The Future of Network Automation for Tier 2/3 Service Providers

Network automation holds tremendous promise to help communications service providers (CSPs) build and operate networks more efficiently and reliably at lower costs and with greater innovation than ever before. The advent of AI and machine learning technologies make the promise greater and the mission to automate to survive more urgent.

Smaller CSPs – tier 2 and tier 3 operators – have much to gain from network automation but also face unique challenges getting started. To better understand the needs of this important CSP segment, in May 2023, Heavy Reading surveyed 217 tier 2 and tier 3 CSPs globally in what Heavy Reading believes is the industry’s first in-depth network automation survey to focus specifically on tier 2 and tier 3 network operators.

For the study, Heavy Reading focused on network automation by ensuring all respondents are involved in deploying, managing, purchasing or using network automation, engineering, management, operations or a