2022: The Third-Wave of Cloud Communications?

The Cloud Communications industry has experienced two macro waves, with a third expected in 2022. Wave one saw the rise of Communications Infrastructure-as-a-Service (CIaaS), which provided the foundation for CPaaS, UCaaS, and CCaaS platforms dominating the SMB segment today. Wave two has seen vertical integration of CIaaS and CPaaS to form a new "Layer 1" for enterprise communications, with CPaaS now expected to power all communications workflows within enterprises. The third wave will likely see rapid consolidation across the CSaaS segment as dominant players look to increase their share of Enterprise wallets. Wave three is characterized by unbundling and rebundling of cloud communications into verticalized solutions targeting specific market segments, such as healthcare or financial services.