SK Telecom and Singtel will explore the use of artificial intelligence (AI), orchestration tools and deepen the domain knowledge of network virtualization
Korean carrier SK Telecom and Singaporean telco Singtel have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the aim of collaborating on building next-generation...
As part of the deal, Virgin Media O2 will implement VMware Telco Cloud Infrastructure
U.K. carrier Virgin Media O2 has selected VMware for the modernization of its network and to enable the continued rollout of its 5G network.
In a release, Virgin Media O2 said it...
The fully virtualized 5G data session was completed with support from Samsung, Intel and Wind River
Verizon is laying claim to the completion of the world’s first end-to-end — meaning from the core of the network to the far edge of the network — fully...
Rakuten looking to sell virtualized network architecture as a platform
New Japanese market entrant Rakuten Mobile, a subsidiary of e-commerce giant Rakuten, has established its international headquarters in Singapore, the operator said in a release.
The new hub will serve as the company’s development center for...
45% of survey respondents said their companies are “moving rapidly” towards 5G commercial deployment
In a recent survey conducted by Business Performance Innovation (BPI) Network in partnership with A10 Networks, mobile service providers reported substantial progress in the deployment of commercial 5G networks, with most...
Virtualized, open RAN meant to take cost out of network deployments
Focused on the goal of delivering fully disaggregated, multi-vendor radio access network sites, the Open Test and Integration Center will serve as a sandbox for vendors and carriers to explore interoperability and validation of...
DevOps reorgs are consistent challenge to network automation efforts
Operators around the world are rolling out commercial 5G services with a current focus on delivering an enhanced mobile broadband experience to consumers with compatible devices. But, as the technology set matures and the specifications for...
Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten expects to deploy a total of 4,000 edge servers in Japan for the launch of its virtualized mobile network, the company’s chairman and CEO, Hiroshi Mikitani said in an interview with CNBC.
The executive said that Rakuten does not have to deploy brand...
Virtualization and software-defined networks have been the industry’s pre-occupation for almost a decade. It’s all part of a journey toward the deployment of 5G, which will be our next focus for the coming decade. Along the way, one of the key dimensions of the...
AT&T to launch mobile 5G in 12 markets by year-end
During Mobile World Congress in Barcelona when RCR Wireless News last spoke to Gordon Mansfield, AT&T's vice president of converged access and device technology said his "number one focus and priority" was overseeing the network build...
The pending commercialization and future expansion of 5G creates a number of challenges for operators, service assurance chief among them—given the massive infrastructure investment, it's imperative to understand the quality of new services. As this shift plays out with U.S. operators leading the charge,...
Network virtualization investments often start with the EPC
Last week T-Mobile US announced it worked with Cisco to deploy the "world's largest" virtualized evolved packet core covering some 70 million subscribers. This is part of a five-year arrangement between the two companies that speaks to...
The ideas around Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV), each in their own right, have been around in the industry for many years. They have garnered significant interest in the marketplace as methods to break the vertical market stranglehold that vendors have...
Network virtualization and automation will give way to network slicing
42—in addition to being the answer to life, the universe and everything, it's also how many virtual network slices will be deployed as 5G continues to evolve, according to Henrik Basilier of Ericsson.
In a recent...
Rural connectivity schemes typically focus on on overcoming last mile issues, oftentimes at the expense of figuring out answers to the myriad of other challenges related to backhaul, core, OSS/BSS
With 5G being seen as a way of enabling gigabit fixed wireless connectivity, there seems...
Open source DNOS part of network virtualization efforts
Since the days of Domain 2.0, AT&T has set ambitious goals for its network virtualization efforts. The operator finished 2017 with 55% of its network virtualized and Chris Rice, SVP of Network Cloud & Infrastructure, said in an...
Automation and 5G network slicing will create opportunities for operators and end users
Orange Poland, a subsidiary of French multinational telecom operator Orange, was the first of the service provider's national businesses to test open source network management and operations software, and is building the...
Virtualization of mobile networks must first occur in operators' IT Networks and support processes before it can be made widely available to customers as either a reformulation of current service offerings or new horizontal and vertical market offerings. Gating factors include the availability of...
Dynamic service assurance is needed to support IoT and 5G
In an interview with RCR Wireless News during Mobile World Congress 2018, John English, Netscout Systems product line manager, explained the challenges operators face in maintaining service assurance as they virtualize infrastructure to gradually automate...
We are at the beginning of a revolution that is changing how we live, work and relate to each other. According to Professor Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, we are entering the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR).
Connecting everyone and...
The Swiss telco is working with Huawei on a five-year virtualization, transformation initiative
HONG KONG--Swiss telecommunications operator Sunrise Telecom has been making progress towards the virtualization of its core network within the last six months, the telco’s Head of Commercial Management and Infrastructure Marc...
AT&T talks up bundles, FirstNet in second quarter call
AT&T is seeing bundles result in its lowest-ever recorded postpaid churn, the company indicated as it reported its second quarter results. The carrier's net additions continue to be driven largely by internet of things devices and...
Network virtualization has taken the telecom industry by storm, enabling operators to create virtual versions of devices and resources typically reserved for proprietary hardware. Numerous benefits are anchored to the idea, including reducing operating costs, eliminating downtime and providing greater agility, to name just...
