T-Mobile US taps up Google for edge compute

T-Mobile US has partnered with Google so it can resell the Internet giant’s edge computing services to its private 5G networking customers.

The agreement relates specifically to Google Distributed Cloud (GDC) Edge, which is the Internet giant’s on-premises solution, rather than an edge cloud instance operating from a nearby data centre.

T-Mobile said bringing GDC Edge together with its 5G network allows it to support more advanced – and therefore more throughput-and-latency-intensive – services.

“This partnership brings together the powerful combination of 5G and edge computing to unlock the expansion of technologies such as AR and VR from limited applications to large-scale adoption,” declared Mishka Dehghan, SVP of strategy, product, and solutions engineering at T-Mobile Business, in a statement on Wednesday.

“From providing a shopping experience in a virtual reality environment to improving safety through connected sensors or computer vision technologies, T-Mobile’s 5G ANS combined with Google Cloud’s innovative edge compute technology can bring the connected world to businesses across the country,” she said.

“Google Cloud is committed to helping telecommunication companies accelerate their growth, competitiveness, and digital journeys,” added Amol Phadke, general manager, global telecom industry, Google Cloud. “Google Distributed Cloud Edge and T-Mobile’s 5G ANS will help businesses deliver more value to their customers by unlocking new capabilities through 5G and edge technologies.”

It is hard to work out if this partnership with Google is T-Mobile adding another string to its bow, or whether the self-styled un-carrier has decided it lacks whatever skills or assets are needed to crack the edge compute market on its own, and has called in a hyperscaler to help.

T-Mobile launched ANS last May. Pitched at enterprises on the lookout for more than just handsets and mobile broadband access, it offers public/private/hybrid 5G connectivity alongside edge compute. It also offers industry specific end-to-end solutions where T-Mobile will help clients specify and deploy the right combination of network, compute, device and applications.

As is the norm with this sort of offering, ANS is backed by a suite of managed services that covers everything from design and installation to management and tech support.

It is worth reiterating that edge compute has been offered as one element of ANS from the start. Indeed, when it was announced, T-Mobile highlighted Dell – which offers various edge compute solutions – as one of its launch partners.

So, why is T-Mobile bringing GDC Edge on board now? Is it simply to give enterprises greater choice, or because it needs to tap Google’s experience when it comes to deploying and operating enterprise-grade cloud infrastructure?

We all know it is easier said than done for telcos to make inroads into the world of IT, and we also know that telcos are great at striking partnerships that will give them a helping hand in adjacent markets.

Telecoms.com has asked T-Mobile US to clarify whether its GDC Edge partnership is exclusive, or whether it will offer alternative edge compute solutions alongside Google’s. We will update this story if we hear back.

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