Elisa Automate, Telefónica partner on transport network automation

Elisa Automate, a business unit of Polystar OSIX AB and a supplier of Machine Learning / AI-based network automation solutions for Communications Service Providers (CSPs), has announced that Telefónica, one of the largest operator groups in the world, has been testing Elisa Automate's automation solutions in its Global Transport SDN Network laboratory.

The automation of transport networks is essential to meet the demands of 5G and agile network and topology configuration. Legacy, manually-intensive processes are no longer fit for purpose and limit the ability of operators to deliver services efficiently and at the scale required. Elisa Automate solves this problem by offering a complete, real-time view of topology and inventory – across all network layers – that enables zero-touch automation and agile configuration.

Telefonica proposed a set of use cases to Elisa Automate in order to validate automation of network topology discovery, network expansion and service provisioning functions, using the standards-based transport network NBIs defined in Telefonica's iFusion initiative.

Telefónica Group is driving research on new OSS, SDN and transport network technologies that can meet the demands of 5G and future network services. Elisa Automate provides the resource and real-time topology inventory necessary to support the desired OSS evolution and enhanced agility.

"A clear understanding, in real-time, of network topology and inventory is essential to deliver the flexibility our new OSS requires and to enable efficient, zero-touch operations in our transport networks," commented Jesús Maqueda Iglesias, Head of OSS Fulfilment Architecture in Telefónica Group Technology (Global CTO Office).

"The use of open standard interfaces enables the programming of the network with vendor-agnostic integrations, reducing the time-to-market of new functions and services," said Jesús Folgueira, Head of Transport and IP Networks (Global CTO Office).

Elisa Automate has deployed the automation solution in the cloud and it is fully integrated with a complex, multi-vendor and multi-layer environment. It enables Telefónica to create single, unified workflows that support service automation, end-to-end.

The automation and real-time inventory management delivers considerable benefits. It supports automatic software updates in a complex cloud environment and allows significant time savings, enabling resources to be directed to more profitable activities.

"Our team's world-renowned expertise in Machine Learning and AI automation for network operation has enabled the successful realisation of unlimited mobile data strategies and delivered preventative fault detection and resolution," commented Mikko Puuskari, Director of Business Operations in Elisa Automate. "This broad skillset has ensured successful delivery and rapid realisation of the project. We can provide a clear pathway to support Telefónica's automation evolution plans."