Ericsson and Google Cloud team up to deliver carrier-grade 5G core as-a-service built with AI at the foundation
- Partnership with Google Cloud provides access to extensive cloud infrastructure across 42 regions
- Consumption-based pricing model eliminates upfront infrastructure and licensing costs
- Rapid deployment capability reduces time-to-market for new services
- AI-powered operations and automation reduce operational costs and complexity
- Platform enables quick scaling without additional capital expenditure
- Potential dependency on Google Cloud infrastructure
- May face data sovereignty and compliance challenges in certain regions
- Service providers might need to adapt their existing operations to the new platform
Insights
Ericsson's new cloud-based 5G core service with Google creates recurring revenue opportunities while addressing critical CSP pain points.
Ericsson's new On-Demand platform represents a significant strategic shift in how the company delivers core network infrastructure, potentially opening substantial new revenue streams. By transforming traditional capital-intensive network deployments into a consumption-based SaaS model, Ericsson addresses two critical pain points for Communications Service Providers (CSPs): capital efficiency and deployment agility.
This offering leverages Google Cloud's extensive infrastructure spanning 42 regions and Kubernetes expertise while maintaining Ericsson's carrier-grade reliability. The value proposition centers on allowing CSPs to provision in minutes rather than months, scale elastically to match actual demand, and implement consumption-based pricing without upfront licensing costs.
What makes this particularly valuable is Ericsson's end-to-end management approach. By handling infrastructure complexity through 24/7 Site Reliability Engineering teams augmented with AI-assisted troubleshooting, Ericsson removes significant operational burdens from CSPs while maintaining security and compliance standards.
For investors, this signals Ericsson's evolution toward recurring revenue models versus lumpy infrastructure sales. The offering particularly targets emerging use cases like enterprise networks and Fixed Wireless Access, potentially accelerating 5G monetization paths for CSPs. By combining telecom-grade reliability with cloud economics, Ericsson is positioning itself at the intersection of telecommunications transformation and cloud computing – a strategically valuable position as 5G networks continue expanding globally.
- Ericsson On-Demand delivers a significant shift in how core network services are deployed, managed and scaled
- Provisions core services in minutes, allowing Communication Service Providers (CSPs) to scale effortlessly and pay only for what is used
- Combines telecom-grade reliability with public cloud flexibility, for smaller core deployments
The platform is designed with Google Cloud, leveraging AI infrastructure and Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) - and is managed end-to-end by Ericsson. The solution will help CSPs to quickly set up and grow core network services, cut operating costs and gain business flexibility with a fully managed, cloud-native platform.
At a time when CSPs are under growing pressure to innovate at speed and scale while managing increasing operational complexity, Ericsson On-Demand offers a radical step-change in agility and efficiency. The platform deploys full core in minutes, scales up or down as needed, and allows CSPs to only pay for what they use. Customers also don't have to worry about managing the underlying infrastructure.
Key features of Ericsson On-Demand include:
- Provisioning in minutes: Launch core network services rapidly without lengthy deployment cycles.
- Elastic scale: Instantaneously scale-up capacity to meet peak demands with no upfront capex or overprovisioning.
- Cost-effective and transparent pricing: Consumption-based billing with no infrastructure or licensing fees.
- Ability to quickly innovate: Allows CSPs to innovate at cloud pace and expand globally
- Fully managed operations: Powered by Ericsson's 24/7 Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) teams with AI-assisted troubleshooting and lifecycle automation, further reducing time-to-resolution and operational overhead.
- Built-in security & control: Geo-restricted deployments, identity and access management (IAM) policies, and cloud-native firewalls.
Powered by the same Ericsson developers that delivers mobile connectivity to billions of users worldwide - and built on Google Cloud - Ericsson On-Demand combines telecom-grade reliability with public cloud flexibility. The platform leverages GKE to simplify and improve network availability, in addition to Google Cloud's full stack AI infrastructure which is available globally across 42 cloud regions and more than two million miles of terrestrial and subsea fiber. This will further enable CSPs to operate with the resilience, availability, and compliance their customers expect.
Ericsson On-Demand also helps CSPs add new features to their current systems bit-by-bit, without causing any downtime. Its secure-by-design architecture meets evolving compliance and sovereignty requirements, offering deployment options around the world.
Whether enabling wide-area enterprise networks, accelerating fixed wireless access (FWA) rollouts, or testing new markets, On-Demand empowers CSPs to move from idea to execution with unprecedented speed.
Eric Parsons, VP Head of Emerging Segments, Cloud Software and Services, Ericsson, says: "Ericsson On-Demand, is more than a product, it's an enabler of ambition. Today's CTOs must move fast, scale smart, and lead their organizations into new commercial territory. On-Demand removes the risk and complexity holding them back. It gives them the agility to outpace market change, the confidence to innovate without compromise, and the clarity to seize opportunities that were previously just out of reach. Choosing On-Demand is a bold signal of leadership, and a commitment to future-ready growth."
Muninder Singh Sambi, vice president and general manager of Networking and Security, Google Cloud, says: "With Ericsson On-Demand on Google Cloud's AI infrastructure, CSPs can rapidly deploy 5G core and tap into new revenue streams. This partnership with Ericsson isn't just about technology; it's about building the AI-driven telecom of tomorrow for our customers."
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Learn more about Ericsson On-Demand
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