YOU ARE AT:5GVerizon tests multi-vendor 5G with Cisco, Samsung

Verizon tests multi-vendor 5G with Cisco, Samsung

Latest Verizon trial is part of 5G fixed wireless access plans

Continuing its testing of fixed wireless access 5G in diverse deployment scenarios, Verizon this week shared details of a multi-vendor trial network launched in Ann Arbor, Mich., with vendors Cisco and Samsung.

Verizon plans to test fixed wireless 5G in 11 U.S. markets over the course of the year; the idea is to prove the technology in a variety of geographical settings and with varying vendor support. In this case, Samsung provided its virtual radio access network solution and pre-5G, which has yet to be standardized by 3GPP, base station and home router equipment. Cisco provided a virtual packet core. The companies worked together on interoperability testing focused on connections between the core and radio networks, and user devices.

Adam Koeppe, Verizon’s VP of Network Planning, said, “Interoperability, a key milestone towards 5G commercialization, allows for highly flexible network design to meet emerging 5G use cases.

Another key aspect of this testing is network function virtualization for 5G, which is seen as a key pillar of providing the level of network automation needed to support advanced 5G network slicing and other aspects of network management.

Cisco’s SVP and GM of Service Provider Business Yvette Kanouff said the testing is “making history on the path towards true network function virtualization, demonstrating it for the first time in a 5G environment.”

“A shift towards [NFV] creates new opportunities in the industry value chain, enabling collaboration with pioneering industry leaders to bring greater value to consumers and businesses,” samsung VP and Head of Next Generation Strategy Woojune Kim added.

 

 

 

 

 

 

ABOUT AUTHOR

Sean Kinney, Editor in Chief
Sean Kinney, Editor in Chief
Sean focuses on multiple subject areas including 5G, Open RAN, hybrid cloud, edge computing, and Industry 4.0. He also hosts Arden Media's podcast Will 5G Change the World? Prior to his work at RCR, Sean studied journalism and literature at the University of Mississippi then spent six years based in Key West, Florida, working as a reporter for the Miami Herald Media Company. He currently lives in Fayetteville, Arkansas.