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European 5G Mission Critical: Models, Technologies, Adoption, and Trends

Alejandro Cadenas — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Perspective examines the current state of the European 5G Mission Critical (MC) market across public safety and other verticals like FRMCS, focusing on the commercial models, technologies, adoption patterns, and trends visible in 2026. It draws on public disclosures from national programs, vendor announcements, and industry consortia, mapping the four business models in active use, the country-by-country technology and delivery status, and the wider set of players competing for the commercial value layer above pure connectivity. The document highlights the heterogeneity of mobile network operator (MNO) engagement across European MC programs and offers recommendations for MNOs, MC-focused vendors, integrators, and MVNOs on how to position for the 2026–2030 investment window.

"European Mission Critical is a growing commercial market where the winners have not yet been chosen. The countries where operators have invested seriously, like Spain with Telefónica, Germany with Deutsche Telekom BOS, and the United Kingdom with EE/BT, already show that the productizer role can be defensible for a decade or more," says Alejandro Cadenas, associate vice president, Global Telecom Research at IDC. "The question every other European operator now faces is straightforward: Engage in the next 24 months and shape the value layer or accept that systems integrators, specialist vendors, cloud hyperscalers, and satellite operators will define it without you."

IDC 2026 State of the Telco Market

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Built around 10 key predictions, this IDC Market Presentation explores the strategic, technological, and operational shifts that will define telco success through 2026, from the rapid acceleration of AI investment and the rise of sovereign infrastructure, to LEO satellite integration, vendor ecosystem consolidation, and the wholesale market transformation. This IDC "2026 State of the Telco Market" presentation distills IDC's perspective on how these forces will reshape the industry over the next several years.

The global telecommunications industry is entering a defining moment. As connectivity becomes the backbone of digital economies, telcos are under increasing pressure to deliver sustained growth while navigating slowing revenue expansion, rising network costs, regulatory complexity, intensifying competition, and rapid technological change.

Based on IDC's latest market data, forecasts, and expert analysis, this presentation is designed for telecom executives, technology leaders, and industry strategists to provide actionable intelligence on where the industry is heading and what decisions need to be made now to remain relevant, resilient, and competitive in the years ahead.

Zebra ZONE: Transforming the Frontline Workforce with Connected Intelligence

Margot Juros, Filippo Battaini — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Note offers key insights and takeaways for retailers, based on notable themes, trends, strategies, developments, and retail use cases covered at Zebra's annual customer conference, ZONE. Key themes include workforce empowerment as a strategic competitive differentiator; overcoming common barriers; leveraging AI/agentic AI to enable a faster, smarter workforce to optimize operations and business results; and how quality data and real-time inferencing give retailers an edge in successfully navigating today's fast-changing, volatile retail environment.

"Frontline workforce empowerment is becoming a strategic competitive differentiator in retail as store associates' roles evolve rapidly, absorbing omni-channel fulfillment, higher-value customer engagement, and AI-assisted workflows that demand better tools, collaboration, and real-time intelligence," says Margot Juros, Research Director, IDC Retail Insights.

IDC’s Worldwide Digital Engineering and Operational Technology Services Taxonomy, 2026

Mukesh Dialani, Francesca Ciarletta — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC study provides a detailed description of IDC’s digital engineering and operational technology services taxonomy. In 2022, the taxonomy also includes individual foundation markets grouped within primary market segments: product engineering (PE) services, product life-cycle management (PLM) services, operational technology (OT) services, and digital engineering services. At the worldwide level, spending is also segmented across three geographic macroregions: the Americas; Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA); and Asia/Pacific. These macroregions are further segmented at the regional and local levels. IDC’s worldwide services taxonomy is the basis for IDC’s research studies, trackers, and forecasters for services.

“IDC’s digital engineering and operational taxonomy services taxonomy presents a comprehensive and standardized view of the overall PE, OT, and digital engineering services market,” says Mukesh Dialani, research vice president, Digital Engineering and Operational Technology services. “As technology product and enterprises continue to focus on time to market, achieve higher ROI for their engineering investments accelerated by AI and agentic AI, operations resiliency, the building of new software platforms, digital innovation, global engineering talent, ecosystem leverage, and improvement in product quality and throughput, they will increasingly reach out to and partner with service providers offering these services.”

Market Forecast: Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa B2B Telecommunications Services Forecast, 2026–2030

Tolga Yalcin — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC study provides a detailed forecast and analysis of the B2B telecommunications services market in the Middle East, Türkiye, and Africa (META) region for 2026–2030. It segments spending forecasts for the following key service categories: fixed data, fixed voice, mobile data, mobile voice, and other mobile services. IDC data projects B2B market spending will grow from $40.5 billion in 2025 to $49.4 billion in 2030, driven primarily by the accelerating expansion of mobile data services as 5G deployment scales across key markets and as AI and cloud workloads reshape enterprise connectivity demand. This report serves as a critical resource for understanding the evolving revenue dynamics, service mix transition, and strategic growth opportunities within the META B2B telecommunications sector.

"The META B2B telecommunications market is set to grow from $40.5 billion in 2025 to nearly $49.4 billion by 2030, driven predominantly by mobile data as 5G gains traction across key markets. As AI and cloud workloads reshape enterprise connectivity demands, operators must accelerate the shift toward data-centric services while managing the structural decline of legacy voice revenues to sustain long-term growth," said Tolga Yalcin, research director, Telecoms and ICT Regulations, IDC META.

T-Mobile's 2Q26 Earnings: "Shake It Off" — Revenue Strength Allays Account Net Add Softness; 5G Broadband and Fiber Continue Charging Ahead

Jason Leigh — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

T-Mobile reported 2Q26 results on July 23, 2026, with total revenue increasing 8% YoY to $22.8 billion in the second quarter. That result slightly missed Wall Street consensus estimates of $22.9 billion. However, with net income of $3.2 billion, earnings per share (EPS) came in at $2.99, well above adjusted EPS estimates of $2.58–2.59. Total service revenue increased 9% YoY to $19.0 billion, while postpaid service revenue grew by 13% YoY to $15.9 billion. Net income reached $3.2 billion despite UScellular merger-related costs during the quarter. T-Mobile also increased its full-year cash flow outlook, reflecting continued confidence in the underlying performance of the business.

European MVNO Status: Best Practices, Models, and Trends

Alejandro Cadenas — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Perspective examines the current state of the European mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) market, drawing on IDC’s tracking of mobile connections across the region 2021–2025. It provides a quantitative view of MVNO growth at both the aggregate European level and across the five largest national markets (Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Spain) and analyses the structural business models, positioning archetypes, and driving trends shaping the segment through 2026. It concludes with recommendations for MNOs and MVNOs on how to capture the emerging opportunities and defend against the associated competitive risks.

The MVNO segment is expanding across Europe at more than twice the pace of the wider mobile market, driven by cloud-native platforms, eSIM adoption, and a wave of new entrants from fintech, retail, and other adjacent digital sectors. But the growth is heterogeneous, and the strategic implications differ sharply for MNOs, wholesale teams, and existing MVNOs. According to Alejandro Cadenas, associate vice president, European Telco Research, IDC, “The European MVNO story of 2026 is no longer only about price competition, it is about who is best positioned to serve the increasingly specialized and cross-border demand that scaled MVNO groups and embedded-telco brands are creating. MNOs that treat wholesale as strategic, and MVNOs that evolve beyond reseller models, will define the next phase of the market.”

IDC TechScape: Worldwide Frictionless Experience-Enabling Innovation in Air Travel, 2026

Dorothy Creamer — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC TechScape maps 24 technologies shaping the frictionless airline traveler experience in 2026, organized across transformational, incremental, and opportunistic adoption phases. The study covers the full passenger journey, from booking and pre-trip planning through security, in-flight experience, luggage handling, and post-trip engagement, as well as the crew- and operations-facing technologies that directly determine whether travelers encounter a friction-free journey or a frustrating one.

“Passenger and traveler demands are at an all-time high and the opportunities for disruption and frustration lurk at every digital touch point. The airlines and travel providers that are working to support travelers with proactive and predictive engagement and operational strategies will win with contextualized and frictionless experiences every time,” says Dorothy Creamer, senior research manager, Hospitality and Travel Digital Strategies, IDC. “The constraint separating leaders from laggards in air travel is no longer which vendor relationships they hold; it is whether their data estate is mature enough to let these technologies work together and deliver on their promise.”

Market Forecast: European Enterprise Fixed Data Services Forecast, 2026–2030

Jan Hein Bakkers, James Eibisch — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Presentation provides the five-year forecast for the European enterprise fixed data services market and delivers insight into the drivers and inhibitors of growth.

As they progress into an AI-fueled economy, enterprises will require connectivity that is performant, scalable, and secure.

Wholesale Access Models and Opportunities in EMEA

Jan Hein Bakkers, Tolga Yalcin — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Perspective analyzes major trends and dynamics in wholesale access markets in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). It presents IDC’s view on strategic developments and market outlook.

As fiber coverage grows, the focus of operators and investors will shift to returns and network utilization.