Ericsson and VMware Form Alliance to Simplify Network Virtualization for CSPs

- Ericsson and VMware have signed a five-year alliance agreement to simplify network virtualization for Communication Service Providers (CSP)

- The alliance will provide industry-leading experience for CSPs deploying and running a combination of Ericsson applications and VMware's vCloud NFV platform, enabling telco-grade services for the networks of today and tomorrow

- The companies have established a VNF Certification Lab to ensure industrialized software deployment and operational best practices, enabling increased efficiency and faster time to revenue for CSPs

WASHINGTON, Feb. 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) and VMware (NASDAQ: VMW) have signed a global alliance agreement that will simplify deploying and running a combination of Ericsson applications and VMware's vCloud NFV platform for CSPs. The alliance agreement solidifies the close cooperation between the two companies, ongoing since 2012, and enables CSPs to accelerate time to revenue for new telco-grade services.

The alliance includes technical collaboration and interoperability testing across Ericsson's portfolio of Virtual Network Functions, Billing and Charging solutions, Automation and Orchestration, with VMware's vCloud NFV platform to provide CSPs with faster, more cost effective and tested virtualized solutions. These solutions are increasingly critical as CSPs move to multi-cloud strategies to streamline costs and optimize resources.

To enable CSPs to efficiently deploy and operate commercial virtualized networks, the two companies engage in technical collaborations e.g. in the Cloud Core and Cloud Communication domain, to jointly help secure optimized performance and platform utilization for high volume workloads. And have furthermore invested in a Certification Lab, where Ericsson's VNF and VMware vCloud NFV platform interoperability is tested, certified, system verified, optimized and documented.

Today, Ericsson and VMware have more than 50 CSPs running live production mobile networks with Ericsson VNFs on a VMware vCloud NFV platform.

Matt Beal, Head of Technology, Strategy and Architecture, Vodafone Group, says: "We have worked jointly with Ericsson and VMware for many years, and have implemented Ericsson's EPC, PCRF, UDC, IMS and MSC Virtual Network Functions on VMware vCloudNFV. The combination of software from both companies, accelerates time to market for new services and enables our customers to fully embrace the opportunities of services like VoLTE and 4G/5G."

Honore LaBourdette, Vice President of Global Market Development, Telco NFV Group at VMware, says: "This agreement is an expansion of an ongoing successful relationship with Ericsson. This alliance agreement means a more concentrated collaboration to integrate, optimize, and provide interoperability at scale for our combined solutions, enabling speedy onboarding and deployment of VNFs. Ericsson and VMware are accelerating time to revenue and enabling carriers to provide industry-leading innovative experiences for our customers."

Anders Rosengren, Head of Architecture and Technology, Digital Services, Ericsson, says: "In our collaboration with VMware, we share a common goal of supporting CSPs with an exceptional experience in deploying and running the combination of software from Ericsson and VMware, which spans from the core to the edge."  

Ericsson and VMware will be showcasing solutions at Mobile World Congress 2019 in Barcelona.

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About Ericsson
Ericsson enables communications service providers to capture the full value of connectivity. The company's portfolio spans Networks, Digital Services, Managed Services, and Emerging Business and is designed to help our customers go digital, increase efficiency and find new revenue streams. Ericsson's investments in innovation have delivered the benefits of telephony and mobile broadband to billions of people around the world. The Ericsson stock is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm and on Nasdaq New York. www.ericsson.com 

Ericsson at Mobile World Congress 2019
Join or follow Ericsson at MWC 2019 in Barcelona from February 25 to 28 and experience the future of 5G and IoT innovation. We will present unique insights on 5G business opportunities and showcase use cases that enhance service providers' business and customer experiences. Take the opportunity to learn more about the latest trends and technology shaping the ICT industry, now and in the future. Join us live and online at www.ericsson.com/mwc

About VMware
VMware software powers the world's complex digital infrastructure. The company's compute, cloud, mobility, networking and security offerings provide a dynamic and efficient digital foundation to over 500,000 customers globally, aided by an ecosystem of 75,000 partners. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, this year VMware celebrates twenty years of breakthrough innovation benefiting business and society. For more information, please visit https://www.vmware.com/company.html.

VMware, vCloud, and vCloud NFV are registered trademarks or trademarks of VMware, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions.

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