How 5G, edge computing, and IoT can modernize traditional enterprises

1. Over the past two years, the global pandemic and lockdowns have driven the use of digitalization and disrupted countless traditional businesses.
2. Telecom companies in Asia Pacific plan to spend $331 billion on 5G deployment between 2020 and 2025, and they are expected to account for 66% of global 5G users by 2024.
3. Laying the foundation in place with modern infrastructure will help businesses maintain a competitive edge and take advantage of new opportunities brought about by the arrival of 5G.

The global pandemic and lockdowns have driven the use of digitalization and disrupted countless businesses over the past two years. Given the sustained pace of digital innovation, many organizations have been forced to make strategic changes quickly under these circumstances. With the advancement of 5G and modern technology solutions, this ratio has changed.

Asia Pacific currently leads the world in 5G adoption and is expected to maintain this position in the future. Telecommunications companies in the region plan to invest $331 billion on 5G deployments between 2020 and 2025, and they are expected to account for 66% of global 5G subscriptions by 2024. Businesses in the region have the opportunity to establish themselves as innovative suppliers while setting the global standard for 5G services. 5G is expected to contribute up to $123 million to global output by 2035 as it aims to improve data transmission and connectivity, which is essential for the future of IoT and connected devices.

However, to achieve this, they must fully leverage available resources to build a robust infrastructure and deliver business value. Legacy applications are no longer commercially viable because they have limited bandwidth and cannot fully optimize emerging technology solutions. At a time when resource efficiency and technology adoption are critical, legacy application modernization is an emerging need.

What are application modernization techniques?

As a concept, application modernization refers to upgrading current software to be compatible with more modern and emerging computing technologies. This upgrade simultaneously brings greater agility, efficiency, and speed to both operational and strategic functions of technology adoption.

Here are some of the key benefits that enterprises can gain from implementing 5G technology and modernizing traditional applications:  

• Faster network speeds : 5G is expected to unleash network speeds of up to 50 GBPS. This will revolutionize all movement and processing of data. By promptly modernizing legacy applications, businesses will be able to maximize the potential of all their technology infrastructure and experience improved performance, especially with the advancement of new technologies such as IoT, augmented reality, virtual reality, etc.
• Edge Computing/IoT: 5G is fundamental to realizing the full potential of IoT. 5G will foster innovation across industries and provide a more powerful platform for a wider range of IoT applications. This is expected to soon become key to artificial intelligence and business automation.
• Streaming applications: With most B2C and B2B functions migrating to smartphone apps, the introduction of 5G is expected to improve the app experience through faster streaming and quicker results. Mobile-first marketing and operations approaches are expected to benefit and optimize business processes, even more so with 5G, helping the world become more mobile. Thanks to the successful combination of cloud computing and 5G networks, the distribution of real-time data and live streaming has a bright future.
• Integrated cloud-based IT infrastructure: Modern cloud-based technology infrastructure makes it simple and smart to integrate a variety of disparate technology-enabled programs. This can result in a smarter, faster, and more seamless operating network that optimizes artificial intelligence, automation, and smart data analytics while maintaining data security and privacy.
• Resource Optimization: Legacy application modernization helps enterprises optimize old assets by transforming them into more relevant and intelligent ones. Based on 5G, this can accelerate the adoption of emerging technology solutions, strengthen cloud-based infrastructure, and ensure consistent performance through cost-effective and efficient processes.
• Higher levels of customer satisfaction: Improved operational efficiency, faster streaming, and enhanced application customer experience will ultimately lead to higher customer satisfaction. In terms of customer service capabilities, 5G-enabled solutions can help improve service efficiency by leveraging artificial intelligence and data intelligence, thereby increasing customer satisfaction.

However, when transforming business applications, it is critical to work with trusted experts who can not only assist in modernizing legacy applications, but also customize and effectively integrate cloud migration strategies to maximize efficiency. Trusted experts can help companies transform their technology infrastructure in three key areas:

• Infrastructure Modernization: Technical infrastructure modernization is critical to the entire development and upgrade of outdated applications. Unfortunately, modernization has been overly focused on cloud migration, although there is much more to it. For example, microservices architecture, Amazon Web Services, partitioning, and other technologies all help build a more agile and efficient infrastructure, which is critical to the entire application modernization process.
• UI/UX Modernization: Customer success and experience are becoming increasingly important to successful organizations. Especially in a digital environment, effective technology solutions have become a critical differentiator in the overall customer experience. Modernization of UX (User Experience) or UI (User Interface) enables businesses to cater to and improve the customer experience while saving money by leveraging the latest automation, data analytics, and intelligent solutions.
• Data migration: One of the most important aspects of application modernization is the migration of data from physical servers to cloud-based networks, often referred to as "rehosting," which should be done by cloud migration solution experts. In addition to making the operational network more flexible and secure, data transfer also greatly helps with cloud data security, resource optimization, and the integration of various technology solutions, including data analysis and automation using artificial intelligence.

The road ahead

Laying the foundation in place with modern infrastructure will help businesses maintain their competitive edge and take advantage of new opportunities brought about by the arrival of 5G.

Application modernization and optimization combined with 5G facilitates continuous business innovation. By removing physical constraints in a fully virtualized environment, applications can be rapidly deployed from anywhere across data centers, clouds, and devices.