Unified Communication-as-a-Service (UCaaS) Market

Unified Communication-as-a-Service (UCaaS) Market in Brief

• The global unified communication-as-a-service (UCaaS) market is projected to expand at a CAGR of ~36% between 2019 and 2027.
• The global unified communication-as-a-service market is estimated to be driven by an increase in demand for enterprise mobility and mobile workforce. Major players are focusing more on enhancing the customer communication experience over the Internet in order to consolidate their share in the market.
• The global unified communication-as-a-service market is anticipated to reach a value of ~US$ 20 Bn by the end of 2019, and expand to reach a value of ~US$ 235 Bn by 2027.
• North America holds a major share of the global UCaaS market. It is anticipated to maintain its dominance of the global unified communication-as-a-service market during the forecast period, followed by Europe. In terms of revenue, the unified communication-as-a-service market in North America is estimated to reach a value of ~US$ 10 Bn by the end of 2019, and likely to sell ~32 million units seats by the end of 2019.
• The unified communication-as-a-service markets in Asia Pacific and South America are expected to expand at moderate growth rates during the forecast period.

UCaaS Market - Definition

• The unified communication-as-a-service market report provides analysis of the global UCaaS market for the period 2017–2027, wherein, 2018 is the base year and 2019 to 2027 is the forecast period. Data for 2017 has been included as historical information.
• The study on the unified communication-as-a-service market would help clients in understanding the adoption analysis of UCaaS among different deployment models such as UC PaaS, UC SaaS, and UC IaaS; and based on services such as telephony services, contact center services, UC application services, and collaboration services; and also adoption in large enterprises, small & medium enterprises (SMEs), and the public sector. Further, there are deployment models such as managed and hosted; and delivery models such as stand-alone services and integrated services.

North America to Dominate Global UCaaS Market

• In terms of deployment model, the hosted segment accounted for a prominent share of the UCaaS market in North America, attributed to the presence of large cloud service providers such as IBM Corporation, in the region.
• The hosted UCaaS segment of the UCaaS market in North America was valued at ~US$ 6 Bn in 2018, and is projected to reach a value of ~US$ 89 Bn by 2027.
• The UC PaaS segment of the UCaaS market in North America was valued at ~US$ 2 Bn in 2018, and is projected to reach ~US$ 38 Bn by 2027, expanding at a CAGR of ~33% during the forecast period.

Key Growth Drivers of the UCaaS Market

• Increasing demand for enterprise mobility and mobile workforce: Studies conducted on a global level have indicated a significant rise in the number of mobile workers. The impact of this driver is expected to be high during the forecast period, as businesses are estimated to expand their operations across developing regions such as Asia Pacific and the Middle East & Africa.
• Multiple benefits offered by UCaaS solutions encourage higher adoption: The deployment of UCaaS solutions has enabled enterprises to reduce their CAPEX associated with the installation of hardware, and also supports organizations in enhancing their focus on revenue generating operations, eliminating the need of hiring and retaining operational staff to manage the communication equipment in their organizations.
• Rising penetration of mobile devices: Tablet and smartphone support video & audio conferencing, IM, email, and social networking via PBX mobile extensions and software clients. Therefore, a majority of IP PBX vendors have integrated voice into their UCC portfolios to further extend enterprise UCC functionality (which was traditionally available only through softphone and desktop phones) to tablets, cell phones, and smartphones via mobile client software.

Key Challenge Faced by UCaaS Market Players

• Lack of awareness leading to low rate of adoption of UCaaS solutions by SMEs: The process of building, testing, and deploying business applications has changed dramatically with the advent of cloud computing. Small, medium, as well as large enterprises are preferring cloud solutions, owing to the agility, scalability, simplicity, and reliability they offer. SMEs are hesitant to adopt and integrate cloud solutions within their organizations, as they fear that these solutions do not comply with the current data regulation policies and standards.

UCaaS Market – Competition Landscape

• Microsoft Corporation invests heavily in R&D. The company invested approximately US$ 12.0 Bn in 2016, US$ 13.0 Bn in 2017, and US$ 14.7 Bn in 2018, respectively, for R&D activities.
• In May 2019, Microsoft Corporation announced a joint venture with ShareWeb, based in Sherbrooke, Canada, a leading provider of cloud-based services. Together, the companies introduced the ShareWeb UCaaS Connector.

UCaaS Market - Company Profile Snapshot

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development L.P: Founded in 1939, Hewlett-Packard is a leading global company that provides technologies, products, software, services, and solutions to individual customers, and small, medium, and large enterprises. Its services and products cater to diverse sectors, including government, healthcare, and education.
• Microsoft Corporation: Founded in 1975, Microsoft Corporation specializes in the manufacture, development, licensing, marketing, and sale of software, personal computers & services, and consumer electronics. Its products range from video games to mobile devices. Azure is a collection of integrated cloud services, which IT professionals and developers use to manage, develop, and deploy applications through their global network of datacenters.
• Verizon Communications, Inc.: Founded in 1980, Verizon Communications, Inc. was formed after the merger of Bell Atlantic Corp. and GTE Corp. Verizon Communications is a global provider of integrated solutions for businesses, and provides innovative communication and technology solutions. Verizon Communications provides 5G, 4G LTE, broadband & fiber, media & technology, and Internet of Things (IoT) services.

Other major players in the global unified communication-as-a-service market and profiled in the report include

• Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia)
• Avanade, Inc.
• 8x8, Inc.
• IBM Corporation
• Cisco Systems, Inc.
• Fuze, Inc.
• Polycom, Inc.
• Unify, Inc.
• West Corporation
• Avaya, Inc.