Wipro said that new offering enables enterprises to integrate private 5G with their existing LAN/WAN/Cloud infrastructure
Indian IT services and consulting firm Wipro launched a managed private 5G-as-a-service solution in partnership with Cisco, the former said in a release.
Wipro said that new offering enables enterprise customers to achieve better business outcomes via the integration of private 5G with their existing LAN/WAN/Cloud infrastructure.
The Indian firm also noted that managed private 5G from Cisco and Wipro supports organizations “looking to enjoy the advantages of a private 5G network without having to acquire, run and maintain one.” The as-a-service solution benefits enterprise customers, they added, by “minimizing the risks associated with upfront capital expenditure investments” and also expedites technology adoption because “Wipro and Cisco take on the technical, operational and commercial risks of implementing the solution.”
“Private 5G is already enabling connectivity for a wide range of use cases in factories, supply chains, university and enterprise campuses, entertainment venues, hospitals and more,” said Masum Mir, SVP and GM of provider mobility at Cisco Networking. “We’ve created a simplified and intuitive private 5G solution with Wipro, leveraging the advantages of 5G, IoT, Edge and Wi-Fi6 technologies to improve customer outcomes.”
The managed private 5G solution is built on Cisco’s mobile core technology and Internet of Things (IoT) portfolio – spanning IoT sensors and gateways, device management software as well as monitoring tools and dashboards. Wipro has also created a dedicated private 5G lab to build, test and demonstrate industry use-cases under this partnership with Cisco.
According to previous reports, Wipro had previously applied to obtain licenses in order to provide private networks in India. However, India’s Department of Telecommunication (DoT) has reportedly decided that it will not directly allocate 5G spectrum to enterprises for the deployment of private 5G networks. Recent reports said that the DoT is now against direct allocation of frequencies because it believes it is not feasible under the current legal framework.
Cisco is working with telecom operators in India for the monetization of 5G use cases, primarily private 5G as a service model, according to a recent report by local newspaper The Economic Times.
“We see the 5G rollout taking place at a very rapid pace with both service providers Reliance Jio Infocomm and Bharti Airtel. We are also working with them to see what more we can do in the area of monetization of the use cases, especially around private 5G as a service model,” said Anand Bhaskar, managing director of the service providers business unit at Cisco India.
“The uptake of 5G private networks will be based on use cases. You need to have a use case which will determine an enterprise to have a spectrum, build the network and be able to monetize that,” Bhaskar said.
The executive also noted that the initial use cases and trials are starting to emerge but added that it will take time to see major 5G private network deployments in the Indian market. “It will take some time as we see what will work with the customers or with the service providers,” he said.
