7:55 AM -- Operators grappling with how best to optimize their mobile networks for video should take note of this content delivery network (CDN) news announced on Monday because it looks like an important development. (See Saguna, Jet Stream Team for Mobile CDNs and Mobile Video's Time Is Now.)

The companies involved are Saguna Networks -- which specializes in radio access network (RAN) caching -- and content delivery network (CDN) company Jet Stream BV . They've teamed up to create a federated CDN offering for mobile networks by combining Saguna's RAN optimization software with Jet Stream's VideoExchange CDN technology.

This kind of combo could be one way for operators to take a stab at the mobile content delivery challenge.

The announcement certainly caught the eye of Heavy Reading Senior Analyst Patrick Donegan.

"This whole area of CDN and caching distribution is among the hottest areas where the future direction of the mobile network is concerned," he said. And he should know, since he wrote about this in a recent report, Mobile Network Feature Distribution Strategies for 3G & LTE.

"Saguna reckon they can get their caching functionality into a backhaul switch or even a base station for less than $100," said Donegan.

He added: "The ongoing questions are around the business model -- to what extent are operators expecting paid, premium, video services rather than 'free' over-the-top videos? How far out in the network is optimal for an efficient cache hit ratio? To what extent does this distribution drive broader aspects of IP network distribution in the mobile network and to what extent is it subordinate to it? It's still early days where these kinds of questions are concerned."

Now's the time to ask them, then!

— Michelle Donegan, European Editor, Light Reading Mobile