Telecommunications companies have seen explosive growth in network traffic in recent years due in large part to over-the-top (OTT) service providers like Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, and other apps that demand high network bandwidth. Given that these services are not likely going to stop operation anytime soon - and that new OTT services are being introduced at an accelerated rate - telcos are left needing significantly more network capacity.

To keep pace with demands, network operators are re-architecting and transforming their networks from traditional, physical network functions to virtualized network functions based on open source software and white-box servers. They’re further exploring mobile access edge compute (MEC) use cases such as the virtual central office, virtualized customer premise equipment, head end virtualization in streaming services, and the delivery of other mobile services. By doing this, operators can dynamically allocate resources for optimal efficiency, deploy new services quicker and closer to customers, and automate network deployments and operations, which simplifies the network, reduces expenses, and increases speeds.  

To help telcos create this modern network infrastructure, Red Hat is announcing today an expansion to our Partner Program to support the specific needs of the telco industry. The Global Network Ecosystem Partner (NEP) initiative is designed to accelerate a vibrant ecosystem of technology companies whose solutions run on or integrate with Red Hat products. It is an expansion and enhancement of our core certification activities that are the foundation of Red Hat’s telco-class offering, including our NFV and VNF certifications.

Network operators want the ability to select the technologies and partners at all layers of the stack. Red Hat’s global network ecosystem has evolved into a diverse set of telco technology providers that help create common operational frameworks and tools so customers can avoid vendor lock-in. Additionally, through the NEP initiative, Red Hat helps partners take advantage of the latest open source innovations, as the program offers a more standardized process for upstream collaboration around telco-centric community projects such as OPNFV and ONAP.

Partners are central to Red Hat’s approach to meeting the evolving requirements of the telco industry. Many of the industry’s leading technology providers have already started to deeply collaborate to offer leading telco-class offerings to the market.

Red Hat will recognize a set of partners during its inaugural Telco Partner Day, Monday, May 7th in San Francisco, CA. Award categories will highlight partners who have demonstrated achievement in the following categories: New Partner of The Year; Innovation Partner of the Year; Partner Impact Award - Community; and Partner Impact Award - Customer. Partners are an integral part of our strategy and it is important to us to recognize those that have gone above and beyond.

We believe this expansion of our Partner Program to cover the needs of communications service providers and other organizations driving network transformation will create new opportunities for our entire ecosystem. To learn more about Red Hat’s solutions, ecosystem, and programs visit www.redhat.com/telco or reach out to your Red Hat representative.