Equinix will provide digital infrastructure services to support Dish’s cloud-native, Open RAN-based 5G network. As a result, Dish will have access to the infrastructure company’s International Business Exchange (IBX) data centers across the U.S.
“Dish is taking the lead in delivering on the promise of 5G in the U.S., and our partnership with Equinix will enable us to secure critical interconnections for a nationwide 5G network,” said Jeff McSchooler, Dish executive vice president of wireless network operations. “With proximity to large population centers, as well as network and cloud density, Equinix is the right partner to connect our cloud-native 5G network.”
Equinix recently opened a fully functional 5G and Edge Technology Development Center that includes a fully operational, Non-Standalone 5G network from Nokia to test and validate 5G services and use cases. The company believes the center will support the growing demand for companies to accelerate their evolution from traditional to digital businesses by rapidly scaling their infrastructure, easily adopting hybrid multicloud architectures and interconnecting with strategic business partners.
“5G will have a transformative impact on way the world connects and does business, but it requires a modern, connected underlying infrastructure at the edge,” said Jon Lin, president of Americas, Equinix. “Dish will leverage our extensive ecosystem of network partners and cloud providers to deliver a fast, powerful 5G network to communities across the United States.”
Dish also announced a partnership with Cisco earlier this week, in which the vendor will provide 5G enterprise services in the form of cloud networking and automation software. Cisco is also assisting with the delivery of network slicing and with the build out of a DevOps team to bring new services to market quickly.
“Dish has compiled an outstanding roster of partners in the wireless industry, and Cisco is a key player helping us launch a customizable, automated, 5G network optimized for enterprise performance,” said Charlie Ergen, chairman, Dish. “Working with Cisco is central to achieving our goal of delivering a best-in-class experience for enterprises. Our ability to continually drive value and enhance capabilities for our customers is a key differentiator for Dish and positions us to disrupt the industry with more innovation, speed, agility and security.”
Earlier this month, the provider kicked off a 5G pilot program in Las Vegas — first announced over the summer — and has ambitions to cover 70% of the U.S. by June 2023. Other Dish partners include Amazon Web Services, IBM and Qualcomm.
