Deutsche Telekom, Blue Planet, Ericsson, and Mavenir have collaborated to demonstrate the agility benefits of multi-domain orchestration with open APIs in creating new slice-based service offerings on-demand.
In a joint proof-of-concept (PoC), enterprises can place a service order through Deutsche Telekom’s customer portal, initiating the configuration of a secure, dedicated network slice with guaranteed Quality of Service (QoS) levels specific to their connectivity requirements. These slices are implemented as dynamic and automated end-to-end service offerings, activated within minutes across the 5G network from the User Equipment (UE) to the enterprise user’s application.
To realize this enterprise service use case, the partners deployed a 5G Standalone (SA) network infrastructure in test mode at Deutsche Telekom’s labs in Darmstadt and Bonn. Components included Deutsche Telekom’s customer portal, a Multi-Domain Service Orchestrator (MDSO) from Blue Planet, a cloud-native 5G Core (5GC) from Mavenir, and Ericsson’s Radio Access Network (RAN) with network management capabilities. Deutsche Telekom’s proprietary network resource qualification system, Bookkeeper, was also utilized for service feasibility control.
The integration and management of elements across various technology domains and suppliers require open APIs due to the diversity of 5G network technology. The Proof-of-Concept used industry-standard Open APIs from TM Forum.
The PoC successfully demonstrated various capabilities, including product order placement by enterprise customers, order decomposition and distribution to technology domains by MDSO, model-driven RAN and Core domains slice orchestration, end-to-end service orchestration in minutes, dynamic instantiation of network functions such as User Plane Function (UPF), and customer SIM subscription and provisioning.
Deutsche Telekom’s Changsoon Choi emphasizes the importance of dynamic slicing and automation in meeting the demands for tailored and flexible connectivity services from enterprise customers. This PoC showcases a multi-domain orchestration that allows customers to dynamically order slices in minutes by clicking a few options.
Joe Cumello from Blue Planet highlights the role of dynamic network slicing and automation in Deutsche Telekom’s transformation for Communication Services Providers globally.
Ericsson’s Daniel Leimbach expresses satisfaction with the effective collaboration with Deutsche Telekom and the development of robust and flexible 5G network slicing services to enable new business use cases.
Mavenir’s Ashok Khuntia emphasizes their commitment to supporting Deutsche Telekom’s 5G Standalone business objectives by enabling dynamic network slicing.
Network slicing is a key feature of 5G Standalone architecture that allows multiple virtual networks to be created on a single physical network infrastructure. Each slice can provide different service characteristics and quality parameters tailored to customer needs, with full isolation between slices. This enables operators to develop differentiated services and business models, leveraging the premium connectivity that 5G SA offers.