The telecommunications industry is continuously evolving, a phenomenon that is not novel. Currently, there is a need for advanced services, network designs, updated specifications, and other tech developments in the sector. Such demands have brought an increased emphasis on utilising technology as a means to achieve cost savings, faster deployment of new services, improved efficiency, and a reduced environmental impact. The introduction of 5G and the associated network complexity is yet another catalyst for this transformation, fostering fresh perspectives and demands on technology, says Arno Van Huyssteen, CTO – communication service provider at Canonical.
There is a growing interest in up and coming technologies such as the metaverse, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and forthcoming regulations, as well as new business models where faster mobile and fixed wireless connections rival wired broadband. Additionally, there are a plethora of new applications arising from OpenRAN to next-generation core networks, all located at the edge.
These technologies necessitate various forms of infrastructure, including hybrid, public, edge micro clouds, and on-premise data centres. Such innovations bring about high levels of complexity, which open source alternatives are well-suited to address, as they offer comparable, or even increased levels of technical capabilities, stability, security, and automation. Furthermore, they can help to improve financial health, particularly in the face of increasing demand, average revenue per user (APRU), and diminishing margins.
Open source is, by its very nature, a collaborative endeavour involving companies and individuals who share a common codebase and work together to advance the technical capabilities of a given software product or initiative. The speed of innovation in open source is driven by a large and active community of developers and contributors, resulting in rapid progress and benefits for both community members and users of the software.
Telecom companies have come to realise the value of the open source approach to innovation, as it enables them to solve problems and introduce new services and capabilities at a faster pace. This is particularly important in the rapidly changing landscape of the telecom industry, where the scalability and flexibility of open source are allowing companies to more effectively navigate challenges and seize opportunities as the market evolves.
In the past, the telecom industry was heavily reliant on proprietary software and hardware. However, the adoption of open source is now sparking a revolution in the industry, enabling telecom companies to stay competitive and meet the demands of an ever-changing market.
Why is open source a compelling consideration in telecoms
There are several compelling reasons for telecom service providers to consider adopting open source solutions. One key benefit is the potential for reduction in total cost of ownership (TCO). Open source software is typically available without costly licensing fees, and as a result, can lead to significant cost savings over the long term for telecom companies. Additionally, open source can provide telecoms with greater flexibility and freedom from vendor lock-in, as the software is developed and supported by a global community of developers, rather than a single vendor.
Another advantage of open source is the wealth of collaborative support available to enterprises, such as industry conferences, technical forums, and knowledge bases. This collaborative approach to development often results in faster speed of development, providing telecoms with a competitive edge in keeping pace with technology and customer demands. Furthermore, open source is known for its rigorous development process, which leads to higher software quality and better security.
Adopting open source technology alone is not enough to fully realise the benefits within advanced domains such as telecommunications. A comprehensive commitment to people and process transformation and a mindset that prioritises collaboration with a strong open source technology partner over a traditional vendor approach is necessary. Over the past decade, organisations, vendors, and service providers have refined the adoption and commercialisation of key open source technologies to ensure they can be used in fit-for-purpose, production environments. As a result, there is now a strong understanding of best practices for deploying, securing, and automating these technologies in both new and existing environments.
Open source technologies are just as capable, and in some cases more advanced, than proprietary technologies and are continually innovating at a rapid pace. This fast rate of innovation has led to key technologies maturing faster than their closed sourced counterparts and has resulted in widespread adoption and satisfaction across sectors such as telecommunications. For example, 61% of respondents to an IDC report on the significance of open source rated its performance as better than that of proprietary software.
How telecoms benefits from using open source
Some of our forward-thinking service provider customers have been utilising advanced open source technology throughout the infrastructure and application layers during the design and implementation of their next-generation networks. These service providers have begun to see strategic advantages in their data centre, application, and highly distributed compute environments as a result of their innovative choices.
By utilising a cloud-based approach, Service Providers and end-users no longer have to worry about technological compatibility as all variables are addressed on the abstracted, modelled, and automation side, ensuring substrate readiness. This ensures that substrate capabilities are exposed as API-addressable functionalities in an ‘Infrastructure-as-Code’ approach.
These cloud substrates enable the use of technologies such as software-defined networks (SDN) and network function virtualisation (NFV) through the combination of hardware and software products, resulting in softwareonly solutions that drive innovation and speed. Technical complexity is no longer handled by error-prone human actions, but as part of modelled and machine-operated automated systems, supporting underlying capabilities and needs.
Leading mobile networks are among those already embracing open source technology. For example, BT UK is utilising Advanced Automation Frameworks to address the deployment and operational complexity of OpenStack, Kubernetes, and SDN within their networking cloud environments. On the other hand, Virgin Media O2 recently announced the deployment of Charmed OSM, which is an upstream distribution of an open source project hosted by the European standards body, to accelerate virtual and container network function workloads and service orchestration using a generic open source vNFM/NFVO framework. These are just a few examples of the widespread adoption of open source technology in advanced carrier networks globally.
In addition to these mass-adoption use-cases, open source options can also be leveraged to help research teams at leading telecommunications companies advance AI and Machine Learning (ML) technologies for predictive maintenance. By utilising sophisticated algorithms and ML, businesses can forecast the health of their network technology and infrastructure by building on and expanding historical data sets. AI technology can then use data-driven techniques to monitor equipment and infrastructure, predicting its condition and suggesting when maintenance may be required. The telecommunications industry is already leveraging AI and ML across hardware, the cloud, and various open source frameworks to ultimately provide customers with a more reliable and stable network experience.
When delivering next-generation cloud-native 5G core networks, open source will help telecoms to stay ahead of user demands.Open source technologies and architectures meet and exceed the traditional resilience and security needs for telco, including advanced security compliances such as country and region specific security guidelines like the NCSC TSRs in the UK, FIPS, and DISA-STIG. Increasingly sophisticated security features can be quickly developed, as open source communities often respond to exposed vulnerabilities much faster than proprietary software vendors. R&D departments can also leverage open source technologies to cut costs as they develop new technologies, and get ahead of emerging trends, resulting in a cost-effective, innovation-led experience for the consumer.
Open source’s future role
The success of modern mobile service providers relies not on the availability of open source, advanced automation, and secure network technologies anymore, but rather on the inherent inertia of accepting, exploring, deploying and leveraging these technologies before reduced average revenue per user (ARPU) and margin pressures make their implementation difficult.
As the telecommunications industry evolves to meet the demands of next-generation network architectures and technologies, the use of open source solutions has become a necessity for service providers looking to ensure long-term success. The focus on environmental impacts, efficiencies, performance gains, and commercial cost points has made open source an indispensable tool for modern, forward-thinking companies.
Gone are the days when open source technology was only accessible to a select few, as reputable companies now stand behind these efforts and provide the necessary support and resources. The adoption of SDN and open source technologies is crucial for decoupling wireless networks from proprietary software and hardware, allowing for a shift to an intelligent software layer that runs on commodity hardware.
As 5G technology becomes more widely adopted, open source and 5G will become natural partners, with operators worldwide pioneering new use cases. The future of the telecommunications industry is bright, with new opportunities for interconnection and growth driven by technologies such as AI and ML. In a rapidly changing industry, open source offers an opportunity that cannot be ignored by companies looking to stay competitive and succeed in the long term.
The author is Arno Van Huyssteen, CTO – communication service provider at Canonical.
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