VMware joins Altiostar, Fujitsu and Mavenir as Dish 5G network partners
Following multiple tests and onboarding procedures, Dish Network has officially selected VMware’s Telco Cloud platform to run as an underlying cloud platform and infrastructure layer to power the carrier’s open radio access network-based 5G network. The news makes VMware the newest member to Dish’s lineup, which currently includes Altiostar, Fujitsu and Mavenir.
By using the platform, launched by VMware earlier this year, as an abstraction layer that runs across multiple network domains, Dish says it can can tap into hyper-scale public cloud capacity while maintaining its core control points.
The deployment will be use cloud-native architecture, and because it will be built from the ground up, it is considered a greenfield deployment, making it somewhat unique, as most other deployments of this kind are brownfield, meaning the operator is integrating a cloud-native architecture into an already existing network.
This deal means a lot to both parties, as both are in the middle of furthering their involvement in the telecoms space. VMware currently has 5G network deals with AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, NTT DoCoMo and Vodafone.
For its part, Dish continues to work on positioning itself as a fourth national, facilities-based U.S. carrier following the Sprint/T-Mobile merger. Dish has acquired wireless customers from Boost Mobile and Ting Mobile and has upped its hiring efforts in the wireless field.
“VMware software will serve as a powerful foundation for our cloud-native, software-defined 5G network,” said Marc Rouanne, executive vice president and chief network officer, Dish. “By bringing together innovations such as the distributed cloud, edge computing and network slicing, this software will help us provide our customers with customizable, secure solutions that will be more cost-effective than legacy, vertically-integrated, hardware-reliant alternatives.”
