By: Heather Broughton, John English
It seems the hype surrounding 5G has been with us for a few years now, but 2019 figures to be the year when actual deployments begin and things “get real.” This article takes a look at
four critical areas of the new network environment that will come with 5G networks and how things may develop as the year goes along. 5G will drive virtualization in 2019 Momentum is building
behind 5G. The US and South Korea are leading the charge with the rollout of the first commercial networks; trials are taking place in every major market worldwide; and Verizon and Samsung have
just announced plans to launch a 5G handset in early 2019…
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By: Mattias Fridstrom
In the cloud, the ‘softwareization’ of everything has already arrived, delivering a variety of benefits via innovative applications that created entirely new business models and revenue
streams. When it comes to the network outside the data center, however, many functions are still performed manually—especially in long haul backbone environments. The potential for network
transformation via the softwareization of currently manual processes offers tangible, operational benefits for backbone providers to enhance operational efficiencies and more nimbly serve clients’
needs while improving profitability…
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By: Brink Sanders
Digital transformation is turning out to be a double-edged sword for businesses across the world. There is no doubt about its positive impact. From improving productivity and efficiency
and reducing costs, to boosting innovation and even opening new markets, the adoption of technology is helping businesses to unlock growth like never before. However, it is also presenting new
challenges, especially for those managing the IT infrastructure. While digital transformation has taken on many different forms, there are some common threads that help to explain the
critical new challenges that IT organizations face in delivering on the needs of their users in today’s world…
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By: Michael C. Morey
This need for more bandwidth is driving a requirement for reliable high-capacity, high-performance scalable networks to move towards 400G services—providing rapid optical backbone network
support for all 10G and 100G customer service scenarios on a carrier’s network. What is behind this evolution to 400G services? There are three primary areas of demand causing service providers,
data centers and wireless carriers to move toward 400G services over their networks: Wireless carriers’ need for 1G to 10G macrocell connectionsThe wireline-to-wireless evolution is driving changes
to network upgrades and how infrastructure is designed to be scalable and reliable, especially in regard to improving existing infrastructure…
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By: Sam Barker
5G, the next iteration of wireless cellular technologies, is currently reaching its final stages of development and commercialization by MNOs and industry stakeholders. Previous iterations of
technologies (3G and 4G) were developed with a consumer-oriented focus. However, 5G will have further-reaching impacts, enabling a large number of use cases in IoT (Internet of Things) sectors such
as healthcare, automotive industries, smart cities and mobile broadband. 5G networks will deliver high bandwidth and low latency that support services such as UHD (Ultra High Definition) video
streaming, among many others…
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By: Ramy Riad
A New App Store As RCS continues to make great strides in becoming the global standard for carrier-based messaging and provides a new opportunity for brands to communicate with consumers,
a new brand discovery experience has emerged: the chatbot directory. Launched by AT&T and Samsung to a growing number of capable devices, the chatbot directory gives consumers a new channel.
Consumers can now discover brands and launch an RCS-enabled chat through a new directory embedded in the native messaging client…
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By: Ulrich Schalling
Although towercos are relatively new to the mobile and wireless industries, they are playing an increasingly important role: they are needed to roll out 4G and 5G network upgrades. These sites
are complex, and their resources must be properly managed to fulfill their purpose of broadening the reach of mobile networks. A properly managed towerco is capable of not only planning and
executing rollouts but also streamlining ongoing operations. As towercos expand their presence and importance in the industry, they need to fully understand what’s required to manage tower sites
and infrastructure…
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By: Scott St. John, Pipeline
Pervasive mobility, this month's issue theme, is an interesting topic. It's a topic that is fueled by compelling technology and new innovations. For example, 5G is taking root and new use
cases are coming to fruition. The added complexity this creates needs to be addressed, due to the unique characteristics of 5G on a both a scientific and operational level. Software-defined
networks are not only needed but are also quickly becoming a necessity, and cloud has become an integral component. At the same time, the supporting networks, systems, and infrastructure have
to evolve to support all of it, and to capitalize on the new opportunities that are being created now…
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By: Scott St. John, Pipeline
News on key road-to-5G updates was dominant this month. The completion of the world’s first over-the-air 5G data transmission using 2.5 GHz and Massive MIMO on Sprint’s live commercial network
was a collaborative accomplishment between Sprint, Nokia, and Qualcomm. Ericsson and Qualcomm also completed the first 5G data call on the 2.6 GHz band, and Huawei completed the last phase of its
5G NR test at 2.6 GHz. In other developments, a new specification from ETSI and a new agreement between the Telecommunications Industry Association and the Internet of Things Community should
advance the development of smart city technology…
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