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Consumer AI and the Replatforming of the Consumer Digital Economy

Greg Ireland, Kelly Brown — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC study highlights developments in the consumer AI market. As we look at the ways in which consumer use of AI changes other online behaviors, we see a replatforming of the consumer digital economy in which consumers rely less on traditional search and websites and more on AI assistants. AI assistants are already the starting point for many consumer customer journeys. This represents monetization opportunities for AI platform providers and opportunities for these providers to reshape a growing number of online consumer experiences.

EMEA Wholesale Radar, 2H25

Jan Hein Bakkers, Tolga Yalcin — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Presentation analyzes recent news and events in the wholesale telecoms market in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The EMEA Wholesale Radar identifies major trends and dynamics from these announcements and places them in the context of overall market development and outlook.

AI Isn’t Going to “Eat” Software: Agentic AI Needs the Authoritative Data and Rules Inside Enterprise Apps

Heather Hershey, Mickey North Rizza — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Perspective discusses enterprises’ adoption of AI agents within enterprise applications. Despite headlines suggesting AI will consume enterprise software, the evidence points to a more nuanced shift. As Jensen Huang noted at the Cisco AI Summit, the idea that AI replaces software misconstrues how computing works. IDC research shows enterprises expect agents to become a new intelligence layer across applications, yet alignment and security concerns reinforce continued reliance on established systems of record. The result is a transitional equilibrium in which agents orchestrate and interact, while core applications retain enforcement and accountability authority. IDC forecasts broad enhancement of enterprise applications by 2027 rather than their extinction.

“Stripped of hype, agentic AI is still software,” said Heather Hershey, research director, AI-Enable Digital Commerce at IDC. “Agentic AI is a probabilistic reasoning system that can pursue goals with limited supervision, yet it remains dependent on existing enterprise data foundations and governance frameworks. For executives, the strategic imperative is clear: capture value by embedding agentic AI within trusted application environments that preserve accountability and control.”

“‘Agents as apps’ is the new software model that will quicky enhance the software journey for organizations in the AI digital world,” said Mickey North Rizza, group vice president, Enterprise Software. “Invest in the future and do it now, but don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. Your enterprise application software is a major foundation into the AI world — use it, mold it, and grow it.”

European Plans for Direct Smartphone-to-Satellite D2C Service Become Clear

Simon Baker, Peter Chahal, Ahmad Latif Ali — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

Firm commitments are being made in smartphone-to-satellite D2C service with significant announcements at the Mobile World Congress (MWC). Orange and Telefónica are to work with the Vodafone AST SpaceMobile joint venture, which is due to start service later this year. Deutsche Telekom (DT)/T-Mobile in contrast will work with SpaceX Starlink in Europe as it does in the United States.

There was concrete news on smartphone-to-satellite D2C service across Europe at the Mobile World Congress:

Shortly before the show, Vodafone announced a new name for its SatCo joint venture with AST SpaceMobile, now to be called Satellite Connect Europe (SCE). The Luxembourg-based venture will be led by Meredith Sharples, who most recently has worked at Digicel in the Caribbean as regional CEO.
Orange and Telefónica signed up for SCE during the show. Vodafone plans trials in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Romania. Orange will also be carrying out initial testing in Romania.
Deutsche Telekom (T-Mobile's parent company), on the other hand, opted in Europe for SpaceX Starlink. This DT service is expected to launch in Europe in 2028.

All three MNOs intend to offer service across their multiple operations in the European markets.

Also at the show, SpaceX renamed its service Starlink Mobile and was at pains to underline that it does not intend to compete with MNOs with D2C services. SpaceX said that the first-generation Starlink Mobile system reaches 16 million unique users, with 25 million expected by the end of this year. Currently there are 10 million active users on a monthly basis. Partner carriers include T-Mobile in the United States, Rogers in Canada, and KDDI in Japan.

AST Satellite Connect's Europe service is due to start before the end of this year. However, that is dependent on an ambitious launch schedule — AST SpaceMobile said at MWC that it aims to have 45–60 satellites in the orbit by the end of the year but that may not be achieved. Only one of AST's larger BlueBird satellites is currently in orbit, and while a Blue Origin New Glenn launch is due to take place later in March, it will carry only one more Bluebird satellite, even though New Glenn can carry three to eight per launch. A full payload New Glenn launch is planned later in the year. Otherwise, AST will be relying on SpaceX, whose Falcon 9 can carry three or four BlueBirds per launch. AST says it needs 45 satellites in the orbit for initial service across the United States, Europe, and Japan.

The aim of AST has been to go for broadband satellite service from the outset, and its BlueBird satellites have the largest antennas ever used on commercial LEO spacecraft. AST aims for a throughput rate of 120Mbps.

While AST service will utilize cellular operator frequency, in Europe, Deutsche Telekom/T-Mobile has taken the decision with Starlink not to use its own cellular frequency but to use the AWS-3 and AWS-4 frequency blocks being purchased by Echostar. These are adjacent to current frequencies for cellular 5G in the United States and elsewhere. However, most smartphones are currently not equipped to operate on them. Deutsche Telekom therefore needs to work with SpaceX to persuade chipmakers, notably Qualcomm and Mediatek, and smartphone manufacturers to expand the reception range of their modems to the AWS-3 and AWS-4 bands. The most likely smartphone maker targets are Apple and Samsung, the dominant smartphone brands in Germany as they are in the United States.

This will delay the launch of service. At MWC, a DT executive told IDC that the company was confident that it would achieve this in time to have compatible phones available for the 2028 launch in the 10 countries in the DT European mobile footprint.

Potential users will need to obtain one of these compatible phones to use the Starlink service. DT has an extensive retail presence in the phone market in its operating countries through which to achieve such distribution. The Deutsche Telekom executive explained that the decision to use the Echostar frequency was in part driven by a wish not to allocate away DT terrestrial frequency to satellite use.

This schedule seems slow for SpaceX but may have been forced on the company by expected delays in clearance for use of the Echostar frequencies. There will also be a delay related to the space segment. The additional Echostar frequencies will be incorporated onto the planned v3 Starlink satellites, which are due to be launched from the middle of next year. These will also have large antennas and require launch by SpaceX's Starship/Super Heavy Booster (SHB), which is yet to enter operational service. An updated version of this, the Starship v3, is due to be test launched in March.

As might be expected of SpaceX, however, it has big plans for its second-generation Starlink Mobile service. From the second half of 2027, SpaceX is aiming for rapid turnarounds on Starship SHB and the schedule for rollout of Starlink v3 spacecraft returns to the company's usual impatience to get on with things, with 1,200 due to be in operation within six months. The Super Heavy Booster, which is much larger than the current SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, will be capable of carrying 60 or so Starlink v3s satellites per launch.

The Starlink v3 service is designed to compete head-on with AST. Whereas the current SpaceX Starlink Mobile system works from 650 smaller v2 satellites and provides a throughput of around 4Mbps and is limited basically to text service, the v3 system is aimed to achieve a much higher up to 150Mbps for 5G phones, enough to stream video.

From the consumer point of view, 2026 will not be the year of direct smartphone-to-satellite service in Europe. But following testing this year, broadband service should roll out from AST SpaceMobile and its partners, and by 2028, healthy competition will emerge between two providers of broadband D2C service involving many of Europe's cellular providers.

B2B Marketplaces in Manufacturing: Analysis of Marketplace Models, Key Trends, and Success Factors

Mark Casidsid, Stefanie Naujoks — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Perspective examines B2B marketplace models (horizontal, vertical, and branded) for manufacturing, including key capabilities, suitability factors, adoption drivers, examples, and emerging trends. It also offers strategic recommendations for manufacturers evaluating and participating in these platforms.

“B2B marketplaces are evolving from transactional hubs into strategic data ecosystems that redefine how industrial manufacturers manage sourcing, collaboration, and risk. As AI-driven discovery, data standardization, and interoperability mature, these platforms will emerge as core infrastructure for supply chain resilience and ecosystem-based growth. However, success depends on manufacturers’ ability to balance control with openness — aligning marketplace participation, partner engagement, and data governance to turn digital networks into lasting competitive advantage,” said Senior Research Analyst Mark Casidsid, AI-Enabled Business Commerce, Partner Relationship, and Ecosystem Management, IDC.

European Telcos Move to Integrate Energy Plans in Their Consumer and SMB Portfolios

Daniela Rao — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Perspective focuses on the European telcos’ strategic move to integrate in their portfolio energy services like green electricity, gas, and solar solutions for consumers and SMBs. Energy diversification has long been a strategic focus for many telecom operators, but from 2024 onward, collaborations with energy providers and the rollout of energy offerings have accelerated, marking a significant step toward becoming full-fledged digital service providers.

“Leveraging their digital expertise, infrastructure, and customer relationships, European telcos have the potential to become key players of the multi-utility retail market and become co-creators of new energy services, improving consumers and SMBs segments loyalty and profitability,” said Daniela Rao, senior research and consulting director, European Telecoms, IDC.

IDC Survey: How Do U.S. Consumers Perceive Your Brand? — 2025 Consumer Brand Sentiment Survey Findings

Kelly Brown, Greg Ireland — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC study examines data collected from IDC’s 2025 Consumer Brand Sentiment Survey. The survey examines how consumers perceive different brands and the factors that influence their decisions when choosing which brands to use in the United States. Respondents were asked to rate 30 brands and brand attributes on a scale of zero through ten. All data is top four box unless specified.

“While generational preferences differ, Gen Z aligns more with digital-native platforms and boomers with traditional electronics brands. Amazon remains the clear leader in consumer sentiment across demographic cohorts and income segments.” — Kelly Brown, research manager, consumer markets, IDC

The Pathways to Unlock the Potential of Agentic Commerce in Hospitality and Travel

Dorothy Creamer, Greg Ireland — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Perspective discusses the pathways to unlock the potential of agentic commerce in hospitality and travel. By 2030, agent-to-agent commerce will be operational across segments of hospitality and travel. The shift from generative AI assistance to agentic execution is forcing organizations to rethink core systems architecture, particularly as it relates to distribution and loyalty. As LLM surfaces emerge as booking channels, competitive advantage will move from traffic acquisition to structured offer clarity, policy governance, and real-time entitlement calculation. Organizations that modernize APIs, embed loyalty as infrastructure, and implement disciplined channel governance will shape the next era of travel and hospitality commerce. Agentic AI must not be considered merely a feature enhancement, but as a fundamental reordering of how commerce capabilities are exposed, evaluated, and executed.

"As AI surfaces become legitimate distribution channels, organizations must re-architect technology, data, and governance models to compete in an environment where agents evaluate structured capabilities rather than human-facing experiences," says Dorothy Creamer, senior research manager, Hospitality and Travel Digital Strategies at IDC. "Agentic AI will redefine how demand is captured and fulfilled in hospitality and travel. The organizations that win will not be those with the most conversational polish, but those that expose structured, policy-governed capabilities that AI agents can trust and transact with at scale."

U.S. Cable Operators Continue to See Wireless Subscriber and Revenue Growth in 4Q25

Pahul Singh — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

The IDC Market Note provides an analysis of the 4Q25 earnings of three U.S. cable companies offering mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) services. The document highlights the year-over-year (YoY) growth in mobile subscribers and revenue for cable MVNOs.

Blue Origin's Ambitious TeraWave LEO Constellation Plans Satellite Links to Datacenters Globally at Fiber-Level Speeds

Simon Baker — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Note discusses an announcement of a very large LEO constellation called TeraWave by American space launcher and exploration company Blue Origin on January 21, 2026. TeraWave will be focused on trunk links to and from datacenters and on other high-capacity links.