Microsoft said the acquisition will allow the company to evolve its telecommunications work
As part of its efforts to “empower the telecommunications industry as it continues its move to 5G,” Microsoft has confirmed the acquisition of cloud-based 5G service vendor Affirmed Networks for an undisclosed amount.
Microsoft expects the acquisition to allow the company to evolve its telecommunications work and to offer innovative solutions for operators, especially when it comes to managing network workloads in the cloud, the company said on its website.
For some time now, Microsoft has been working with operators on integrating edge computing capabilities with 5G networks and Azure cloud services, with AT&T being one of the company’s most notable 5G partners.
At last year’s MWC, AT&T announced its partnership with Microsoft for the development of a proof of concept to integrate network edge compute capabilities using its 5G network in conjunction with Azure cloud services, and solution that both company’s stated would prove important for IOT use cases in a number of industries including retail, healthcare, public safety, entertainment, and manufacturing.
Now, the acquisition of Affirmed Networks will allow for close alignment of the vendor’s NFV solutions for similar areas mentioned above, as well as autonomous vehicles and WI-Fi.
Further, the acquisition represents a big win for Microsoft against one of its major competitors, AWS, who actually worked with Affirmed last year on a demonstration of the Affirmed Networks’ UnityCloud 5G Core solution on AWS cloud services.
“As we continue to extend cloud-based software defined networking into the world of 5G connectivity, we recognize the importance of deep and strong partnerships and interoperability,” Microsoft said in the announcement. “To ensure the success of our customers, we will work closely with existing suppliers, emerging innovators and other stakeholders around the world including in Europe, Asia, the U.S. and other markets to help make this vision a reality.”
