The way forward for connectivity and the cloud
Over the previous decade, we at Microsoft have seen an incredible quantity of change—digital transformation enabled by the cloud. But the cloud’s greatest affect is but to return. McKinsey estimates that by 2030, we’ll see greater than a trillion {dollars} impacted by the cloud throughout the Fortune 500.1 In an {industry} at present experiencing large-scale transformation, this represents an enormous alternative.
The future cloud, nevertheless, will look very completely different from the cloud of at this time. It will increase to turn out to be a extremely distributed material, spanning 5G to house. It might be powered by a fashionable community infrastructure and can allow a brand new utility and connectivity paradigm—what we name fashionable related apps—that places compute even nearer to the issues we have to remedy.
This new technology of extremely distributed, low latency, and network-aware purposes makes use of 5G innovation to allow computing the place it’s wanted most and opens completely new situations for operators, enterprises, and builders throughout a variety of industries.
Unlocking the chance for the telecommunications ecosystem
At Microsoft, our goal is to be essentially the most trusted co-innovation associate by way of each stage of the digital evolution, dedicated to working with communications service suppliers (CSPs), enterprises, builders, and ISVs alike on the way forward for a ubiquitous cloud that unlocks the true potential of contemporary related apps.
- We are empowering operators to speed up their community transformation with our carrier-grade, trusted platform and serving to them unlock new alternatives with automation and AI.
- We are enabling enterprises with ubiquitous computing that spans from cloud to edge.
- And we’re serving to builders and ISVs construct extra modern, network-aware purposes.
Microsoft is offering the important thing options which might be shaping the longer term cloud, and we have now some thrilling information in every of those areas to assist operators, enterprises, and builders get began.
Accelerate community transformation with carrier-grade trusted platform
One of our targets is to allow operators to optimize their present investments and providers and to speed up community transformation on our carrier-grade, trusted hybrid platform. Central to this objective is our Azure for Operators portfolio.
Last 12 months, we unveiled a new wave of Azure for Operators options and providers, which proceed to allow the safe improvement of high-performance, low-latency purposes, and next-generation wi-fi options.
Introducing Microsoft Azure Operator Nexus
Today we’re asserting the general public preview of Azure Operator Nexus—the next-generation hybrid cloud platform created for communications service suppliers (CSPs). Since we debuted the non-public preview at MWC 2022, we’ve expanded the capabilities of Operator Nexus to satisfy the wants of operators that need to modernize and remodel their community. Operator Nexus allows operators to make use of cloud expertise to modernize and monetize their community investments—reducing whole price of possession (TCO), driving operational effectivity and resiliency with superior AI and automation, bettering the safety of extremely distributed, software-based networks.
Operator Nexus allows operators to run their workloads on-premises or on Azure, the place they will seamlessly deploy, handle, safe, and monitor every little thing—from the naked metallic to the community to the tenant. It is purpose-built for carrier-grade workloads, utilizing the identical Azure expertise provided by the hyperscale public cloud, supporting our first-party options in addition to all kinds of our associate ecosystem choices from industry-leading community tools supplier (NEP) companions. Proven to run community features at a tier-one operator scale, Operator Nexus meets the safety, resiliency, observability, manageability, and efficiency wants required by operators to attain significant enterprise outcomes all through the digital transformation of their cellular community.
“As a pioneer in network virtualization and SDN, AT&T is confident in our decision to run our multi-vendor 5G Standalone Mobile Core on Operator Nexus platform while we continue to deploy and operate the platform in AT&T data centers. AT&T made the decision to adopt Operator Nexus platform over time with expectation to lower total cost of ownership (TCO), leverage the power of AI to simplify operations, improve time to market, and focus on our core competency of building the world’s best 5G service. We appreciate the efforts of our Network Function ecosystem collaborators to support the evolution of our Mobility Core platform.”—Igal Elbaz, Senior Vice President, Network CTO, AT&T
“Through the mixture of Ericsson’s market-leading, cloud-native 5G Core purposes and orchestration suite with Microsoft’s carrier-grade Operator Nexus platform, we envision many alternatives for CSPs to digitally remodel their core networks whereas bettering buyer experiences and creating thrilling, new cellular providers. Building on our success at mutual clients resembling AT&T, Ericsson, and Microsoft are investing collectively to make sure Ericsson 5G Core cloud-native purposes run on the Operator Nexus platform effectively, securely, and reliably.”—Monica Zethzon, Vice President and Head of Solution Area Core Networks, Ericsson
“With the addition of Mavenir’s open cloud-native architecture end-to-end solutions including Converged Packet Core to Operator Nexus platform we look forward to working with Microsoft to help operators drive their core network transformations.”—Bejoy Pankajakshan, EVP, Chief Technology and Strategy Officer, Mavenir
“We’re excited to additional strengthen our rising partnership with Microsoft to Nokia’s Cloud and Network Services portfolio that allows operators to run Nokia’s cloud-native 5G Core on Operator Nexus’ carrier-grade hybrid cloud platform in addition to for Nokia to offer the community features and platform to make operator community APIs out there to builders by way of the Azure platform.”—Fran Heeran, SVP, Core Networks, Nokia Cloud and Network Services, Nokia
Learn extra about Operator Nexus on this Operator Nexus weblog and this Operator Nexus video.
Azure Operator Nexus Ready and programs integrator applications
We are additionally introducing the Operator Nexus Ready and programs integrator (SI) applications to make sure that our platform has a broad and trusted ecosystem of assist. To speed up deployment and integration, the Operator Nexus Ready program certifies that the ecosystem of cloud-native community features (CNFs), digital community features (VNFs), and different software program interoperate with the Operator Nexus platform. We are within the technique of certifying VNFs and CNFs from a variety of companions with two certification ranges.
- Level one is a base stage that assures interoperability with the Operator Nexus platform.
- Level two provides Azure deployment automation utilizing the Azure Network Function Manager and presents entrance into the Azure Marketplace for prepared availability to operators.
Additionally, our Operator Nexus SI program features a choose group of programs integrators identified for each their telecommunications experience, in addition to their broad Azure expertise. Each of those companions will work intently with the Operator Nexus engineering group to construct their Operator Nexus platform expertise, and to guarantee buyer success in deployment and integration.
Voice Core reimagined
Another essential goal of ours is to assist optimize operators’ present communications investments and providers. To this finish, we’re asserting the final availability of Azure Communications Gateway and the non-public preview of Azure Operator Voicemail. We developed these voice providers to assist mounted and cellular operators as they proceed emigrate vital voice workloads to the cloud.
Azure Communications Gateway supplies operators with the vital interworking performance required to attach an operator’s established public switched phone community (PSTN) on to Microsoft Teams, enabling them to ship Operator Connect and Teams Phone Mobile providers. Communications Gateway is a globally out there, managed service that gives a substitute for on-premises options for session initiation protocol (SIP) interworking and API automation, thereby simplifying community integration and expediting operators’ time to market. To study extra, learn the Azure Communications Gateway Tech Community weblog.
Azure Operator Voicemail allows operators emigrate their voicemail providers to Azure and make the most of a totally managed service, decreasing the operational assist burden and permitting for larger concentrate on revenue-producing initiatives. To study extra, learn the Azure Operator Voicemail Tech Community weblog.
With these bulletins, we stay dedicated in our effort to speed up community transformation and meet operators precisely the place they’re on their cloud journey.
Unlock alternatives with automation and AI
The world has been impressed by the transformative energy of AI due to the current success of ChatGPT and our ongoing partnership with OpenAI. Now, operators can make the most of specialised, superior AI options that assist to unlock new enterprise alternatives from information and insights of their operations, resembling AIOps.
Next-gen AI operations for operators
The complexity of managing 5G providers requires a brand new manner of managing networks depending on real-time evaluation of large portions of knowledge that applies predictive AI to tell the configuration of the product environments. AIOps employs the identical operational methods and capabilities that Microsoft makes use of to handle Azure, one of many world’s most advanced providers, packaged particularly for operators’ wants.
Today, we’re asserting the general public preview of two AIOps providers Azure Operator Insights and Azure Operator Service Manager. These hybrid providers simplify the administration of present networks in addition to guarantee new Microsoft providers, resembling Azure Operator Nexus, Voice Communications Gateway, and Operator 5G Core, are managed with constant approaches for monitoring, diagnostics, and lifecycle administration.
- Azure Operator Insights allows the gathering and evaluation of large portions of community information gathered from advanced multi-part or multi-vendor community features. It delivers insights for operator-specific workloads to assist operators perceive the well being of their networks and the standard of their subscribers’ experiences.
- Azure Operator Service Manager supplies seamless administration of advanced providers deployed throughout hybrid cloud websites. Combined with consolidated administration throughout Azure cloud and edge platforms, Operator Service Manager helps to speed up operator service deployment. Together, these new providers generate insights from information to tell the configuration of the community—with modifications examined totally utilizing Safe Deployment Processes. We are making them out there to operators, NEPs, and SIs straight for managing workloads in operators’ networks, Azure, and hybrid environments. We look ahead to the alternatives these new AIOps providers deliver operators sooner or later.
“3UK is laser-focused on delivering world-class gaming experience to mobile users and we are excited to be working with the Microsoft Azure for Operators organization whose new operator-specific analytics services are delivering near real-time insights with quality, timeliness, and cost-effectiveness not otherwise possible.”—Iain Milligan, Chief Network Officer, 3UK
“2degrees delivers world-class mobile services to our customers. We are excited to be working with Microsoft Azure for Operators and their new operator-specific analytics services. Together we are exploring innovative capabilities using the new Azure Operator Insights analytics service, focusing on ensuring we continue to provide our customers with the exceptional mobile services they expect.”—Saul Parkinson, Core Network Architect, 2degrees
Azure for Operators brings collectively a very better-together portfolio that encompasses many points of the operator’s community. It’s rooted in Azure Operator 5G Core and deployed by Azure Operator Service Manager on Azure Operator Nexus. Using AI from Azure Operator Insights, it’s intelligently operated and monitored. And importantly, it contains alternatives for our ecosystem of companions. Watch the video to study extra about how we’re empowering operators to modernize and monetize their 5G investments.
Build modern, network-aware purposes with new Azure Programmable Connectivity
Along with operators, we’re additionally working exhausting to allow builders for the evolution of cloud and edge. Today, we’re asserting the non-public preview of Azure Programmable Connectivity, an answer for builders to construct network-aware fashionable related purposes. Azure Programmable Connectivity supplies a unified, customary interface throughout operator networks, enabling builders to create cloud and edge-native purposes that work together with the intelligence of networks. This answer will ship a constant, clear expertise throughout a number of connectivity environments resembling private and non-private LTE/5G networks, in addition to wired and satellite tv for pc networks. By exposing points of the underlying community to purposes, Azure Programmable Connectivity supplies a big builders ecosystem enabling operators to monetize their infrastructure investments.
Azure Programmable Connectivity helps utility builders ship the perfect person expertise for extremely distributed, fashionable related purposes by providing a seamless and enriched connection between networks and various compute targets, resembling cloud areas, non-public and public MEC, IoT edge, and satellite tv for pc for instance, guaranteeing that builders can entry the underlying community capabilities with ease. We are additionally collaborating with a rising ecosystem of operators, community expertise firms, and API platform suppliers to assist unlock the potential of Azure Programmable Connectivity. These embrace a worldwide operator ecosystem together with AT&T, Rogers, and T-Mobile in North America; Deutsche Telekom and Telefonica in Europe; and Singtel in Asia. Microsoft can be working with community expertise companions and API platform suppliers Ericsson together with its Vonage/Ericsson Global Network Platform and Nokia together with its Network as Code platform, with extra companions coming quickly.
Watch demo movies with a few of our companions AT&T, DT/T-Mobile, and Telefonica.
Developers can apply and signup for entry to the non-public preview program.
Enable ubiquitous computing from cloud to edge
As the cloud continues to develop in functionality, agility, and attain, so does our platform, which allows ubiquitous computing and connectivity extending from cloud to edge—together with non-public MEC, public MEC, on-premises, cloud areas, and even house.
Azure Private 5G Core now typically out there
As a part of this growth, at this time we’re excited to announce that Azure Private 5G Core is now typically out there. Since introducing Azure non-public MEC in public preview in June 2021 and Azure Private 5G Core at MWC 2022, we proceed our mission to empower enterprises and governments to attain extra with multi-access edge compute, networking, and purposes.
Azure non-public MEC might be constructed and delivered by an growing set of operators, SIs, and ISV companions, serving enterprises throughout a variety of industries all over the world, together with manufacturing, transportation, logistics, vitality, and protection sectors. To date, greater than 25 companions have printed their presents on Azure Marketplace, making it simple for enterprises to rapidly deploy these options, and to make the most of non-public 5G. Learn extra about our associate options on this non-public MEC weblog.
Azure Private 5G Core supplies a easy, scalable, and safe deployment of a 5G standalone core community deployed on Azure Stack Edge. This launch features a vary of enhanced options resembling assist for 4G LTE and 5G standalone radios, fast deployment on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) on Azure Stack Edge Pro, and multi-site deployment. It additionally features a built-in metrics dashboard, enhanced availability, superior SIM coverage with QoS assist, and assist for choose Azure Stack Edge and HCI {hardware} platforms.
Hosted on Azure non-public MEC, we’re additionally unveiling Azure Edge Network Fabric which supplies safe policy-based routing between multi-access gadgets at a buyer’s premises and native purposes, cloud, and edge networks, simplifying non-public MEC deployments. We are additionally previewing Radio Access Network (RAN) Observability functionality to combine RAN key efficiency indicators (KPI) with on-line dashboards. This function supplies companions and enterprises with mixed observability, community insights, and analytics functionality for the whole non-public 4G or 5G community—all from a single Azure portal.
“Reliable network connections are key for many processes and applications throughout the airport, especially the bridging point between Wi-Fi networks and public networks, as this is becoming an increasing issue with large amounts of data and real-time applications. NTT’s solution, powered by Azure private MEC, is helping us deploy the infrastructure and applications that will increase our operational efficiencies. NTT’s knowledge of 5G networks, combined with their experience in the aviation industry, is the perfect combination.”—Sebastian Mueller, CIO Cologne Bonn Airport
Expanding Azure public MEC options throughout North America and Asia
Finally, our public MEC capabilities proceed to increase to allow enterprises and builders to deploy latency-sensitive purposes in densely populated metros to be used instances resembling venues, airports, and related cities. At Microsoft Ignite, we introduced the final availability of Azure public MEC with AT&T in Atlanta and Dallas. Now, we’re extending the final availability of recent websites with AT&T in Detroit, with New York, Los Angeles, and Miami coming quickly. We are additionally completely happy to announce the non-public preview of the Azure public MEC with Singtel in Singapore, the primary public providing in Asia, which extends the potential of Azure to Singtel’s 5G community edge.
“Combining AT&T 5G with the Azure public MEC solution is laying the foundation for low-latency use cases, especially across transportation. With vehicles becoming the ultimate connected device, these edge zones will allow for new and improved driving experiences. With each new site, we’re one step closer to seeing the true breadth and depth 5G will unleash for businesses and consumers alike.”—Mike Troiano, SVP, Products, AT&T Business
“Singtel is excited about the collaboration with Microsoft to be the first telco in Asia to launch an Azure public MEC offering powered by Azure and Singtel Paragon Platform. The Azure public MEC is now available for enterprises in Singapore to deploy latency-sensitive applications. Enterprises can also leverage the ecosystem of partner apps from Singtel’s Paragon Platform and Microsoft at the Azure public MEC.”—Bill Chang, CEO Group Enterprise and Regional Data Center, Singtel
Learn extra in Azure public MEC with this Singtel video.
MEC ISV applications allow fast enterprise answer deployments
We invite expertise companions to affix our ISV applications for Azure public MEC and Azure non-public MEC to obtain technical advantages and platform capabilities designed particularly for ISVs, together with discounted demos, coaching, and go-to-market assist.
- Azure non-public MEC ISV program: Watch and skim this weblog to study extra concerning the Azure non-public MEC ISV program that includes Cognitiwe, Ipsotek, RedViking, and weavix. Register right here to study extra.
- Azure public MEC ISV program: Watch the video to study extra concerning the Azure public MEC ISV program that includes Multicasting.io, Palo Alto Networks, and Veeam. Register right here to study extra.
Get began at this time
Along with our ecosystem companions, we’re really constructing a “higher collectively” structure that holistically addresses the wants of CSPs as they appear to rework their networks. Our goal is to be essentially the most trusted co-innovation associate by way of each stage of the digital evolution, dedicated to working with operators and enterprises on the way forward for fashionable networks and the cloud.
Invitation to operators, system integrators, and community operate companions
- For CSPs to modernize and monetize their community investments, signup at this time.
- Operators and System Integrators inquisitive about collaborating with Microsoft to construct options with non-public MEC can get began by registering now.