...
- What is timeline of this paper, as per experience in LFN EUAG the timeline keeps on moving forward.forward
- What type of liaisons will be needed as this type of effort should be harmonized across many bodies bodies
Timeline:
Contents
1. Introduction and Purpose of this white paper
The New Era of Global digital transformation which will be primarily enabled by use of futuristic 5G technology combined with new software architectures like Network Dis-aggregation , Edge , Open RAN networks etc is upon us . As many CSP's around the globe rolled out first phase of 5G networks and gained early experience with both Network/Infrastructure and service requirements we can certainly say that 5G is real Now .However to evolve 5G networks from its state today to future where it will really deliver its promises operators has to think out of box to define a disruptive yet standard delivery models that will support not only cost effective rollout of this technology but also enable to introduce any new future services for both Telco and Enterprise verticals in an efficient manner .
In addition to 5G technology itself there are some other supplementary technologies which are optimally enabled using 5G like Edge computing , Open RAN and 3rd part vertical applications . Principally 5G embrace the New Software architectures (Microservies , SBA , CNF's etc however to fully make use of these architectures and to avoid any sort of Silo and vendor lockin it is very important that we build these networks with an Open mindset that can scale and evolve in a manner similar to cloud providers . It will not only enable future growth but also open roads to define new business models which are primarily data driven and make extensive use of New concepts like Machine Learning (ML) , Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Open data platforms .
As 5G technology specially based on SBA architectures is quite new and only a handful of vendors has right set of tools and capabilities to deliver them , so it is quite natural that CSP's are adopting different deployment models and adoption journey of 5G which can be depicted below and can be divided in two categories
- Proprietary or Vendor Define Reference Architectures
- Open Source based Platforms that can deliver full CI/CD and Data Driven operations over time
The choice for delivery options depends on many factors and strongly driven by where currently the Operator is on its Cloud transformation journey . The main factors as follows
- Select Open software vs Forked disguised in Service/Support wrap
- Reliance on vendor turnkey vs community or SI partner
- Management buying and preference on vendor reliance
- Pace of technology
- Cost efficiency
- Relationship with supplier's and supply chain models
Although the CSP community has gained experience to adopt and use open source based solutions in their cloud journey but by no means it could match both the scale and requirements as expected from 5G . Industry promotes innovation and thought leadership but not at the cost of lost business opportunity . In the 5G first wave and NFV journey there are so many examples where use of proprietary software catalyzes to gain market momentum as open source technology did not deliver production class services .
It is therefore very important to share End user community view point to define a step wise journey that supports both open source and early use of technology . One of the most optimal solution will be where we can select any solution and later on evolve to target architecture as per requirements and market maturity .
This paper is an effort from End user community to share insights on 5G delivery options to put technology to production .It addresses the requirements , use cases , use of ML/AI and current GAPS which can serve as a baseline for operators who are rolling out and transitioning to 5G Networks .
The End User Advisory Group (EUAG) was created by LF Networking (LFN) to share views, challenges, and best practices between user organizations; highlighting new areas of opportunity for the developer community. EUAG is made of individuals from end user organizations, including telecommunications carriers, cable companies, network providers, and compute or storage service providers. In this paper we broadly refer to this group as CSPs. As the voice of end user, the EUAG supports the vision of Open source 5G and its adoption in the industry as well as contributes use cases and requirements to the project that deliver maximum value to the industry as a whole. The EUAG’s ONAP working group is the author of this paper, sharing views on the most important
considerations, opportunities, and impediments towards a seamless end user adoption of 5G .
//Saad (STC) Saad Ullah Sheikh
...