Affirmed Networks today revealed that Egyptian carrier Etisalat has joined the ranks of Tier 1 operators using its NFV technology, in this case to virtualize its evolved packet core for mobile service delivery.

July 20, 2016

1 Min Read

ABU DHABI -- Following the successful launch of its first NFV telco cloud, Etisalat has successfully on-boarded its first virtualised telecom function using Affirmed Networks’ virtualised Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) solution. Representing the core technology components of a mobile system, an Evolved Packet Core is the foundation of any mobile service.

Marking another first for the telecom leader, Etisalat made its first live LTE data and voice calls on the cloud platform in April this year. The UAE telecom aims to position its vEPC to rapidly deliver broadband and voice services for both mobile and fixed users, in addition to providing advanced connected car and Machine-to-Machine (M2M) services. Etisalat also plans to leverage the benefits of virtualisation and software to economically “spin-up” virtual mobile network cores for Internet of Things (IoT), Wi-Fi calling and Smart City initiatives in a matter of hours and days—instead of months with traditional EPC solutions.

Projects, proof of concepts and various trials aimed at the transformation of the corporation for the cloud era have started as early as 2013, with the telecom industry’s fostering and adoption of Network Function Virtualization (NFV) and Software-Defined Networking (SDN)—two of the enabling technologies behind smart cities, IoT and 5G initiatives.

The vEPC project comes as part of a corporate-wide program launched in 2016 to “cloudify the network,” dubbed Sahaab—an Arabic word that translates to ‘cloud.’ The program is focused on deploying the right mix of the hardware-centric telecom services and software-centric cloud services.

Affirmed Networks Inc.

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