Telefónica signs broad R&D agreement with Huawei

Sept. 29, 2014

Spanish incumbent Telefónica has deepened its relationship with Chinese equipment vendor Huawei Technologies Co Ltd. The pair have signed an agreement to develop areas of common interest that could lead to "the transformation of the digital environment."

Spanish incumbent service provider Telefónica has deepened its relationship with Chinese equipment vendor Huawei Technologies Co Ltd. The pair have signed an agreement to develop areas of common interest that could lead to "the transformation of the digital environment."

Specifically, the cooperation is expected to include joint analysis of three fundamental areas:

Transformation of Telefónica's next-generation networks, including 4G/5G mobile networks, 400G optical transport, software-defined network (SDN) and IP/optical networks, fiber-to-the-x (FTTx), and technology for the so-called connected home. The companies will analyze the development and joint roll-out of these networks, as well as new business models and services.
Development and adaptation of IT solutions to improve Telefónica's business processes and improve its customers' experience. In addition, the two companies will develop methods to provide more efficient use of both fix and mobile networks and data services.
Creation of an efficient technical approach for the virtualization of certain network functions based on the UNICA architecture, a Telefónica project to transform its network infrastructure; as well as the development of services based on an open digital platform to improve the user experience and competitiveness for both businesses and consumers. In this regard, the two companies will collaborate on the search for new services, including software, platform, and infrastructure as a service.

To put these initiatives into practice, Telefónica and Huawei will create several working groups, on which experts from both companies will share knowledge about market trends, case studies and advanced technology.

The two companies have already collaborated in some of these areas, including SDN and 400G optical transport (see "Huawei, Telefonica trial SDN-based IP and optical layer interworking" and "Huawei to deliver 400-Gbps OTN technology to Telefonica Chile").

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