Mobile World Congress
2-5 March, 2026Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona, Spain
MWC26 – The Telco Trends We’ll Be Watching in Barcelona
A look at MWC 2026 themes and emerging trends that are guiding the next phase of communications and media software, informed by insights from across our M&A and Corporate Development leadership team, including Arjan Stroomberg, Elliot Yunger, Connor Ennis, and Darren Smith.
Setting the Stage for MWC 2026
Mobile World Congress 2026 comes at a pivotal moment for the communications and media software industry. Operators and software providers continue to accelerate automation efforts, prepare for 6G requirements, and modernize network and media infrastructure. These shifts are shaping how companies invest, scale, and prioritize capabilities in the year ahead.
Barcelona provides an important vantage point. When the industry gathers at MWC, the discussions on the show floor often reflect where operators are focusing their attention and where the pressure to adapt is becoming more visible. This year, several themes are emerging that have meaningful implications for the strategies, technologies, and operating models defining the next phase of telecom.
At Lumine, we have a close view of these shifts across more than 30 communications and media software businesses in our portfolio. We pay attention to how operator priorities evolve in real environments and what that means for companies building long‑term value.
Below are the trends our M&A and Corporate Development leadership will be watching closely in Barcelona, grounded in what we’re seeing across our ecosystem, and the themes shaping the MWC 2026 agenda.
Meet Us at MWC 2026
Trend 1: Operational Focus is a Driving Factor in M&A
Across the communications space, recent M&A activity says less about momentum and more about decision‑making discipline. The most consistent signal in the market is the degree to which companies are refining their portfolios, becoming clearer about what is operationally essential and what is no longer core.
This shows up in how assets are being evaluated and transacted. Businesses are simplifying structures, separating non‑core operations, and reassessing ownership with a sharper focus on capital allocation and operational relevance. External analyses, including recent work from PwC on TMT deal activity, reflect this broader pattern, but it is equally evident in direct discussions with management teams navigating these decisions in real time.
Another defining characteristic of the current environment is how value is being framed. Attention has shifted toward durability, customer embeddedness, and the role software plays in supporting everyday operations. Assets that are deeply integrated—often specialised, vertical‑focused, and quietly indispensable—are being recognised for their resilience, even when they sit outside headline deal narratives.
There is also a noticeable change in how buyers and sellers approach alignment. Transaction conversations increasingly extend beyond price to include questions of continuity, operating philosophy, and long‑term stewardship. For founders and management teams, the identity of the next owner matters. For acquirers, this places emphasis on understanding how a business is run, not just how it performs financially.
Taken together, these dynamics point to a market shaped by intent rather than urgency. Deals that progress are typically those where strategic fit is well understood, operational realities are respected, and expectations on both sides are clearly aligned. In this context, MWC serves as a useful checkpoint for understanding how today’s strategic choices are already showing up across the structure and priorities of the communications ecosystem.
As Arjan Stroomberg, SVP and Head of M&A, notes:
“What I enjoy about being at MWC is the quality of conversations it creates. In M&A discussions, we’re spending a lot of time talking with leaders about how their businesses really operate—who they serve, where they add value, how they evolve, and what makes them durable over time. Those are often thoughtful, nuanced conversations about businesses and their environment rather than simple narratives. MWC provides the perfect setting to explore that clarity together, and to understand how different businesses see their role within the broader ecosystem.”
What this means for founders and sellers:
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- Clarity of role matters more than scale alone. Assets that resonate most clearly with buyers are those that can articulate their operational role within a customer’s environment. Businesses that are deeply embedded, specialised, and clearly mission‑critical tend to stand out, regardless of size or profile.
- Durability is part of the value conversation. Increasingly, discussions extend beyond growth metrics to include resilience, customer reliance, and the stability of the operating model. Founders who can demonstrate how their business performs across cycles—and how it supports customers’ day‑to‑day operations—are often better positioned in transaction discussions.
- Ownership alignment is part of the transaction, not an afterthought. There is growing emphasis on who the next owner is and how they operate. Sellers are spending more time assessing long‑term stewardship, operating philosophy, and cultural fit alongside financial terms, reflecting a broader view of value continuity.
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Trend 2: Real‑Time Intelligence Is the Expectation
As connectivity supports more time‑sensitive activity—from enterprise applications to industrial systems—the tolerance for delay has narrowed. Networks are expected not just to carry traffic, but to recognise issues, interpret what’s happening, and respond while it still matters. In many cases, minutes—or even seconds—make a difference to outcomes.
What’s noticeable in current industry conversations is that this expectation is no longer framed as advanced capability. Real‑time visibility and response are increasingly treated as table stakes. Operators and their partners are spending less time debating whether intelligence belongs in the network and more time focusing on how quickly insight can be turned into action during live operations.
From a business development perspective, this shows up clearly in customer discussions. Questions are less about what systems can do in theory and more about how they behave under pressure—how fast issues are detected, how confidently root causes are identified, and how seamlessly responses are triggered without manual intervention. Speed, in this context, is as much about trust as it is about technology.
What stands out is that real‑time intelligence is no longer viewed as a separate layer. It is becoming part of how networks are experienced and evaluated day to day. When intelligence works quietly in the background, performance feels stable. When it doesn’t, gaps are immediately visible. That shift in expectation is shaping how solutions are positioned, assessed, and adopted across the ecosystem.
As Connor Ennis, Senior Director, Corporate Development, puts it:
“In conversations with software teams, there’s a noticeable shift in how real‑time intelligence is discussed. It’s less about features and more about how systems behave in live environments—how quickly they surface issues and help teams respond. That perspective comes through strongly at MWC, where many discussions focus on practical impact rather than theory. It’s a useful forum for understanding how expectations are evolving across customers and partners alike.”
What this means for founders and sellers:
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- Tools that eliminate delays in core workflows are becoming more important in buying decisions. Operators are looking for systems that automate event detection, correlate alerts, or trigger adjustments immediately, reducing the time between an issue arising and the response to it.
- Speed alone isn’t enough if it isn’t dependable. Real‑time capability has to be matched by accuracy and consistency, particularly in areas like service assurance or traffic optimisation, where false signals introduce friction instead of removing it.
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- Ease of integration influences how quickly solutions gain traction. Software that fits naturally into existing architectures—whether data models, assurance platforms, or orchestration layers—is adopted more readily, keeping implementation predictable and disruption low.
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Trend 3: Connectivity Is Becoming a Higher‑Stakes Foundation
Connectivity has been critical to modern economies and operations for decades. Networks have long carried the responsibility of keeping businesses running, economies operating, and people connected. In recent years, what has evolved is not the importance, but how directly the impact of connectivity is now felt by customers, employees, and organizations alike.
As digital services become more embedded in everyday life, the margin for disruption has narrowed. Reliability, latency, and resilience are no longer abstract technical measures; they show up as lived experiences. This shift is evident in early MWC 2026 conversations, where themes such as Humanising AI and Connectivity Unleashed frame connectivity not just as infrastructure, but as something that shapes trust, continuity, and confidence in digital systems.
From a corporate development perspective, this sharper focus is reflected in how connectivity‑related assets are discussed and evaluated. The conversation increasingly centres on operational performance, automation, and the software capabilities that help networks behave consistently under real‑world conditions. Connectivity remains foundational, but its human and operational consequences are now more visible and more directly tied to commercial outcomes.
Elliot Yunger, SVP & Head of Corporate Development, reflects on this,
“Connectivity has always been foundational, and it’s striking how often conversations now come back to daily life. Reliability shows up in very human ways—how teams work, how customers interact with services, how confident organizations feel in their systems. Walking through MWC, you hear those stories shared openly across the ecosystem. It reinforces that connectivity isn’t just infrastructure; it’s something people rely on every day, and the companies at this show are driving that.”
What this means for founders and sellers:
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- Operational reliability is part of your story, not just your technology. For connectivity‑adjacent businesses, value is increasingly articulated through how your product or service performs in real environments. Founders who can clearly explain how their technology supports reliability, continuity, and day‑to‑day operations tend to resonate more strongly in transaction discussions.
- Human impact strengthens technical narratives. Connectivity may be technical by nature, but its consequences are human. Businesses that can demonstrate how their solutions reduce friction, improve experience, or support trust—whether for customers, employees, or partners—often find that this framing lands more clearly than feature‑led explanations alone.
- Fit with operating models matters. As connectivity is evaluated through an operational lens, buyers pay closer attention to how a business integrates into broader systems and workflows. Sellers who understand and communicate how they complement an operator’s existing environment—technically and operationally—are better positioned in conversations about long‑term ownership.
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Trend 4: Trust and Explainability are Becoming Requirements
As AI becomes more embedded in telecom operations, expectations around trust and accountability have become more explicit. Telecom networks support essential services, and operators have long understood the need for systems that behave predictably. What’s increasingly clear is that AI is now held to that same standard.
This perspective is coming through strongly in MWC 2026 discussions, particularly around the theme of Humanising AI. The focus is less on what automation can do in theory and more on how it behaves in practice—whether decisions can be understood, outcomes can be explained, and performance can be monitored over time. In operational environments, AI that cannot be audited or interrogated creates friction rather than confidence.
From a business and partnership standpoint, trust is becoming something that needs to be demonstrated, not assumed. Operators are paying closer attention to how AI‑driven systems are governed, how decisions are logged, and how issues can be traced back through the system when something goes wrong. Transparency and oversight are increasingly part of how solutions are evaluated.
What stands out is that trust is no longer viewed solely as a compliance requirement. In many conversations, it shows up as a practical differentiator. Vendors and partners that can clearly explain how their AI behaves—and how it is controlled—tend to build confidence more quickly, particularly as automation takes on a larger operational role.
Darren Smith, Director of Corporate Development, EMEA has already seen the impact of this in the industry. He comments:
“As AI becomes more embedded in operations, trust and transparency are coming up more naturally in conversations. Operators want to understand how systems behave, how decisions are made, and how issues can be traced when something doesn’t look right. What I enjoy about MWC is seeing how different teams approach that challenge, how they explain their thinking and bring governance to life. It reflects a broader industry effort to make AI feel understandable and dependable, not abstract.”
What this means for founders and sellers:
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- Trust is increasingly part of the value story. For businesses building AI‑enabled systems, conversations are moving beyond performance alone. Founders who can clearly explain how their technology behaves, how decisions are made, and how teams stay in control often find that this builds confidence quickly with partners and potential buyers.
- Explainability helps others understand your business, not just your technology. Being able to talk through how your AI works in practice—especially when something goes wrong—helps demystify the product for non‑technical audiences. That clarity can be especially helpful in M&A discussions involving multiple stakeholders, from advisors to investment committees.
- Governance is increasingly seen as a sign of operational maturity. Sellers don’t need to position governance as a regulatory exercise. When framed as part of how the business is run day to day—how issues are monitored, decisions are logged, and responsibility is assigned—it often signals thoughtfulness and readiness to scale.
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As the industry prepares for another year of change, MWC offers a useful moment to pause and take stock of what’s shifting across networks, operations, and software. It’s one of the few times the sector comes together to compare experiences and understand where priorities are moving next.
If you’ll be in Barcelona, we’d welcome the chance to connect.
Looking forward to seeing you at MWC26
Let’s explore how we can help you navigate the future. We look forward to seeing you at MWC. To learn more about Lumine and discover opportunities that become possible together for your business, book a private meeting with our team at MWC.
If you are interested in learning more about Lumine Group, let’s connect.
