What Do You mean by "Digital Infra?"

Eventually, no buzz words or big ideas in the computing or connectivity industries remain crystal clear forever. Consider the term digital infrastructure. Singtel, for example, says it now will focus on a “digital infrastructure growth strategy.”

As a concrete matter, that strategy involves a mix of digital infra asset moves: selling tower assets in Australia; combining assets to create a new data center growth strategy across Southeast Asia. 

source: Singtel 

What might be notable about the strategy is that all the traditional connectivity services and products are essentially marshaled on behalf of a “data center” business driven by the value of colocated servers, real estate and the ability to create an ecosystem of domains. 

The older core mission of a “telco” would have revolved around “connecting people.” 

But back to the term “digital infrastructure,” which some might take to mean classes of assets, such as data centers, tower networks or access networks, including ownership or operation;, retail or wholesale-only business models; hardware, software, operating systems, processors and storage, colocation, security, interconnection of any combination of functions. 

Others might get more granular and say that digital infra implies the physical assets but not necessarily the services created by service providers that use such assets. 

In other words, the business function might be wholesale supply of infrastructure, but not the sale of turned-up communication or computing services. 

In Singtel’s case, the functional definition is the retail ability to support retail data center operations across Southeast Asia, presumably using its own assets--and assets of partners--to do so. In other words, it does not appear the primary strategy will rely on renting assets from other entities. 

In that sense, “digital infrastructure” in practice means “retail data center” service. The planned outcomes, though, include creation of a “regional digital infrastructure platform across multiple asset classes.” 

That is likely further confusing for some observers. If the “platform” includes 5G networks, wide area networks, mobile towers, subsea cables and satellites and data centers, how is that any different from the legacy business of supplying services built on 5G networks, wide area networks, mobile towers, subsea cables and satellites and data centers?

Skeptics might argue that use of the term “digital infrastructure” is simply a new way of saying “communications,” or “connectivity and computing,” or “telecom.” 

Yet others might argue that digital infra also logically includes all the subtending industries and functions that are used to build whole networks and systems. Semiconductors, chips, software and appliances, billing systems, operational support systems and so forth might be considered part of “digital infrastructure” as well. 

From the standpoint of actual end users, digital infrastructure might be the full range of hardware, software, operating systems and connectivity used to support applications used for work, leisure and learning. 

For most, however, digital infra tends to mean the hardware, software and other assets used to create and operate data centers, cellular networks, terrestrial fiber networks and edge computing facilities. 

For many others, digital infra might further mean the business of operating data centers,  cellular networks, terrestrial fiber networks and edge computing facilities. 

So much for precise definitions and shared understandings.