India, March 22 -- For decades, the telecom playbook was crystal clear: build networks, add coverage, sell voice and data plans, and optimise cost per bit. But that playbook is running out of runway. Data consumption keeps climbing, network upgrades remain capital-intensive, and consumer monetisation has natural limits. The result is a global and increasingly Indian pivot: telecom is becoming a software and platform industry.

This transformation is not merely a slogan. It is a structural shift in how networks are engineered, built, operated, and monetised. In the platform era, telcos are no longer just connectivity providers. They are turning network capabilities into programmable services-exposed via APIs, embedded into enterprise workf...