Mobile World Congress: VMware Talks SASE, 5G, SD-WAN
The Broadcom-owned company is targeting enterprises and communications service providers with the new offerings.
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VMware is touting “significant new developments” across its software-defined edge portfolio.
The portfolio comprises 5G, SD-WAN, SASE and edge computing for enterprises and communications service providers. Many are built with the help of various partners.
![VMware's Sanjay Uppal VMware's Sanjay Uppal](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt10e444bce2d36aa8/bltfc160d5bdb7c3f62/6525cd3d972520a53108bab8/Uppal-Sanjay_VMware.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
VMware's Sanjay Uppal
“[W]e’re advancing our integrated approach across our edge compute, intelligent overlay and telco cloud offerings,” said Sanjay Uppal, vice president and general manager of the SDE division at Broadcom, which now owns VMware. “In the overlay, we’re introducing a new single-vendor SASE solution with Symantec, helping enterprises connect and secure the distributed edge. In the telco cloud, we’re enabling CSPs to modernize their core and RAN infrastructure to deliver monetizable services.”
Broadcom bought Symatec in 2019.
On the next slide, learn more about the newly debuted, Symantec-secured VMware platform.
Dubbed VMware VeloCloud SASE, the new platform combines the former VMware SD-WAN product with Symantec Security Service Edge. It also capitalizes on, and revitalizes, the VeloCloud brand, popularized after VMware bought VeloCloud in 2017.
The VeloCloud portfolio includes VMware VeloCloud SASE as well as the VMware VeloCloud SD-WAN and VMware VeloCloud SD-Access products.
Broadcom positions the new VeloCloud offerings, now generally available, as extending “significant benefits” to its current VeloCloud and Symantec customers.
Next up, VMware is showcasing its Telco Cloud Platform for communications service providers.
The package helps CSPs to optimize 5G networks via the service assurance product. It also supports network programmability for radio access networks (RAN) performance.
Along the way, VMware said it’s simplifying the deployment of xApps and rApps for CSPs on VMware RAN Intelligent Controller and VMware Service Management and Orchestration framework. As such, CSPs will have more, and faster, tools for modernizing their networks and creating monetizable services quickly, VMware said.
“Together with our partner ecosystem, we’re focused on addressing the complexities of RAN and Core disaggregation, and achieve increased agility and efficiencies via automation, assurance and observability delivered by our Service Management and Orchestration offering,” Broadcom’s Sanjay Uppal said.
So far, providers including DISH Wireless and Vodafone have deployed these capabilities.
VMware says it’s working with “a broad partner ecosystem” to innovate around multivendor networks.
The multicloud provider has teamed with Intel, NEC, TecTwin and Expanso, to name a few.
For example, NEC, SoftBank and VMware worked together to verify a virtualized RAN system for SoftBank. NEC used its RAN application and VMware contributed its Telco Cloud Platform RAN.
Meanwhile, Viavi Solutions recently launched more capabilities around a joint testbed as a service with VMware. This combined the VIAVI TeraVM RIC Test with the VMware RIC to create a digital twin for evaluating and benchmarking applications. Viavi also provides its geolocation intelligence and various apps with RAN data over the VMware RIC platform. That lets CSPs capture information once and emulate it with multiple other applications, reducing the overhead of repeatedly capturing, processing and transmitting data.
Finally, Aira Technologies has unveiled a new capability, RANGPT, with VMware. As the name indicates, it’s a generative AI-powered tool. It enables observability, analysis, control and automation of the RAN using conversational language. Aira is targeting mobile network operators with RANGPT.
VMware says it’s working with “a broad partner ecosystem” to innovate around multivendor networks.
The multicloud provider has teamed with Intel, NEC, TecTwin and Expanso, to name a few.
For example, NEC, SoftBank and VMware worked together to verify a virtualized RAN system for SoftBank. NEC used its RAN application and VMware contributed its Telco Cloud Platform RAN.
Meanwhile, Viavi Solutions recently launched more capabilities around a joint testbed as a service with VMware. This combined the VIAVI TeraVM RIC Test with the VMware RIC to create a digital twin for evaluating and benchmarking applications. Viavi also provides its geolocation intelligence and various apps with RAN data over the VMware RIC platform. That lets CSPs capture information once and emulate it with multiple other applications, reducing the overhead of repeatedly capturing, processing and transmitting data.
Finally, Aira Technologies has unveiled a new capability, RANGPT, with VMware. As the name indicates, it’s a generative AI-powered tool. It enables observability, analysis, control and automation of the RAN using conversational language. Aira is targeting mobile network operators with RANGPT.
MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS — Broadcom-owned VMware is showcasing new developments around SASE, 5G, SD-WAN in Barcelona.
Even as Broadcom has taken the axe to much of VMware’s portfolio and partner programs, it has not implemented as much change around the telco and network side of things. Indeed, there are quite a few announcements coming from the multicloud vendor this week at Mobile World Congress as it talks up its capabilities for enterprises and communications service providers.
In the slideshow above, see what VMware has come up with for mobility and edge computing and what the company is highlighting at Mobile World Congress. Some of the developments are technical; one revives a respected brand; and others indicate VMware’s path around edge computing.
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