Huawei Leads Telco Transformation via Commercial Deployments of SDN and NFV

CHICAGO, June 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, today participated in the Big Telecom Event (BTE) in Chicago. At this event, Huawei shares the latest progress it has made in implementing the company's SoftCOM strategy in collaboration with customers and partners, focusing on the industry-leading commercial deployments of software-defined networking (SDN) and network functions virtualization (NFV). Key solutions and projects highlighted at the event include the next-generation IT infrastructure for Telefonica, successful SDN application cases for multiple major telecom operators, and Huawei's CloudEdge solution for NFV.

In 2012, Huawei proposed the future-oriented telecom network architecture SoftCOM, which incorporates advanced technologies including SDN, NFV and cloud computing, targeting to transform the telecom industry in terms of network architecture, network functions, business models, and operation models. Over the past two years, Huawei has been dedicated to driving the technology innovation and commercial application of SDN and NFV, while also advocating for an open, interconnected, and innovative ecosystem to further champion industry values.

A cloud-based ICT infrastructure with the distributed cloud data centers at the core is the next-generation network architecture proposed by Huawei and one of the four pillars of the SoftCOM transformation. At BTE, Huawei shared the positive Proof of Concept (PoC) test results it has recently completed with Telefonica for the carrier's UNICA infrastructure, an open and future-oriented strategic network framework. With the SoftCOM architecture, which fully aligns with Telefonica's network evolution requirement, and Huawei's distributed cloud data center solution, UNICA successfully centralized the management of data centers in various regions by using a single virtual data center, enabling efficient data sharing among internal networks and the rapid delivery of telecom services and internal applications.

SDN is the core basis of the SoftCOM network architecture. Focusing on developing commercial technologies, Huawei continues to focus on innovation around SDN-based networking to help telecom operators achieve full network transformation. To date, Huawei has carried out more than 30 joint innovation projects globally with more than 20 telecom operators including Telefonica, China Mobile, China Unicom, and China Telecom. In April 2014, Huawei and China Telecom completed the commercial deployment of the world's first carrier SDN, successfully applying SDN to the Internet Data Center (IDC) network. At BTE, Huawei showcased the application of SDN in major telecom operators' mobile bearer networks, data centers, backbone networks, and smart pipes of metropolitan area network. Huawei will continue to help carriers transform and optimize their current networks based on SDN, paving the way to the commercialization of SDN.

Another cornerstone of the SoftCOM architecture is NFV, which Huawei strives to leverage to break the closed architecture of traditional networks, shorten innovation cycles, reduce network O&M costs, and build an open ecosystem. To this end, Huawei is working closely with major carriers, telecom vendors, IT vendors and OTT players to drive NFV development and aims to establish SoftCOM as a fully open network architecture supporting all third-party hardware, operating systems, and applications. So far, the ETSI Network Functions Virtualization Industry Specification Group has published several NFV multi-vendor PoC applications submitted by Huawei. At the event, Huawei showcased its CloudEdge solution, a key component of Huawei's NFV offering, which provides a fully open platform for sharing, aggregation of data traffic with various access modes, integration of third-party applications and defined flexible and intelligent service chains. The virtualized management and orchestration component for the CloudEdge solution simultaneously manages a number of virtual network elements, and also manages virtual devices from other vendors. As a result, not only can end users enjoy quality end-to-end experiences but carriers can also deploy new business quickly and simplify operations and management, paving way for a new win-win industry chain.

An active contributor to the industry advancement, Huawei is also committed to driving the standardization of the SDN, NFV and cloud technologies. Currently Huawei holds a number of key positions within important standards organizations, such as President of the SDN Migration Work Group at the Open Networking Foundation, where it has contributed seven of the nine SDN applications submitted to date. Huawei is also a co-chairman of the ETSI Network Functions Virtualization Industry Specification Group's infrastructure Working Group, having participated in the development of all nine NFV applications and spearheaded four of them.

According to a recent SDN/NFV survey conducted by leading analyst firm Current Analysis, Huawei has been rated as a top supplier for Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) solutions by telecom operators. Of the surveyed telecom operators, 70% would select Huawei for SDN deployment and 67% would select Huawei for NFV deployment. As a strategic partner for telecom operators worldwide, Huawei is committed to helping carriers evolve their business models to accelerate commercial success and build a healthy and open industry ecosystem, with win-win outcomes for all.

About Huawei

Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. Through the dedication to customer-centric innovation and strong partnerships, Huawei has established end-to-end advantages in telecom networks, devices and cloud computing. Huawei is committed to creating maximum value for telecom operators, enterprises and consumers by providing competitive solutions and services. Its products and solutions have been deployed in over 170 countries, serving more than one third of the world's population.

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SOURCE Huawei