Huawei outlined four growth pathways for the telecom industry at MWC Shanghai 2025, DKnews.kz reports.
During the MWC Shanghai 2025 congress, Eric Xu, Huawei’s Deputy Chairman and Rotating Chairman, delivered a keynote address on the future of telecom industry development. According to him, while the sector remains resilient, operators are facing increasing challenges in identifying new growth drivers.
“Of course, every operator is unique. They operate in different markets, under different business conditions, and within different competitive environments. So, their paths to growth must also be unique. Huawei is always ready and committed to working alongside operators to explore those individual opportunities and build the right strategies for long-term, sustainable growth.”
— Eric Xu
Huawei suggests four strategic directions operators can explore to ensure sustainable growth:
1. Focus on Emerging User Demands
Even though the telecom market is mature, change is happening everywhere. One avenue for growth is to be more responsive to evolving user needs — building and optimizing networks to deliver relevant solutions, especially in high-potential segments.
2. Support HD Video Growth Through Ecosystem Collaboration
Video already accounts for nearly 50% of mobile data traffic. However, its usage is often restricted by pricing barriers and the lack of guaranteed quality. Addressing these multifaceted challenges requires coordinated efforts across the entire ecosystem. Operators should adopt balanced outbound traffic pricing and encourage the delivery of HD video, measuring the increase in ARPU and DOU. Huawei urges operators to work closely with industry players to overcome these challenges — since, in a mature telecom market, high-quality video could become a stable engine for growth and monetization.
3. Embed 5G in Every Car to Unlock Growth in Smart Mobility
Equipping every car with 5G is a shared goal for both vehicle owners and operators, but not necessarily for automakers themselves. This is one reason why only around 30% of vehicles sold in China in 2025 are expected to have 5G connectivity. Automakers often avoid 5G integration due to the high costs associated with intellectual property rights and expensive T-Box components. Huawei hopes GSMA can help address this issue. A cross-industry approach will be essential to keep 5G-related costs for cars within reasonable limits.
Healthy competition among operators is also crucial for the connected car market. If the price of car connectivity drops too low, the entire market risks shrinking to low-margin levels for everyone.
4. Deploy FTTR for Micro and Small Businesses to Fully Leverage AI
FTTR technology, which has already proven successful in the premium home segment, could become a growth engine for small businesses. Offering full Wi-Fi coverage and reliable FTTR-based networks opens the door to serving over 500 million micro and small enterprises globally.
“These are four potential pathways that we believe operators can explore to drive growth. Naturally, each operator is different. Their markets, business environments, and competitive landscapes vary — and so must their strategies for growth. Huawei is always willing and ready to work side by side, helping operators explore their unique opportunities and chart the right path toward long-term, sustainable development.”
— Eric Xu
“MWC is a key event for engaging with the industry community, sharing experiences, and showcasing cutting-edge solutions. For Huawei, it’s not only a platform to demonstrate our technologies in action but also an opportunity to gather feedback, better understand market needs, and move forward with partners toward sustainable growth. Events like this help shape a unified direction for the industry — including in the CIS countries, where the search for new growth points remains highly relevant.”
— Dmitry Konarev, Solutions Architect at Huawei
Huawei reaffirms its commitment to partnering with operators worldwide and is determined to co-develop solutions that address today’s challenges while laying the groundwork for future industry development.
