Google Cloud has spent much of its time over the past year building an ecosystem that it believes will work better for service providers.

The aim is to offer a flexible cloud platform and a wide choice of software partners, in contrast to the "full stack" approach touted by other cloud players.

After launching the Anthos for Telecom product in March last year as part of its broader telecommunications strategy, Google Cloud then brought its cloud ecosystem to the edge. The aim was to make it easier for service providers to see ways to deliver capabilities that will make 5G connectivity matter even more for enterprises.

Figure 1: Eye of the beholder: It might not look like it - but this is what a fully flexible cloud from Google looks like.
(Source: Google)

Initially, Google teamed up with more than 30 "popular industry application providers" to deliver more than 200 partner applications at the edge, on Google Cloud. Fast forward to June 2021, and an additional 22 partners have been added to the mix.

According to a blog by Amol Phadke, managing director, telecom industry solutions at Google Cloud, the new solutions from the newly added partners "span use cases like video analytics and smart surveillance, edge data storage infrastructure, artificial intelligence, as well as network management and control."

Consistent approach

Phadke also described how Anthos acts "as a consistent platform to deliver these solutions," making use of Google's edge network as well as high-speed 5G connectivity from telco partners.

Want to know more about the cloud? Check out our dedicated cloud-native networks and NFV content channel here on Light Reading.

"Today, our partners are supporting customers in industries like retail, media and entertainment, and manufacturing with solutions to manage data from connected machines on shop floors, deliver new digital retail experiences for shoppers, manage fleets of connected vehicles, and support many other use cases," Phadke said.

The 22 new partners include a couple of well-known names in the telecoms world, such as network supplier Ciena, which is bringing its Adaptive Network and network automation software to Google Cloud. F5 Networks is also contributing its BIG-IP, NGINX, Shape and Volterra solutions.

The other 20 are AirHop Communications, Arrikto, BitBrew, CARTO, Casa Systems, FogHorn, Highway9 Networks, Keysight, Kognition AI, Leverege, NetApp, NXN, Phenix Real Time Solutions, Prosimo.io, Quantiphi, Section, Sigmoid, Vapor IO, VoltDB and ZEDEDA.

Related posts:

— Anne Morris, contributing editor, special to Light Reading