Vodafone-Oracle latest deal between 5G telco and “cloud native” service provider
UK network operator Vodafone has signed a deal with enterprise software maker Oracle to implement its cloud native network policy management platform into its 5G core network. This is consistent with the trend of cloud service providers (like Amazon, Microsoft and Google) to ink contracts with wireless network operators for their cloud native 5G SA core network, thus taking over all the intelligent functions, features and services that 5G can (theoretically) provide. In general, alliances between cloud giants and wireless telcos are increasing at a rapid rate.
The cloud platform is based on the ability to dynamically prioritize low-latency applications to edge data networks, while optimizing network policies based on data analytics. With Oracle’s cloud native network policy management solution as part of its 5G core, Vodafone says they will be able to make more intelligent policy decisions and quickly test and deploy new services.
“Moving to ‘cloud native’ is a culture shift as much as it is a technology shift for a telecom company like Vodafone,” said Andrea Dona, chief network officer, Vodafone UK. “Our partners must demonstrate flexibility and agility, as well as aligning to our vision of how technology will augment and support tomorrow’s digital society,” she added.
Converged policy management is comprised of the 5G Core Policy Control Function (PCF) and the Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF). The solution helps to dynamically prioritizes low-latency applications to edge data networks, while continuously optimizing network policies based on data analytics. For example, based on the data, the solution can help Vodafone customers get the network offering that best suits their needs, be it connecting smart devices, utilizing live streaming, or enabling AR/VR gaming. As such, Vodafone can provide a seamless experience across 4G and 5G networks while simultaneously delivering a smooth integration of new 5G services. The solution will be deployed by Oracle Communications consulting.
“5G undoubtedly opens the door for endless new ways to engage with our world, but intelligent policy management is the entryway to capitalize on these opportunities,” said Andrew Morawski, senior vice president and general manager, Oracle Communications, Networks. “Our 5G and cloud capabilities are helping Vodafone to build a future-proof network that is automated, easier to scale, simpler to operate, and more cost-effective.”
Aligned with the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) [1.], Oracle’s cloud native 5G core control plane features network functions, including the policy control, that help operators automate and scale to meet the expected growth in 5G subscribers and connected devices. Learn more about how Oracle is powering the future of 5G.
Note 1. Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) serves as the vendor-neutral home for many of the fastest-growing open source projects, including Kubernetes, Prometheus, and Envoy. CNCF) hosts critical components of the global technology infrastructure. CNCF brings together the world’s top developers, end users, and vendors and runs the largest open source developer conferences. CNCF is part of the nonprofit Linux Foundation.
Oracle also has similar relationships with Italian carrier TIM, Indian carrier Bharti Airtel, and other international telecommunications companies. The company currently has 37 cloud computing regions in 20 countries. It is trying to compete with Amazon AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud in the cloud infrastructure and platform as a service markets, along with its telecom cloud ambitions.
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Just last week Oracle struck a global cloud deal with Spanish telecoms group Telefónica, where the two firms will jointly offer platform-as-a-service (PaaS) and applications to enterprises and public sector organizations. As cloud computing continues to become more embedded in the telecoms sector, and the wider world besides, we can expect to see many more partnerships of this type in the future.
Telefónica will also become the host partner for the Oracle Cloud Madrid Region. It is Oracle’s first cloud region in Spain, and will offer enterprises and public sector bodies there a secure and reliable connection to its range of services. It will also help businesses address their in-country data residency and compliance requirements, Oracle said.
“With Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, we are complementing Telefónica’s robust cloud services offering with a cloud platform that has seen strong growth over the last year as customers all over the world use it to run their most mission-critical workloads,” said Albert Triola, country leader, Oracle Spain.
Source: Gartner
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References:
https://telecoms.com/513455/vodafone-recruits-oracle-cloud-platform-to-bolster-5g-core/
https://www.oracle.com/industries/communications/
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Oracle and Telefónica Tech Partner to Offer Global Cloud Services
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From Light Reading:
A new white paper (likely sponsored by Microsoft) written by Analysys Mason, a market research and consulting firm neatly summarize the chief DIY issue for telcos transferring software functions to clouds:
“They have accumulated multiple network cloud silos using various tightly integrated xNFs and clouds, and have built specific automations that are not transferrable to other clouds.” A recommendation that conveniently ignores concern about hyperscaler dependency is to extend Azure – well established as an option for standard IT workloads – to other cloud domains, including the “existing network cloud silos.”
Strictly speaking, there are some network domains that should forever be off-limits to the public cloud. Parts of the radio access network (RAN), in particular, have such demanding performance requirements to do with latency (a measure of the roundtrip time for a data signal on the network) that hosting them in a public cloud facility – a long way from many radio sites – would simply not work. Even Microsoft has acknowledged this shortcoming.
“Hyperscalers are not yet able to go to the far edge and host a real-time radio application,” said Paul Miller, Wind River’s chief technology officer, during an interview with Light Reading last year.
Red Hat and VMware can also be seen as potential solutions to the problem of public cloud lock-in. The basic theory is that a telco running software on their platforms inside a public cloud would retain the option of moving these platforms to another cloud. “You can very much think of it as an abstraction layer or point of consistency for things to run on independently of the underlying infrastructure,” said Chris Wright, Red Hat’s chief technology officer.
It is hard to imagine a Microsoft pitch along these lines, allowing a telco to use some of its systems within a broader AWS or Google Cloud framework. The risk previously identified by James Crawshaw, a principal analyst at Omdia (a sister company to Light Reading), is that Wright’s so-called “abstraction layer” simply becomes a different source of dependency. If telcos arrive at this conclusion, they might just decide it is safer and more economical to rely solely on a behemoth like Microsoft – with its $1.9 trillion valuation and array of services –than involve a relative minnow and one-trick pony such as VMware, currently worth about $51 billion on the New York Stock Exchange.
Not all telco executives are convinced the public cloud is necessarily cheaper than the alternatives. “I don’t think it is proven yet,” said Howard Watson, BT’s chief security and networks officer. “They are running these cloud environments at enormous scale … but the economics don’t yet reflect that.” Outside the telecom sector, others have insisted the economic attractions of the public cloud diminish as a customer grows and its IT usage becomes more predictable.
https://www.lightreading.com/service-provider-cloud/telcos-risk-paying-heavy-price-for-cloud/d/d-id/783646