Vodafone taps Nokia for fixed SDN controller trials

Vodafone Group and Nokia teamed to trial technology that could be deployed to further automate the operator's fixed networks throughout Europe, building on the operator's ongoing efforts to apply principles of disaggregation and openness to fixed as well as radio access networks.

In detail, the longstanding partners are conducting proof-of-concept (PoC) trials in Europe of software-defined network manager and controller (SDN-M&C) services for Vodafone's "multi-access fixed network technology."

Specifically, Vodafone is using Nokia's Altiplano SDN-M&C to build a "single pane of glass" controller to automate its network operations.

Figure 1: The group aims to apply principles of disaggregation and openness to fixed broadband networks.
(Source: l_martinez/Alamy Stock Photo)

Sandy Motley, president of fixed networks at Nokia, indicated that the SDN-M&C platform provides open and standardized APIs and makes use of open source where applicable.

Motley claimed that the Altiplano Access Controller "can manage and control any SDN-native, disaggregated, legacy and third-party equipment", and noted that operators can add their own or third-party applications to "customize and further automate the network."

Gavin Young, head of Fixed Access Centre of Excellence at Vodafone, highlighted the group's ongoing efforts to simplify and automate its networks across Europe and Africa, "to further improve the customer experience and support the growing number of connected devices."

Disaggregation all the way

Nokia said the PoC builds on the announcement last September, when open RAN proponent Vodafone indicated it was looking to apply the same disaggregation principles to the broadband network gateway (BNG).

The operator teamed with Nokia, Cisco, Casa Systems and Benu Networks on what it claimed was the first test of the Broadband Forum's TR-459 standard, which enables control and user plane separation (CUPS).

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At the time, Vodafone Group CTO Johan Wibergh said: "We are already driving a more diverse and open mobile ecosystem with open RAN, and now we are targeting fixed broadband."

Jeff Heynen, the vice president of broadband access and home networking for analyst firm Dell'Oro, previously told Light Reading that disaggregation would allow Vodafone – with its jumble of copper, fiber, cable and fixed wireless technologies – to move its BNG functions around the network more easily.

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— Anne Morris, contributing editor, special to Light Reading