T-Mobile has selected Red Hat as a cloud automation partner as part of the company’s transition to software defined networks.

Red Hat will help T-Mobile to deploy a cloud platform across its core network and far-edge operations so the US carrier can boost scalability, automate, and better manage costs.

Telecom providers’ migration to cloud-native architectures is thought to achieve increased flexibility, cost efficiency, resource optimisation, and improved network reliability.

T-Mobile’s adoption of Red Hat OpenShift Platform Plus will be used to build a common telco cloud that will improve network automation, reduce operational complexity, and support the company’s emerging digital services.

Key benefits of the cloud implementation

The integration of Red Hat’s platform is expected to deliver several advantages for T-Mobile, including:

• Cost reduction through infrastructure consolidation and automation, allowing for the more efficient use of resources.
• Improved security and compliance by standardising the management of workloads, so reducing the risks inherent in diverse network environments.
• Pre-validated certification of services will enable faster deployment, easier lifecycle management, and the integration of virtual network functions (VNFs), cloud-native network functions (CNFs), and IT applications.
• Scalability in the carrier’s hybrid multi-cloud environments to support the evolving demands of the sector.

Fran Heeran, Red Hat’s vice president of global telecommunications, underlined the telecom industry’s growing need for cloud standardisation and automation. He stated that OpenShift offers an efficient foundation to manage network workloads and accelerate service delivery. In this context, OpenShift is a flexible, carrier-grade platform that can support current and future telecommunications requirements.

Lori Ames, senior vice president of cloud, IP & transport technology at T-Mobile, stated the company’s long-term vision for its cloud transformation centres around a multi-purpose cloud that will help the company transition between its remaining traditional telecom infrastructure, to a more dynamic, technology-driven model. By using cloud-native tools and automation, the company hopes to improve its agility and improve customer connectivity.

Cloud strategy amid network changes

Red Hat confirmed that OpenShift supports hybrid multi-cloud environments, and will therefore give T-Mobile the greater flexibility it wants.

Cloud adoption is held to be an intrinsic part of telecom providers’ transition to software-defined networks.

In addition to its cloud initiatives, T-Mobile announced earlier this week that it has begun to phase out its 2G network as part of a network modernisation programme, phasing-out legacy infrastructure and supporting systems to allocate resources to 5G and the next generations of connectivity technologies.

(Photo by Unsplash)

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