CSPs Testing New 5G Waters — The 5G Factor

In this episode of The 5G Factor, our series that focuses on all things 5G, the IoT, and the ecosystem as a whole, The Futurum Group's Ron Westfall is joined by colleague and fellow analyst, Todd R. Weiss for a look at the top 5G developments and what's going on that caught our eye.

Their conversation focused on:

Vodafone is Testing GenAI Waters. Vodafone is testing genAI waters, getting Microsoft tech to write code. Plus, Vodafone was prominent in the Oracle Database@Azure launch with the major goal of easing AI workload administration, scaling, and migration across multi-cloud environments. Vodafone is running proofs of concept (PoCs) to figure out where Generative AI could productively and safely be used. They assess the impact of Vodafone's GenAI moves including its ten ChatBot PoCs and exposing some developers on its CyberHub team to GitHub Copilot, the code-writing version of ChatGPT.

Deutsche Telekom and Microsoft Azure Test New Private 5G Capabilities. Deutsche Telekom is testing its new private 5G network solution with Microsoft in a lab setting at Bonn. Specifically, DT is branding its new solution "Campus Network Smart" solution, which will be delivered in collaboration with Microsoft. The new offering augments its current portfolio of private 5G networks for industrial use in Europe. The new campus solution is built on Microsoft Azure private MEC, which includes the Azure Private 5G Core service deployed on Azure Stack Edge. They evaluate the potential benefits of DT's Campus Network Smart offering, especially in supporting key use cases such as AR-enabled remote support, robotics, video analytics, and IoT.

Verizon Adds Mobile NaaS Unit. Verizon is adding the new Mobile Onsite Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) unit to its fleet. Cell on Wheels (COWs) and Cell on Light Trucks (COLTS) use radio access technology to deliver temporary network connectivity at venues or during natural disasters. The Mobile Onsite NaaS can be characterized as an entire data center on a small trailer, functioning as a compact, portable, edge-based network that Verizon is using as-a-service to provide 5G, edge compute, security, and connectivity to locations that need that type of service. They assess the impact of Verizon Mobile Onsite NaaS including support for private network, private MEC, SD-WAN, and satellite connectivity to customer locations and use as a Mobile Lab as-a-service to test enterprise applications and devices on a 5G standalone network.