Telefónica is working with Mavenir and Amazon Web Services (AWS) to offer managed IoT connectivity to industrial, manufacturing, public sector, and automotive customers anywhere in the world using the former’s cloud-based packet core solution over the latter’s cloud infrastructure.
The Spain-based operator wants to “reinvent the way IoT connectivity services are delivered” to enterprises, said Mavenir in a press statement. The new managed IoT service, still in pre-commercial mode, is managed through Telefonica’s Kite platform, which provides a cloud-based interface to control global IoT connectivity.
The story goes that, by running cloud-native core network functions on AWS, Telefónica can provide customers with a local shortcut to the internet from the nearest AWS region. This brings new dynamism, said Mavenir, to quickly introduce new features, accelerate deployment of local IoT services, and scale up and down “much better”.
Companies will also be able to replicate the same IoT experiences across operations in multiple markets. Mavenir stated brand new functionalities will be possible, including: “local data processing/storage, direct connectivity to other cloud services, and global low latency”.
The project is being developed by Telefónica’s core innovation team and Telefónica Tech’s IoT and big data unit. Pre-commercial activities cover the deployment of Mavenir’s packet core on AWS, integration with Telefónica Tech’s KITE platform, and automation of the end-to-end service.
Mavenir said: “Combining cloud native infrastructure, network functions, and operations has changed the way Telefonica develops and delivers services for customers.. Customers around the world can scale their use of the service as needed with global coverage.”
Carlos Carazo, chief technology officer for IoT and big data at Telefónica Tech, commented: “Telefonica is developing this disruptive innovation project, convinced that it will help to maintain IoT leadership with Kite Platform. Kite is much more than an IoT connectivity management platform and improves the whole IoT ecosystem dimensions, from the device to the cloud. Cloud-native point of presences will give a complete response to IoT customers with large bases of globally deployed devices.”
Ashok Khuntia, executive vice president for packet computing at Mavenir, said: “Mavenir’s Converged Packet core built upon web-scale technology and cloud native principles provides support for 4G functionalities and facilitates easy deployment on AWS, offering a compact and efficient model in terms of cost and resources.”
Fabio Cerone, managing director for telecoms in the EMEA region at AWS, said: “Together, we are providing a true cloud native network solution for Telefonica’s IoT customers that combines AWS’s global infrastructure with the strength of Telefonica’s network. Now, Telefonica can scale their deployments across the globe to meet the requirements of agility, scaling, slicing, and resiliency.”
