NEC/Netcracker land deal with Etisalat
Etisalat has selected NEC Corporation and NetCracker Technology as the primary solution provider for its multi-vendor telecom cloud program.
Etisalat is a Middle East communications provider headquartered in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It provides different 3G, 4G and fiber-to-the-home services. The company boasts over 160 million customers.
NEC is a Japanese multinational provider of information technology (IT) services and products. It provides network infrastructure products, such as mobile phone base stations and submarine systems, to enterprises, service providers and government agencies. Netcracker Technology is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEC, which acquired the company in 2008. Under the deal with Etisalat, NEC/Netcracker will serve as the primary integrator of the enterprise’s cloud initiative, called the Sahaab program.
NEC/Netcracker will provide Etisalat with third-party hardware, VIM, SDN control and network equipment to create a full end-to-end cloud platform. Etisalat said its Sahaab program will leverage NEC/Netcracker’s NFVI solution to make its network more agile, responsive, scalable and efficient. The company added it intends to use NEC/Netcracker’s NFV Orchestration to ensure its cloud-based network can support new digital services, including 5G, IoT and smart cities
“As enterprises and residential customers embrace practices and lifestyles that use real-time digital services, our network needs to be able to handle the dynamic nature of those offerings,” said Esmaeel Alhammadi, senior vice president for network development at Etisalat, in a statement. “NEC/Netcracker’s NFVI solution empowers our network with the elasticity and responsiveness we need to deliver next-generation digital services to our customers.”
This isn’t the first time the companies have collaborated with each other. In March, Etisalat chose NEC/Netcracker’s Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) solution, which includes self-service portals, service orchestration and MANO offerings. The company said it would use the solution as part of the enterprise’s vCPE program and Sahaab program.
“The evolution of and increased demand for digital technologies has pressured service providers to transform their networks into more software-defined, cloud-based environments,” said Aloke Tusnial, CTO of SDN/NFV at Netcracker. “We are glad to help Etisalat make its important transition to a cloud platform, which will introduce more agility and automation in delivering innovative digital services.”
