Vodafone Netherlands partners with Ericsson to deploy cloud VoLTE

Kit vendor Ericsson has completed the upgrade of Vodafone Netherlands’s core network, using a commercial NFV deployment to enable VoLTE and wifi calling.

The solution is based on an NFV deployment of Ericsson’s IMS and EPC offerings. Moving into the cloud allows wifi calling, policy control and application server domain to be deployed as virtual network functions.

“Ericsson has deployed a VoLTE and wifi calling system that can automatically scale within a telecom cloud and fulfil telecom-grade service availability,” said Valter D’Avino, Head of Western and Central Europe at Ericsson. “It provides Vodafone with a complete solution to evolve their voice and SMS business toward an all-IP communications network based in the cloud.”

“Network virtualization brings huge opportunities for efficiency and agility,” said Matthias Sauder, Head of Networks at Vodafone Netherlands. “It will allow us to introduce new services more rapidly to our subscribers. We are very pleased with Ericsson’s support in deploying NFV in our network in the Netherlands, which will now enable swift launches of new IP-based communication services for our customers.”

In other Ericsson news the company recently joined China Mobile’s 5G Joint Innovation Center programme. The move was first announced at MWC 2016 but got somewhat buried in the avalanche of competing 5G partnership news. It will tick all the usual boxes regarding R&D ecosystems, open labs, etc.

“It is crucial for China Mobile and Ericsson, as the two ships of this industry, to stride forward in the right direction in the coming five years,” said China Mobile Chairman Shang Bing. “Ericsson has been an important partner to China Mobile for a long time. China Mobile values the partnership with Ericsson and hope to have more cooperation with this important partner during the coming five year transformative period.”

“5G will enable people, industries and things to connect on an unprecedented scale, and this ability to connect will bring with it a whole new galaxy of devices and services,” said Ericsson CEO Hans Vestberg. “I am convinced Ericsson will lead the 5G evolution, and I also believe that working with partners like China Mobile is significant to realize the Networked Society.”

Lastly Ericsson was one of a bunch of major tech companies to participate in an FCC workshop exploring the potential of millimetre wave technology in the evolving 5G standard. Other participants were Intel, Nokia, Samsung and Qualcomm.