Business Chief Europe Magazine February 2020 | Page 125

Vodafone : Building a Network Cloud of the Future

Worldwide , communications service providers ( CSPs ) are adopting software-defined virtualised platforms and services as they evolve their mobile networks for the upcoming introduction of 5G . That ’ s because Network Functions Virtualisation ( NFV ) streamlines the design and deployment of networking services and automates their operation — all while enabling scale and cost-efficiency .
Vodafone Group — with mobile operations in 25 countries and fixed broadband operations in 19 markets — is working with VMware to support its global rollout of virtual network functions . Vodafone is using NFV and software-defined networking technologies across apps and networks to accelerate its delivery of cloud-based network functions .
“ Virtualised , cloud-native network functions are a critical element of our Group-wide program as we continue to transform how we build , operate and evolve our networks and services ,” says Matt Beal , director of technology strategy and architecture at Vodafone Group . “ Reducing the time and cost to deploy and operate services , using automation and convergence in standardised cloud environments for both our network and IT businesses , is a critical part of our technology and operational transformation strategies .”
VMware helps CSPs like Vodafone create new revenue streams , open new industry opportunities , drive down costs and improve overall customer satisfaction by enabling them to become nimbler and more responsive . VMware provides an optimal infrastructure for all telco applications and services : customer-built , packaged , virtualised , cloud-native and software as a service ( SaaS ). With this infrastructure , CSPs can deliver those applications securely to any endpoint across a telco distributed cloud , including private and public cloud , branch / edge , micro data centre , gateway or end user .
Companies like Vodafone can roll out multiple applications on a common NFV infrastructure , rather than building new platforms for each innovative service . The VMware-based virtualised infrastructure also provides a common architecture spanning network and IT operations , further improving operational efficiencies and overall economics . With VMware , CSPs have the flexibility to choose from several certified VMware Ready™ for NFV virtual network functions , providing confidence in pretested and pre-certified solutions that can reduce deployment risk .
“ Vodafone ’ s selection of VMware to support network transformation highlights how we are a proven , strategic software innovator that can help CSPs successfully deliver new services faster while driving down costs ,” says Shekar Ayyar , executive vice president and general manager , Telco Group at VMware . “ Our VMware vCloud ® NFV™ platform is an agile and flexible virtualised infrastructure platform . Combined with Carrier-Grade Support , this will provide Vodafone with an open platform for new service development today , with an architecture that will support 5G deployments in the future .”