If you read my blog yesterday, you know my views on the importance of making telecom software into hosted functions. You might then think that the Ericsson/Google pact, covered by Light Reading, is proof this is already happening. A few have asked me about this, but I respectfully disagree with the “already done” theories.| Andover Intel
I’ve been hearing a lot about telco 6G, and Nokia has published a blog on the recent advances in 6G formulation and the schedule of activity. The first market rollouts are scheduled in 2030, and in any world but telecom standards that would be more than enough time to suggest major changes be made. Obviously, we’re in the standards world with 6G, though, and so I think it’s likely too late to see any significant shifts. The question is what that lack of reconsideration might mean to the...| Andover Intel
Omdia publishes some nice research, and I found a recent piece, “Telco Software Evolution Survey—2025” to have some interesting implications I’d like to develop. I agree with the key points on the factors buyers consider most, but I’ve had many comments on OSS/BSS systems that I’d like to roll in with the buyer-interest material to get a line on the direction telcos are heading with OSS/BSS, and in general. The comments I draw from the report come from the LinkedIn figure; the rep...| Andover Intel
What is a “private cloud”? I looked at enterprise views on this last year, so it’s a topic that’s hardly new. Still, there are new developments, as shown by the most recent references to Broadcom’s success with VMware. The classic definition isn’t helpful; a dedicated cloud environment exclusive to a single company. Enterprises themselves seem to see it from a number of different angles, and their views are shifting enough to justify taking another look at the topic. Since my last...| Andover Intel
I’ve never held a view that private 5G would be an enormous opportunity for vendors, cloud providers, or operators, and I still don’t. I do believe, though, that private 5G may be extremely important to all these groups, and to unlocking additional IT and network spending and investment. Enterprises are seeing the issue more clearly now, and that gives me more ammunition to support this position, and more clarity on the issues we face in realizing both private 5G and what it could lead to.| Andover Intel
One of the most important trends in network equipment is the increased availability of “merchant silicon”, chips designed to implement common network functions such as switching, routing, and route determination. It is this development that has led to the increased interest in “white box” or open-model technology in networks. While there are several vendors who offer these chips, Broadcom has been a market leader, and they have recently released a new behemoth in their Tomahawk 6 swit...| Andover Intel
Cloud computing has surely been transformational, but it also surely contends with AI as the leader in the tech-hype category. What gives the cloud the edge, perhaps, in this cynical race is the endurance of the hype. Year after year we heard about how everything was moving to the cloud. Now we hear that everything, or most stuff at least, is being repatriated. Broadcom said in a recent “private cloud report” that 69% of enterprises are considering repatriating some cloud apps. My own dat...| Andover Intel
A recent Light Reading story on the topic of the “cloud-native” movement of telcos includes some interesting comments from telcos themselves. One was “It’s a long journey, and we have very important milestones in front of us.” But is it a long journey, what are the critical milestones, who’s responsible for meeting them, and is the journey even necessary? Let’s see.| Andover Intel