Cutting Through the Noise with a Clear, Side-by-Side View of Performance

Starting with their 1Q25 results, IDC’s European Enterprise Communications Services program will publish a quarterly comparison and analysis of Europe’s top 5 telcos: BT, Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone. A main goal of this initiative is to identify which telcos are most successful in transforming their monetization strategies.

Our analysis of telco performance will be based on new research by the IDC European analyst team. Other IDC products, including those from our colleagues in the Data & Analytics team, focus on telco revenue across individual product lines.

This blog post provides a high-level view of the operators’ 2024 global performance as a prelude to the quarterly analyses. Here, we compare the companies’ revenue performance, development of their geographical markets and strategic growth portfolios, and major announcements and events during the period.

The financial data has been adjusted for consistency and comparability:

Figures have been converted to USD on a constant currency basis at IDC’s published 2024 rate (EUR/USD 0.92420; GBP/USD 0.78269).
Reporting periods have been aligned to the calendar year (CY). For Deutsche Telekom, Orange, and Telefónica, this aligns to their financial year (FY). For BT and Vodafone, we have summed their quarterly results within each CY (e.g., CY 1Q24 to CY 4Q24, corresponding to their published FY 4Q24 to FY 3Q25 reports).

Group Revenue Performance

Figure 1 shows total group revenue and YoY growth for BT, Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone from CY20 to CY24.

Converting all results to USD and aligning BT and Vodafone to CYs highlights the relative size differences between Deutsche Telekom (due to T-Mobile US) and BT, and the similarity between Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone.

It also shows that CY24, like CY23, was relatively flat for Europe’s leading telcos, with top line growth between -2.2% and 3.4%. The exception is Vodafone, which posted a large decline in CY23 due to the disposal of two major country operations during 2024 (Vodafone Italy and Vodafone Spain). Vodafone’s restated historical financials omit Italy and Spain going back to CY 1Q23.  As the figures presented in this blog post are based on the restated numbers, the drop in revenue resulting from those disposals appears to occur in CY23.

Notes:

BT and Vodafone figures are for the CY, based on quarterly reports.
Growth rates reflect operators’ reported figures and include conversion from local currency to reporting currency (EUR for Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone, and GBP for BT).
Vodafone’s negative growth in CY23 is due to the disposal of Vodafone Italy and Vodafone Spain in CY24 and subsequent revenue restatements.

BT remains the smallest of the top five telcos by revenue and in growth terms has been a mid-pack performer in recent years, although it was the only company in the group to post negative top-line growth in CY24, of -2.2%. In addition to several country operation disposals over the last few years, BT has signalled its clear intent through CY24 under CEO Allison Kirkby to focus on the domestic U.K. market and is exploring options for its underperforming international business.
Deutsche Telekom is far ahead of its European peers in total revenue due to the contribution of T-Mobile US, with group revenue between $114B and $125B. However, revenue from Europe totaled €41.2B in CY24, placing it in line with Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone (see figure 5 for side -by -side view for the 4 operators). Deutsche Telekom posted the highest YoY growth rate in CY24 at 3.4%, largely driven by the strong performance of its mobile and broadband services. Notably, this growth is primarily attributed to T-Mobile US, fueled by rising postpaid and prepaid revenues and a slight increase in terminal equipment sales. The contribution of approximately 65% of group revenue from T-Mobile US clearly sets Deutsche Telekom apart.
Orange’s YoY revenue growth in CY24 was limited to 1.5%, mainly due to the deconsolidation of Orange Spain after the creation of the MásOrange joint venture, and a decline in Orange Business’ revenue of -1.9%, primarily from fixed services. However, strong growth from the META region of 7.4% stabilized Orange’s overall business.
Telefónica, which ranks second in group revenue, reported modest YoY growth of 1.6% in CY24. This was due to growth in service revenues (up 2.5%) driven by a stronger B2B performance (up 4.8%) but offset in part by the depreciation of various Latin American currencies (in particular the Brazilian real) against the euro.
Vodafone, from CY20 to CY22 Vodafone was ahead of, and accelerating away from, Orange and Telefónica. However, the disposal of its Italy and Spain operations meant a loss of over $8 billion annual revenue, effective in its restated financials from 2023. This resizes Vodafone below Orange and Telefonica but, as of CY2024, it remains on a higher growth trajectory. Vodafone completed the sale of its Spain operation (to Zegona Communications) in May 2024 for €5 billion and its Italy operation in January 2025 (to Swisscom) for €8 billion. Around the same time it received regulatory approval for its merger with Three in the U.K.

Figure 2 positions the operators based on their CY24 group revenue and growth rate over CY23, with bubble sizes representing the absolute EBITDA or EBITDAaL (EBITDA after leases) values for CY24. It brings out the similarity of Orange and Telefónica’s businesses in terms of all three metrics (size, growth, and EBITDA). Deutsche Telekom and BT, while differing significantly in both revenue and growth, show nearly identical EBITDA margins—43% and 40% respectively—indicating comparable efficiency in generating operating profit.

Notes:

Size of bubble refers to the value of CY24 EBITDA (BT, Deutsche Telekom, and Telefónica) or EBITDAaL (Orange and Vodafone).
The percentages next to operator’s name plotted on the chart represent the EBITDA margin for (BT, Deutsche Telekom, and Telefónica) or EBITDAaL margin (Orange and Vodafone).

Figure 3 rebases each operator’s group revenue to a value of 100 in CY20 and plots relative development from that point. This clearly shows Deutsche Telekom’s outperformance over the others, the similar relative performance of BT, Orange, and Telefónica over the last three years, and again the temporary drop in Vodafone’s revenue due to major disposals.

Notes:

Revenue is plotted relative to a baseline of 100 for all operators in CY20.
Vodafone’s negative growth in CY2023 is due to the disposal of Vodafone Italy and Vodafone Spain in CY2024 and subsequent revenue restatements.

Geographical Markets

Figure 4 shows how operators’ total CY24 revenue breaks down geographically. Each operator’s domestic operations are labeled as its home market on the chart. For Vodafone, we assigned its largest country market of Germany as, not being an ex-incumbent, the concept of home market is less clearly defined.

The chart highlights how international businesses, primarily opcos, gained via historical acquisitions, are a sizeable fraction of each operator’s total business. The exception is BT. Following a series of divestments in recent years, BT is now very heavily concentrated on the U.K., contributing 89% of group revenue in FY24 (the year ending March 2024, BT’s most recent geographical reporting). BT CEO Allison Kirkby’s decision to focus on the U.K. still further is an extension of a trend already well established.

Notes:

Vodafone’s home market is assigned as Germany, its largest revenue-contributing market.
BT does not publish geographical splits on a quarterly basis, so CY splits are unavailable. We applied the latest published breakdown (year ending March 2024) to CY24 revenue for illustration.
The chart is organized in descending order of group revenue, progressing from the highest to the lowest value along the horizontal axis.
The percentage shows each region’s share of the overall group revenue, and the number shows the total revenue that region produced in CY24.

B2B Revenue Performance

Figure 5 shows how operators’ CY24 revenue from business customers compares with total group revenue. We aimed to capture all B2B revenue, including dedicated enterprise units (BT Business, Deutsche Telekom’s System Solutions/T-Systems, Orange Business, Telefónica Tech, and Vodafone Business), as well as other reported business revenue generated by the group organization. In practice, some very small business customers buy consumer products and are served by the consumer division of an operator. We don’t attempt to break out this revenue.

Notes:

Growth rates shown in red (decline) and green (growth) refer to CY24 B2B revenue growth.
Figures represent overall B2B revenue, including enterprise business units and services sold to business customers by the parent organization.
The chart is organized in descending order of CY24 group revenue, with operators arranged left to right from highest to lowest.
Deutsche Telekom (DT) is placed first as it recorded the highest total revenue in CY24. However, in this graph T-Mobile US has been excluded from DT’s revenue in this analysis, as the company does not report a segmented B2B vs B2C revenue breakdown for the U.S. market. This exclusion ensures a more accurate and consistent comparison of DT’s European B2B revenue contribution.

Deutsche Telekom

Deutsche Telekom’s B2B revenue comes from the summation of two segments: German Business Customers and Systems Solutions (T-Systems). Deutsche Telekom serves enterprise clients globally, but only these two components are reported in the operator’s annual statements. German Business Customers, part of Deutsche Telekom’s Germany segment, generated €8.7B in CY24, down 5.7% YoY (mainly due to reclassification of some revenue as wholesale since January 2024).

Systems Solutions, operating under the T-Systems brand, focuses on ICT services in the DACH region, spanning cloud, digital, security, and advisory services as well as road toll systems. Revenue rose to €4.0B in CY24, up 2.8% YoY, reflecting steady strategic growth.

System Solutions’ growth was driven by:
• Expanding demand for digital, cloud, and road charging services
• Strong momentum in public sector IT contracts, a key vertical for T-Systems
• Ongoing customer migration from legacy infrastructure to digital platforms

Despite ongoing pressure in traditional services, the gains in high-growth areas allowed Systems Solutions to post a 3.7% increase in external revenue and a 2.3% rise in service revenue, signaling healthy market traction and improved portfolio relevance.

The overall YoY revenue decline of -1.2% shown in figure 5 for Deutsche Telekom is the result of growth in its System Solutions segment being offset by a decline in revenue from its German business segment. Together they represent 31% of DT total revenue of $44,063063M excluding the U.S. region.

Telefónica

Telefónica Tech (TTech) is the digital services arm within Telefónica’s broader B2B segment. It focuses on services such as cloud, cybersecurity, IoT and Big Data, and AI and automation, while the B2B segment overall includes traditional connectivity and managed services. In CY24, TTech generated €2,065M in revenue, growing 10% YoY and contributing to total B2B revenue of €8,957M, up 4.8% YoY.

Main B2B growth drivers included:
• Bookings and commercial funnel growing at 30% YoY and 15% respectively in CY24
• Enhanced business sustainability and larger, higher-value projects in the backlog

TTech’s cybersecurity and cloud revenue amounted to €1,821M (up 12.3% YoY), and its IoT and data revenue totaled €246M (down 4.8% YoY) in CY24.

Orange

Orange Business contributed 19% of Orange’s total revenue in CY24, at €7.8B, down 1.9% YoY due to the decline in fixed service revenues. Although declining modestly, the segment demonstrated strategic resilience and a relative shift toward higher-value digital services.

B2B growth was driven by:
• IT and integration services, up slightly (by 2.7% comparable growth, or €102M) in a complex IT market
• Orange Cyberdefense (part of IT services), up 11.2% or €120M

Despite ongoing pressure on legacy product lines and equipment sales, positive momentum in IT and mobile segments demonstrates good portfolio realignment and robust underlying market traction.

Vodafone

Enterprise customers of all sizes are handled through Vodafone Business. The unit reports service (as opposed to total) revenue, which amounted to €7.9 billion in CY24, 21% of (total) group revenue. This was up 3.2% on CY23 (based on restated figures that exclude Italy and Spain), making Vodafone one of only two telcos in the group to be growing its B2B business.

Vodafone’s B2B growth drivers include:
• Strong demand for digital services (cloud, security, and IoT), particularly in the MEA region. Cloud revenue grew 25% YoY on average per quarter, and digital services grew from 17% of total business service revenue at the start of CY24 to 20% by the end.
• Demand for fixed connectivity, again particularly in MEA.
• Project work, often in the public sector, in some markets including the U.K.

Against the growth in digital services and fixed connectivity, Vodafone’s B2B mobile business was challenged during the year, from falling inflation-linked price increases as well as ARPU erosion during large contract renewals, notably in Germany.

BT

BT Business, the merger of the former U.K.-focused BT Enterprise with BT Global, accounted for 38% of BT’s total revenue in CY24. While this is a higher relative contribution than the other operators, and in absolute terms is larger than Telefonica, Orange, and Vodafone, the unit has underperformed for several years, being 23% smaller at the end of CY24 compared with the start of CY20.

There are few positive growth drivers to report, with most B2B segments in decline. U.K. SMB was a relatively strong performer up to CY24 but growth has since flattened and turned negative. The U.K. CPS (corporate and public sector) business, conversely, has turned from strongly negative to broadly stable in CY24.

In terms of service offerings, security is a consistent growth area, and BT is betting on its global NaaS platform, Global Fabric, to revitalize its B2B portfolio and boost its international business over the next few years. The first customer went live on Global Fabric in March 2025 and the roadmap sees many of BT’s network services being offered via the platform over the next two years.

Major Announcements and Events

These are some of the main revenue-impacting developments by operator during CY24:

BT

December 2024: BT Group signed a new £1.29B contract with the U.K. Home Office to deliver mobile services for the government’s Emergency Services Network, aiming to enhance communication capabilities for emergency responders.
November 2024: Reports, later confirmed by BT, suggested that the company was looking at options for its international business following a long period of underperformance globally and a strategic focus on the U.K. market.
August 2024: Indian Bharti Enterprises agreed to purchase a 24.5% stake in BT Group from Altice, making Bharti the largest shareholder in BT.
February 2024: BT Group welcomed Allison Kirkby as its CEO, the first woman to lead the U.K. telecom giant.

Deutsche Telekom

November 2024: Deutsche Telekom awarded Nokia a contract to roll out a large-scale commercial Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) across more than 3,000 sites in Germany, supporting the operator’s strategy to diversify its supplier base and enhance network efficiency.
July 2024: Deutsche Telekom’s U.S. subsidiary T-Mobile US announced a joint venture with KKR to acquire fiber ISP Metronet. T-Mobile is investing about $4.9 billion for a 50% stake in the JV, which will absorb Metronet’s two million FTTH customers across 17 states.

Orange

May 2024: Orange announced the completion of the merger between Orange Romania SA and Orange Romania Communications SA as of June 1, 2024.
March 2024: Orange and MásMóvil completed the creation of a 50:50 JV valued at €18.6 billion in Spain, combining their operations to form a leading operator in terms of customers.
February 2024, Orange SA exited the retail banking business, after years of losses, by transferring its Orange Bank customers to BNP Paribas.

Telefónica

November 2024: The Spanish government approved Saudi Arabian STC Group’s acquisition of a 9.9% stake in Telefónica, allowing STC to appoint a board member, with conditions to safeguard national interests.
July 2024: Telefónica and Vodafone Spain (now owned by Zegona) agreed to form a joint fiber venture in Spain. The non-binding MOU outlines plans to combine and expand FTTH networks to cover ~3.5 million premises.
February 2024: Telefónica finalized an agreement to sell its Telefónica Argentina unit for about $1.245B to Telecom Argentina.

Vodafone

December 2024: Vodafone Group’s merger with Three U.K. received conditional approval from the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), forming the largest mobile operator in Britain.
December 2024: Vodafone, in partnership with AST SpaceMobile, achieved a world-first: a direct-to-mobile satellite video call using a standard smartphone.
May 2024: Vodafone sold its Spanish operations to Zegona Communications for €5B, as part of its strategy to simplify its portfolio and focus on core markets.
March 2024: Swisscom agreed to acquire 100% of Vodafone Italia for €8B, aiming to merge it with its subsidiary Fastweb to create a leading converged operator in Italy.
January 2024: The U.K. government raised national security concerns over the 14.6% stake in Vodafone Group acquired by Emirates telecom e& (formerly Etisalat).

Conclusion

This post has provided comparisons over a limited selection of metrics. Starting with CY 25Q1 results, we will publish more detailed comparisons and analyses in IDC’s European Enterprise Communications Services program, initially across the five operators presented here.

Having released the initial Zen 5 based single Core Complex Die (CCD) 3D V-Cache-based Ryzen 7 9800X3D in November 2024, AMD announced the dual-CCD Ryzen 9 9000X3D variants, including the Ryzen 9 9900X3D and Ryzen 9 9950X3D, on January 6, 2025 ahead of CES 2025.

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is a high-performance desktop processor with 16 cores and 32 threads. It uses two CCDs, each containing eight cores. The processor also features 2nd generation 3D V-Cache technology, which significantly enhances performance by adding extra cache on the chip.

Each of the two CCDs in a Ryzen 9 9950X3D features 32 MB of L3 cache, and there is an additional 64MB of 3D V-Cache that is stacked under one of the CCDs. This extra cache significantly enhances the performance of tasks that benefit from larger cache sizes, especially gaming.
The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D became available on March 12, with a starting suggested price of $699.

2nd Generation 3D V-Cache

The new Ryzen 9 9950X3D and Ryzen 9 9900X3D feature 2nd Gen 3D V-Cache, but on only one of the two CCDs. Similar to their predecessors, the other core complex does not include 3D V-Cache. This design offers the best of both worlds: the first CCD with 3D V-cache optimized for latency, and the second CCD without it, optimized for the highest possible clock speeds and throughput for highly-multithreaded workloads that do not depend on L3 cache for performance.

AMD has advanced and optimized its 3D V-Cache technology, as we covered in our Ryzen 7 9800X3D review and now with the new Ryzen 9 9950X3D and Ryzen 9 9900X3D parts. This latest iteration, known as 2nd Gen 3D V-Cache technology, offers notable improvements in performance. The key difference lies in the cache placement. Previously, the 3D V-Cache was layered on top of the cores in the Ryzen 5800X3D and Ryzen 7000X3D processors.

In the Zen5-based Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Ryzen 9 9000X3D series, the 2nd Gen 3D-V-Cache is now positioned below the processor cores. This change allows the primary heat source, the CCD, to interface directly with the cooling solution. Since the 3D V-Cache is less sensitive to temperature, this results in up to 46% better thermal resistance, according to AMD. Cooler temperatures enable higher sustained clock speeds, both single- and multi-threaded.

AMD Provisioning Packages Service Update

The latest update to the AMD Provisioning Packages Service, which is included in the chipset driver update for Windows 11, brings significant improvements to the user experience. This service manages AMD provisioning packages, including processor and nonvolatile memory express (NVMe) power management.

Designed specifically for Ryzen 9 processors, the service optimizes CPU power and performance during gaming. It uses power/frequency optimization and core parking within the Windows Game Mode power profile. The service dynamically applies optimizations to specific power profiles when an application is launched. When gaming, it “parks” the cores on the second CCD that lacks the 3D V-Cache, making them temporarily unavailable to the OS. This ensures the game runs on the CCX. The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X 3DV features two CCDs (Core Chiplet Dies).

Each CCD in this processor contains a single CCX (Core Complex) with 3D V-Cache, improving the L3 cache hit rate and overall game performance and particularly bolstering critical elements such as the 1% low frames per second (FPS) rate.
If there are changes to the CPU name, core count, logical processor count, or L3 cache count, the service will automatically uninstall and reinstall the relevant AMD provisioning packages. AMD advises performing a clean installation of Windows when changing the processor to avoid potential configuration issues with other software. The time to complete provisioning changes is typically around two minutes after booting to Windows.

While there is no BIOS option for this feature, the AMD Provisioning Packages Service can be disabled in Windows Services settings. NVMe provisioning requires Windows 11 version 22H2 or later. The Windows 10 user experience remains unchanged.

Overall, this update enhances the predictability, performance, and efficiency of Ryzen 9 9000X3D V-Cache-enabled processors, particularly for gaming, by intelligently managing power and core usage.

AMD 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer

The AMD 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer enhances the performance of Ryzen 9 9000X3D 3D V-Cache processors in gaming and non-gaming tasks. It achieves this by dynamically adjusting the “favored” processor cores based on the current application. During gaming sessions, the OS prioritizes cores connected to the larger L3 cache. Conversely, for non-gaming tasks, it favors the cores with the highest frequency. Notably, the AMD 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer does not “park” any cores.

This feature benefits desktop processors such as the Ryzen 9 9950X3D, Ryzen 9 9900X3D, Ryzen 9 7950X3D, and Ryzen 9 7900X3D. However, it does not provide advantages for single CCX X3D processors like the Ryzen 7 9800X3D or Ryzen 7 7800X3D.

Configuration options for this feature are available in the BIOS under AMD CBS/SMU Common Options/CPPC Dynamic Preferred Cores. The settings include:

– Auto | Driver: Allows the driver to decide which CPUs to prefer based on the active window.
– Cache: Always prefers CPUs in the 3D V-Cache CCX.
– Frequency: Always prefers CPUs in the highest frequency CCX.

Overall, the AMD 3D V-Cache Performance Optimizer significantly boosts the efficiency and performance of compatible Ryzen 9 processors by intelligently managing core usage based on the task at hand.

AMD Application Compatibility Database

The new AMD Application Compatibility Database, which requires both a new BIOS and chipset driver, is designed to address specific game titles that exhibit performance-limiting behavior not fully resolved by the AMD Provisioning Packages Service. These targeted optimizations reduce the thread pool size for the affected games, resulting in improved L3 cache utilization and higher FPS. This is achieved by repurposing the Windows Compatibility Toolkit’s ‘ProcessorCountLie’ feature, originally co-developed with Microsoft.

Users with Socket AM5 Platform Ryzen 9 9000 series and Ryzen 9 7000 series processors, both with and without X3D, can benefit from this new feature after a BIOS update. Currently, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D benefits from an AMD Application Compatibility Database File with optimizations for several games, including Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Dying Light 2, Far Cry 6, Metro Exodus, Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition (RT), Total War: Three Kingdoms, Total War: Warhammer III, and Wolfenstein: Young Blood.

Overall, the AMD Application Compatibility Database enhances gaming performance by intelligently managing thread pool sizes and improving cache utilization for a smoother and more responsive gaming experience.

The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D for Productivity

Rendering is a good example of productivity. The choice between CPU and GPU rendering hinges on a project’s specific needs and constraints. While GPUs excel in parallel processing and are often faster for many rendering tasks, some studios and creators still prefer CPUs. CPUs can handle larger amounts of system memory, offer better price-performance ratios compared to professional GPUs with limited VRAM, and provide high precision and stability. Additionally, CPUs are usually certified by most ISVs to run their applications smoothly without issues. This makes CPUs a reliable choice for many rendering workflows, even if they take more time.

For the first-generation implementations of AMD Ryzen 3D V-Cache, the cache tile being placed on top of the CCD limited the potential for higher clock frequencies and headroom increases due to thermal constraints. This meant that while certain workloads such as gaming saw big performance increases with 3D V-Cache enabled CPUs, highly-threaded, productivity-centric applications could see worse results with the lower frequencies on the 3D V-Cache-enabled CCD.

With the cache tile being placed underneath the CCD in second-generation 3D V-Cache parts, the CPU frequency is able to boost to higher frequencies, helping make these parts much more comparable in performance to the standard, non-3D V-Cache CPUs on highly multi-threaded workloads. This capability gives demanding users the best of both worlds of gaming and productivity.

Blender Benchmark

Blender Benchmark version 4.3.0 was used to assess the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D processor’s rendering performance. With a score of 613.88, the processor’s performance ranked among the top 37% of benchmarks running the same workloads. Given the inclusion of GPU results, the CPU performed brilliantly in proportion to its core count.

Compared to the Ryzen 9 7950X (non-3D V-Cache) that we reviewed last year, the Ryzen 9 9950X3D achieved an average benchmark performance that was 17% faster.

IndigoBench

IndigoBench v4.4.15 is another standalone benchmark based on Indigo 4’s rendering engine and the industry-standard OpenCL.

The processor scored an impressive 19.048 million samples per second on IndigoBench, ranking it among the top 30 CPU results. This was achieved with normal settings and no overclocking. Many of the top scores were from high-end server CPUs like the AMD EPYC 9654 96-Core Processor.

The processor outperformed the Ryzen 9 7950X again by 17%, thanks to its cooler operation and faster core speed of 5.2GHz on all cores under load.

Overclocking

We enabled Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO), which remains the best method for overclocking while maintaining optimal power efficiency. It is important to note that PBO is an advanced overclocking feature that may void the warranty, according to AMD. In the BIOS, under the Advanced settings, we set the limits to “Motherboard” and adjusted the CPU Boost Clock override to “+200MHz.” We incrementally adjusted the Curve Optimizer, starting at -10 and achieving stability at -20 on all cores, verified through Cinebench 2024 testing.

The single core boost hit 5.9GHz, while all cores under load consistently ran between 5.15 and 5.2GHz. Thanks to the be quiet! Silent Loop 2 280mm water cooler, temperatures remained below 80°C. In Cinebench 2024, the default settings yielded a score of 2,190 points. However, with PBO enabled, we achieved a 9.5% performance boost, raising the score to 2,399 points at a lower voltage. This was also 15% better than the Ryzen 9 7950X CPU, which scored 2,094 using PBO boost settings.

Besides overclocking manually in the motherboard’s BIOS, users can also use the Ryzen Master tool to fine-tune performance. This flexibility allows advanced users and overclocking enthusiasts to fully explore and enjoy the capabilities of this chip.

Final Words and Conclusion

The second-generation AMD 3D V-Cache, which places the cache tile underneath the CCD die, helps overcome the biggest limitations of the original generation, allowing better heat transfer and sustained higher clock speeds. The Ryzen 9 9950X3D boasts the fastest Zen 5-based 3D V-Cache-enabled CCDs, reaching up to 5,550 MHz, compared to 5,450 MHz for the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. This not only helps the new Ryzen 9 9950X3D have a better gaming performance due to the higher clock speeds of the 3D V-Cache CCD; it also also closes the multi-thread performance gap on highly multi-threaded workloads, as the clock penalty of the 3D V-Cache is much smaller than the prior generation 3D V-Cache CPUs.

3D V-Cache has been proven to work very well overall, but it is not the whole story. Looking to the future, and particularly with the prevalence of AI-enhanced workloads coming down the pipeline, we would suggest that AMD considers focusing on improving memory performance and capacity as a differentiator. With DDR5, supporting large memory capacities with four DIMMS spread across two channels normally requires dropping the memory transaction speeds significantly to achieve reliability. This usually means that many customers prefer to populate only one DIMM per channel to maximize memory throughput, which can limit the installed DRAM capacity.

Doubling the number of DRAM memory channels from two to four and providing only a single DIMM slot per memory channel in future platforms will allow the DRAM to run at maximum transfer rates for all DIMM slots to support the higher demands of dual CCD CPUs. It will also enable the use of four DIMMs per system for maximum memory capacity at a cost-effective price. A single DIMM slot per memory channel will also help to reduce electromagnetic interference issues, simplify engineering, and increase reliability and performance compared to having an empty second DIMM slot on a memory channel. This would allow for greater upgradability and significantly enhanced performance in creative applications, without compromising memory bandwidth and speed.

Related Reviews: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Processor Review: Gaming Performance Redefined

The U.S.-China tech rivalry has escalated to a new level this April 2025 with U.S. tariffs becoming a targeted trade tool. The Trump administration unleashed​ waves of tariffson Chinese goods: on March 4, a 10% tariff on all imports was imposed on top of raising tariffs from 10% to 20% on many Chinese electronics, machinery and industrial components; on April 2, ending of de minimis eligibility for China and Hong Kong (from May 2) and the “reciprocal tariffs” on key critical sectors imposed an additional 34%; and on April 8, an additional 50% tariff on semiconductors, EVs, and robotics was announced.

There also continues to be tariff escalations, clarifications and exemptions like in cases where final products have more than 20% of U.S. produced components. Chinese imports can be as high as 245% on needles and syringes or as low as zero for children’s books. Imported smartphones, computers and electronics appear to be currently granted a partial tariff reprieve and may only be subject to the March tariffs of 20%. These adjustments will probably continue as the impacts are felt by American consumers and the global markets.

Some view these measures as a means to derail China’s technological ascendancy by inflating costs, disrupting supply chains, and isolating it from global markets. Beijing’s counterstrategy, a mix of aggressive fiscal stimulus packages, supply chain resilience frameworks, and enforced technology self-reliance, suggests a calculated pivot to absorb short-term shocks while securing long-term growth.

The question then is: can China’s 2025 policy playbook neutralize U.S. tariffs’ impacts and sustain its ICT ambitions?

U.S. Tariffs’ Impact on China’s ICT Sector

IDC’s 2025 projections reveal a sector under strain but adapting. Our baseline scenario, with 20% tariffs in place, China’s ICT spending is expected to grow at 9.1% driven by domestic AI, cloud, and industrial software demand. With 50% tariffs, IDC’s downside scenario will slow down growth to 5.7%, with consumer electronics (PCs, smartphones) declining ​7.6% due to inflated import duty. An optimistic scenario, with tariffs rolled back, sees China’s ICT spending growth at 9.9%, fueled by pent-up innovation and continued existing global partnerships.

Contributing to China’s ICT spending in 2025 are the key trends we are seeing in software/cloud services (+10 to 16% YoY), largely due to organizations prioritization of digital efficiency, as well as in industrial technologies such as AI, IoT, automation, which remains resilient due to state subsidies. While the consumer hardware export market is expected to falter (e.g., iPhone costs rose 25% post-April hikes), domestic demand is expected to remain steady with government subsidies.

China’s Growing Tech Independence

There is increased emphasis on China’s “dual circulation” strategy that was originally a response to the U.S. tariffs and other sanctions introduced between 2018 and 2020. The strategy seeks to prioritize domestic consumption and non-western international trade to gain greater self-reliance and resilience. This strategy can be seen at work in the likes of DeepSeek whose open-source models are now powering a ​significant portion of Chinese Cloud services including Tencent, Alibaba and many more. Huawei’s Ascend AI chips also increased their share of AI-accelerator chips to ​27% in 2024 and is expected to reach 40% by the end of 2025.

Companies’ Response: Increased Agility to Respond to Tariff Chaos

Agility is the name of the game amid all this tariff chaos. Chinese tech giants are restructuring their supply chains by accelerating offshoring to Southeast Asia, shifting their assembly lines to sidestep tariffs. They are also diversifying their markets by pivoting to emerging markets, such as expanding electric vehicle and cloud service exports to tariff-immune regions. Some companies are also innovating operations by adopting leaner strategies like AI-powered factories to cut waste or using direct shipping tech from e-commerce platforms to bypass tariffs.

China’s 5-Point Plan: A Phase-Matched Counterattack

In response to each wave of tariffs, a 5-point plan helped blunt immediate impacts while increasing long-term leverage:

1. Domestic Demand Boost via “Consumer Upgrade Action” Plan

With the aim of boosting domestic demand and spurring economic growth, the Chinese government has put in place subsidies and trade-in programs for eligible consumer goods. For smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches, the government subsidy is up to 15% of product price, capped at ¥500/item. This trade-in program is expanded in 2025 to apply to other electronics, EVs and home appliances as well, as illustrated in the following chart:

The subsidies also target rural/low-tier cities for 5G adoption, smart home devices, and rural e-commerce logistics. There are also plans to stabilize consumer confidence through stock/real estate market reforms and wage growth policies.

The effect of these subsidies can be seen in the latest sales-out PC shipments with flat growth of 1% in 1Q 2025 compared to -16% in 1Q 2024.

2. Increased Funding for Emerging Tech

China’s $138B Innovation Fund aims to boost homegrown tech innovation and reduce foreign reliance amid escalating U.S. tariffs. It focuses on discovering and increasing “original technological breakthroughs” in early-stage startups in AI, quantum computing, hydrogen energy, biomanufacturing, and 6G technology. Funding is a combination of state capital and private/local government long-term (over 20 years) investments in R&D infrastructure and tech-to-product pipelines.

The innovation fund also involves industry stakeholders such as the MIIT (Ministry of Industry and Information Technology), academia, enterprises (to enhance smart manufacturing), and foreign collaborators in the telecom/robotics sectors. The program also aims to cultivate and highlight domestic STEM talent to offset global supply chain risks, with existing success stories like DeepSeek.

3. China’s “Five Financial Priorities” Guidelines

These guidelines provide financial support to organizations providing technology, green finance, digitalization, financial inclusion, and pension products and services. It uses technology investments to bolster innovation and self-reliance. Key measures include: comprehensive financing for national tech projects and SMEs via equity, debt, and insurance tools; capital market focus prioritizing early-stage investments in emerging technology through multi-layered markets; risk mitigation mechanisms to disperse R&D risks and expand venture capital/angel funding; and patient capital to cultivate long-term investments that nurture tech leaders, unicorns, and specialized SMEs. This framework integrates financial resources to advance China’s tech competitiveness and industrial upgrades.

4. Belt and Road 2.0: Decoupling from the U.S. via Global Partnerships

“Belt and Road 2.0” aims to reduce reliance on the U.S. by expanding partnerships and promoting diversification. Strategies include upgrading multilateral mechanisms (e.g., proposed creation of a global banking infrastructure), prioritizing green tech and digital infrastructure (e.g., Green Silk Road projects), and deepening cooperation with Global South nations (e.g., Indonesia, Malaysia). It counters U.S. decoupling attempts by fostering inclusive, non-conditional collaboration and integration with third-party markets. These initiatives also emphasize resilience through regional alliances and tech self-sufficiency.​

5. Private Enterprise Symposium 2025

The symposium was used to develop joint approaches between the public and private sector to offset U.S. tariffs. DeepSeek’s NLP breakthroughs and Unitree’s humanoid robots were highlighted as successful examples that have reduced reliance on foreign tech. At the symposium, China’s President Xi Jinping pledged to dismantle market barriers, ensure fair access to resources, and expedite laws protecting private enterprises.

Conclusion

Considering ongoing trade tensions, both U.S. and Chinese IT companies must adapt quickly to shifting geopolitical dynamics. Agility and scenario planning will be critical. Companies need to develop flexible strategies and implement tools that assess the potential impacts of tariff changes and geopolitical shifts. Regular cross-functional reviews can help minimize risks and ensure swift responses to market changes.

Furthermore, customer-centric innovation will drive market success. Companies must prioritize local market needs through targeted research, ensuring that their products align with specific regional demands such as those seen in healthcare, education, or government sectors. This approach is vital as trade restrictions may limit access to certain markets, but the demand for innovation will remain constant.

Strategic partnerships and alliances are also crucial for navigating challenges. U.S. and Chinese companies should collaborate with local tech providers to better understand market regulations and explore joint ventures to mitigate tariff impacts.

As the demand for smart home appliances grows, especially with trade-in programs, vast amounts of consumer data will fuel the expansion of B2C AI use cases in China. Additionally, China’s focus on infrastructure projects and domestic LLM development marks a new phase in technological independence, where reliance on U.S. technologies may decrease.

By focusing on flexibility, innovation, and strategic partnerships, both sides can thrive despite current challenges.

Learn more how you can navigate China’s geopolitical storms with trusted intelligence, read this complimentary IDC Market Note excerpt.  Alternatively, you can book a meeting with an IDC analyst for a consultation by submitting this form.

In highly competitive markets, vendors must constantly look for new and engaging ways to stay top of mind with buyers. In the business-to-business (B2B) world, much marketing comes via content or thought leadership campaigns.

Salespersons, in addition to understanding the business and the products and services they sell, need to be able to contextualize this value within the marketplace and the trends and drivers that are impacting buyers.

What makes content truly effective in this space? And how can you develop content that both works for your target audiences and gives your salespeople a competitive edge in their client conversations?

The Importance of Storytelling

Humans are hardwired for stories. Narratives evoke emotions, create memorable experiences, and make complex information digestible.

In B2B marketing, storytelling helps deliver narratives that take buyers on a journey of understanding that uncovers insights they may not yet had exposure to. Without directly advertising or selling, storytelling can present an alternative view of the challenges businesses face in the industries in which they compete.

Information Overload: Strategies for Creating Effective Content

In today’s digital age, buyers are bombarded with messages from all directions. AI and instantaneous access to information through various media contribute to an “always-on” global marketplace.

Marketers and salespeople must also continually stay up to date with clients, prospects, the competition, and the factors that are impacting buyers. Both seller and buyer may wind up suffering from information overload, resulting in analysis paralysis and high levels of attrition — a situation in which no one wins.

Building Buyer Relationships: Key Components of Engaging Marketing Content

The secret of great content lies in providing a combination of stories, ideas, and insights. These elements are the building blocks of all successful content marketing campaigns.

By weaving together compelling narratives, innovative ideas, and valuable insights, you can create content that not only captures attention but also drives action with buyers. Leveraging data points and case studies further enhances your business credibility, sending a clear message to the marketplace that you have evidence to support your insights and messaging.

Too often, content is created in isolation. A good marketing team will look at what the competition is doing, compare it to current thought leadership campaigns, topics, and talking points, and find white space for new stories and discussion.

Without knowing what is out there, it’s hard to find ways to improve upon it and capture the right audience, let alone buyer attention!

From Insights to Action: Crafting Targeted Marketing Content

Crafting effective marketing content for your sales teams is essential in today’s crowded markets. But how do you ensure your content hits the mark? Here are some key strategies:

1. Know your audience. This is the first step in creating content that resonates. Who is the audience? What are their pain points? What solutions are they seeking? The more you understand your audience, the better you can tailor your content to meet its needs.
2. Build resonant content. Once you know your audience, the next step is to create content that speaks to them. This means addressing their specific challenges, providing valuable insights, and offering solutions relevant to their needs. The goal is to create content that not only informs but engages and inspires.
3. Get out and test. Have your salespeople take your content — whether written/visual material or just talking points — out to clients to see how it resonates in client and prospect conversations. Providing content that holds up in important conversations is key to building trust and ownership in B2B relationships.

Conclusion

In the world of B2B marketing, content is a powerful tool that influences buyer decisions and fosters long-term relationships. By prioritizing storytelling and understanding your audience’s pain points and aspirations, you can create engaging narratives that resonate deeply. This approach helps you cut through the noise of a crowded marketplace and make a lasting impact.

The secret to great content lies in combining authentic stories, innovative ideas, and valuable insights. Empowering your marketing and sales teams with strong narratives enhances their ability to confidently convey your brand’s message and engage meaningfully with potential buyers. Ultimately, effective storytelling can set your brand apart and lead to greater recognition and success in the B2B landscape.

Interested in how IDC can help you create compelling content, messaging, and campaigns that truly engage your target audience? We can help you address your top priorities. Whether you’re looking to generate and nurture leads, establish your brand as a thought leader, or develop a strong value proposition that highlights what sets you apart, our expertise can make a significant impact. Let’s connect and explore how we can work together to drive your success!