Systems integrator World Wide Technology (WWT) is collaborating with Red Hat and several technology vendors to make dynamic software-defined services and virtual applications at the edge more expeditious for the service provider segment.
The Lowdown: WWT, one of the world’s largest systems integrators, is working with Red Hat to deploy and validate the Red Hat Virtual Center Office (VCO) solution at WWT’s Advanced Technology Center in St. Louis. Through the vetting and optimization process, WWT is developing a means for leveraging VCO to facilitate dynamic delivery of applications by service providers, giving them more flexibility and speed to meet customer needs and expectations.
The Details: VCO leverages Red Hat’s capabilities in cloud management, network function virtualization, and Kubernetes and cloud containers to create and facilitate software-defined solutions across service provider networks. Essentially, WWT is creating a wide-area cloud application service manager that more easily creates, delivers, and revokes services based on customer needs.
WWT is collaborating with several other vendors as well, including Affirmed Networks, Altiostar, Amdocs, Cumulus Networks, Edgecore Networks, F5 Networks, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and Trilio.
The Impact: Service providers across the gamut — from cloud application service providers to telecommunications carriers — are increasingly managing applications and workloads on customers’ behalf. Customers are looking for more flexibility in their applications, particularly those that have limited time or capacity use. Platforms such as VCO could make it easier for solution providers to deliver on-demand applications, infrastructures, and workloads.
The Buzz:
“Service provider customers are looking to deliver new, innovative services to their customers. By delivering these services via software, they can quickly change or add features based on customer demand and improve their time to market,” said Joe Wojtal, vice president of open systems at WWT.
“As more mobile network operators look to embrace the role of a modern open telecommunications service provider, moving services from the core network closer to customers by virtualizing edge networks becomes an important consideration,” said Darrell Jordan-Smith, vice president of global information and communications technology at Red Hat.
“As service providers adopt open network and software-controlled infrastructures, WWT provides the critical solution validation and services that integrate the entire software stack with open network hardware for central office and mobile network deployments,” said Jeff Catlin, vice president of technology at Edgecore Networks.