Cisco Expands Virtualization Offerings for Service Providers

Highlighting its Open Network Environment (ONE) strategy, Cisco (CSCO) announced the expansion of its virtualization offerings for  service providers with the introduction of the Cisco Evolved Services Platform (ESP). With a rapidly increasing number of people, devices, machines and sensors coming online across the Internet of Everything (IoE), service providers require new capabilities to lead in the delivery of value-added, cloud-based services and applications. The Cisco service provider virtualization strategy centers around the network becoming increasingly virtualized and virtualization becoming networked, that virtualization should work as an integrated extension of the physical infrastructure, and that virtualization shouldn't be limited to a function but rather placed throughout the whole architecture.

Evolved Services Platform

The Cisco ESP works with the Cisco Evolved Programmable Network (EPN) and is designed to enable service providers to accelerate the delivery of innovative new services. More than 25 global providers are transforming their networks with various aspects of the Cisco ESP, including China Mobile, Deutsche Telekom Technik GmbH, SunGard Availability Services and Telecom Italia.

“Service providers success is dependent on providing a consistent experience, agility to roll out new services and the ease at which these services can be ordered, automated, managed and delivered,” said Pankaj Patel, executive vice president and chief development officer, Cisco. “Service providers globally view virtualization not just to reduce costs, but to have it work with their infrastructure to provide even greater value by means of increased agility and elasticity.”

Incorporating both Openstack and Open Daylight (SDN) protocol suite, Cisco ESP works with Cisco’s virtual functions and with other vendors’ functions and applications such as Metaswitch Networks and Openwave Mobility. Empowering on-demand offerings, Cisco ESP allows service providers to seamlessly and dynamically scale their existing services, while also dramatically accelerating deployment of new services and network functions.

Service Modules for Video and Mobile

Cisco is also announcing the availability of the first two modules for deployment.  Cisco Videoscape Cloud DVR Solution is a cloud-driven video recording with capture and storage in the cloud instead of the end device. Cisco Virtualized Mobile Internet features the Cisco Quantum Virtualized Packet Core (vPC), the Cisco Virtual Gi-LAN capabilities and the Cisco Quantum Services Bus. It is currently in trials at China Mobile and other service providers around the globe.

“Virtualization is a key area of interest for China Mobile’s future network architecture. We are pleased to see Cisco move in this direction with the virtualized packet core,” said Zhiqiang Yang, Deputy General Manager of China Mobile Research Institute, China Mobile.