The News: Ericsson envisions a mobile ecosystem that eases the consumption and payment of network application programming interfaces (APIs), reinforced by a developer community focused on innovation. Read the full blog on the Ericsson website.
Ericsson: Network Platform Rising
Analyst Take: Ericsson is ready to make the network platform mainstream across the mobile ecosystem with communications platform as a service (CPaaS) playing an integral role. Ericsson acquired Vonage and its CPaaS portfolio to ensure Vonage’s developer community of 1.4 million and growing has a direct stake in using network APIs to innovate and monetize 5G applications and capabilities. Plus, 8.5 billion mobile subscriptions globally bolster the business case for the network platform to become the fulcrum for planetwide mobile application innovation.
I anticipate that through the fusion of Vonage’s platform and Ericsson’s vast network expertise, the building blocks are in place to augurate and cultivate a Global Network Platform that ensures it is intuitive and simple to expose, consume, and pay for network APIs. For motivation, developers can use the expanding capabilities of 5G networks, especially in 5G standalone (SA) and, further out, 5G Advanced environments.
Börje Ekholm, Ericsson president and CEO, observed in his recent blog that the next wave of technology will require even better performing networks. For organizations to gain the full benefits of a mobile-first global digital ecosystem, they need more predictable and reliable connectivity with predetermined service level agreement (SLA) assurances. As a result, 5G is integral to the network platform vision.
To that end, Ericsson has collaborated with Zoom and Blacknut to demonstrate quality on-demand and real-time device location, building upon established business models from CPaaS. To fuel momentum, Ericsson unveiled a commercial partnership with Deutsche Telekom (DT) at the recent DigitalX conference in which the duo will offer communications and network APIs to developers and enterprises.
Through the Vonage Communications Platform, DT plans to offer a globally scalable, one-stop shop for communications APIs including voice, SMS, two-factor authentication, and enhanced security plus new use cases such as quality on-demand video for improved remote doctor visits, point-of-sale validations using device location, and fraud prevention using device data. In accord, -Mobile is now offering T-Mobile Security Slice as part of its SASE solution.
Looking Ahead
To broaden developer support for network APIs, Ericsson is seeking to persuade network-oriented application developers to onboard swiftly through sponsorship programs in academia and the reskilling of experienced workers. Naturally, I anticipate that generative AI can play an instrumental role in accelerating developer interest. Specifically, GitHub Copilot uses the OpenAI Codex model to suggest relevant code, offer entire functions from scratch, and provide programmers with complete algorithms in real time.
Moreover, GitHub Coplot is complementary for verified students and contributors to open source projects on GitHub. GitHub Copilot capabilities can help streamline the learning and adoption curve for using network APIs as well as expedite the reskilling process. For instance, the open source CAMARA project, backed by the Linux Foundation and the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) to address the challenges of porting and reproducing API services across heterogenous operator and cloud architectures, already has 23 repositories on GitHub. The same coding benefits can also apply to the closely aligned GSMA Open Gateway framework of network APIs designed to provide universal access to communications service provider (CSP) networks for developers.
I am encouraged that Ericsson is strategically committed to making networks fully programmable and available worldwide by broadening and accelerating the benefits of API-driven mobile and digital innovation. In the 5G era, the Ericsson initiative can prove critical in ensuring that CSPs play an integral role in the 5G value chain, a notable contrast to the 4G/LTE world where hyperscalers and Over-the-Top (OTT) captured most of the value.
Disclosure: The Futurum Group is a research and advisory firm that engages or has engaged in research, analysis, and advisory services with many technology companies, including those mentioned in this article. The author does not hold any equity positions with any company mentioned in this article.
Analysis and opinions expressed herein are specific to the analyst individually and data and other information that might have been provided for validation, not those of The Futurum Group as a whole.
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Author Information
Ron is an experienced, customer-focused research expert and analyst, with over 20 years of experience in the digital and IT transformation markets, working with businesses to drive consistent revenue and sales growth.
Ron holds a Master of Arts in Public Policy from University of Nevada — Las Vegas and a Bachelor of Arts in political science/government from William and Mary.
