNOLOGY disruption has had profound impact on the global telecommunications industry, usurping existing business models with new ones that have low barriers of entry. This is good news for customers as a new breed of telecommunication companies, which are no longer just "phone companies", but IT companies offering a wide range of services ranging from Internet access, managed services, cloud computing platforms and online security takes centrestage. Legacy revenue streams from voice calls and SMS (short messaging service) are fading away being replaced by new revenue streams. This point becomes clear when one takes a look at the financial statements of telecom companies.

Transformation can be a painful process and there will be losers just as there will be winners. Singapore is no exception to this transformation - it's been happening over the past few years, starting with the introduction of OTT (over the top) messaging services like WhatsApp, WeChat and Skype which have overtaken traditional SMS and phone calls as the major means…