Singtel and Ericsson team up on APIs

The result of the MoU is to tie up APIs from Singtel’s Paragon (described as an orchestration platform for 5G, edge computing and cloud services) and Ericsson’s Service Orchestration and Assurance platform.

What ultimately seems to be being offered to telcos as a result is an easier way to roll out APIs to customers, or ‘new wireless communications services’, like network slicing and service assurance for enterprise customers.

The pitch goes that as it stands manual provisioning of network services by telcos is the norm, as self-service options ‘are seen as too complex or costly to develop.’ What they are putting on the table is a solution to let enterprise customers order and manage their own services through Singtel’s Paragon platform ‘in a low-friction environment where requests are immediately executed in the network via Ericsson Service Orchestration and Assurance.’

It’s supposed to be modular and automated in order that it can be put to a wide range of use cases and network changes, and support multi-vendor environments.

“Singtel’s Paragon platform has enabled transformation for many telcos and put them in a lead position in their markets, to roll out next-generation enterprise applications and services,” said Manoj Prasanna Kumar, Chief Technology Officer, Singtel Digital InfraCo. “We are glad to have the strong support of many technology partners and now a global network leader Ericsson in the Paragon ecosystem.

“This strategic partnership between Ericsson and Singtel bringing together Singtel’s Paragon platform and Ericsson Service Orchestration and Assurance, will strengthen the joint value proposition and make it easier and faster for Telcos to rollout their 5G, edge and network API use cases. The combined offering will enable seamless roll out of Paragon’s advanced network and edge capabilities to global CSP's to enable them monetise their infrastructure rapidly.”

Mats Karlsson, Head of Solution Area Business and Operations Support Systems, Ericsson, added: “Breaking through challenges experienced by enterprises and CSPs alike when it comes to the creation and adoption of new and valuable 5G-enabled services is a clear priority in the global telecoms market today. We see in this collaboration with Singtel the potential for greatly increased interest, uptake and profitability of 5G services for enterprises.”

APIs are pitched by many in the industry as a potential vein of new revenue for telcos via novel services and network functions. While the proposition remains a bit ethereal at the moment, many firms seem to be launching tie-ups this year as they look to capitalise on the nascent market – such as Vonage and SAP, Bridge Alliance and Singtel, Telefónica and Nokia, Nokia and Bounteous x Accolite, Verizon and Vonage, to name a few.