Network APIs are the telecom industry’s next big bet for unlocking new revenue, with McKinsey & Company projecting they could generate up to $300 billion in connectivity and edge computing revenue over the next four to six years. But the real challenge isn’t technical—it’s convincing millions of developers to adopt telco’s network APIs instead of sticking with what they already use.
In this episode, I sit down with Shkumbin Hamiti, Nokia’s vice president of network monetization, who leads the Network as Code platform that has grown to over 50 partners since launch. We explore why winning over developers is the holy grail for network API success.
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Shkumbin Hamiti is vice-president and head of Nokia’s network monetization platform business unit. He is an accomplished technology executive with 28+ years of experience spearheading transformative initiatives within the mobile and cloud industries at Nokia. He is based at Nokia’s headquarters in Espoo, Finland.
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Set up a meeting with our team to learn how to tap the immense business value it can bring.
McKinsey & Company projects network APIs could unlock up to $300 billion in connectivity and edge computing revenue for operators over the next four to six years, with an additional $30 billion from the APIs themselves. However, realizing this potential requires telcos to open up their networks, engage developers across various verticals, and build capabilities based on developer feedback rather than focusing solely on revenue projections. Learn more in McKinsey’s report predicting network API’s $300 billion dollar revenue potential.
While Aduna focuses on network-level integration to create a unified operator-owned marketplace, Nokia’s Network as Code platform prioritizes solving the developer adoption challenge. Nokia’s approach involves meeting developers where they already are—integrating with existing ecosystems like Google Cloud marketplace and CPaaS vendors like Infobip—rather than asking developers to come to a new telco-specific platform. Nokia has grown to over 50 partners and 30+ CSPs since launching in September 2023, in part thanks to its acquisition of Rapid.
Deutsche Telekom is deploying SIM swap and number verification APIs for fraud prevention in FinTech and e-commerce. Globe Telecom in the Philippines is enabling banking-grade APIs that integrate with financial institutions for improved security and compliance. Nokia also demonstrated quality of service on demand with robotaxi service Elmo at Mobile World Congress, where attendees could remotely drive cars located over 2,000 miles away through Elmo’s remote teledriving system.
As Shkumbin Hamiti explains, developers are the real customers of network APIs—winning their hearts and minds is the “holy grail.” The challenge isn’t just having millions of developers, but getting them to integrate APIs into enterprise applications that remain in production for decades. This requires telcos to fundamentally shift from B2B infrastructure providers to platform companies, meeting developers in their existing tool chains, like Nokia has done through its partnership with Google Cloud marketplace, rather than expecting them to adopt new telco-specific ecosystems.
DR proposes targeting AI coding assistants instead of chasing human developers one by one. Since AI pulls from sources with the best documentation and examples—like GitHub repositories and Stack Overflow—telcos should dominate these information sources. When developers ask AI to add functionality like SMS to their projects, the AI would automatically suggest telco network APIs. This approach could generate millions of lines of API code and revenue without expensive developer marketing campaigns.
According to DR’s perspective in the podcast, telcos should not hand their developer relationships to hyperscalers. While partnerships with platforms like Google Cloud are valuable for distribution, the strategic asset is the developer community itself. Telcos need to own these relationships and learn how to sell APIs directly to enterprises, even though it requires moving outside their traditional comfort zone. This developer network represents a critical competitive advantage that shouldn’t be ceded to others.
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