Telecom networks are becoming increasingly cloud-native and software-based, relying more on cloud management for telecom, creating challenges for operators seeking to adapt to this new infrastructure.
Transitioning into Kubernetes-based and containerized microservices fueled controversy concerning the telecommunication sector due to questioning the future perspective of telecom networks.
Moving to Kubernetes and containerized microservices means breaking applications into smaller, independent parts – microservices – and running them in lightweight, portable containers.
As telecom networks shift to cloud-native platforms, and if cloud infrastructure succeeds, will the network remain central, or become just another background service?
Telecom Cloud Management Platform
Operators are adopting cloud-native telecommunication architectures, breaking network functions into containerized microservices for agility and scalability.
In this case, Kubernetes orchestrates these services, keeping this mostly under control, allowing unhinged scaling and updates, which is vital for keeping up with 5G and 6G demands. Through this, operators can simultaneously minimize cost and push performance to align with 2025’s vision of AI, decentralized networks.
To stay competitive, telecom operators got encouraged from this to invest heavily in methods like DevOps and automation. As telcos optimize their infrastructure, cloud management for telecom is becoming key for hybrid environment complexity management.
“There’s anxiety on the part of many operators about whether their network infrastructure is as critical to underpinning the business models of the future as it has been in the past,” explained STL Partners Senior Analyst and Telco Cloud Lead David Martin.
Arguments emerged about cloud platforms becoming the control centers of telecommunication, while legacy network functions now only implement requests without setting the overall experience.
Telcos are pivoting to Kubernetes and microservices, but will they differentiate or drown in the cloud crowd?
In this scenario, those who succeed won’t just scale, they’ll want to lock down their telco cloud security and slash costs, and that’s the edge keeping them ahead of hyperscalers and vanilla cloud providers.
New Opportunity for Telcos?
In an unexpected twist, AI’s hunger for low latency, secure data flows could save a country’s telecom sector from irrelevance. As it stands now, AI needs real-time edge processing, and operators’ distributed telco edge cloud networks are there to deliver on that.
“AI inherently relies on flows of data between different sorts of cloud locations… so the network is now viewed as an integral enabler for AI,” Martin said, adding, “in a way, AI needs the network more than the network needs AI.”
However, the issue of who will be in charge of the network remains. Will the telecom operators be supplying these AI-driven services, or will the cloud computing giants, with their more agile infrastructure, be in charge? Cloud-native Open RAN is blurring the lines between traditional telecom and cloud services and creating new opportunities for operators to take charge.
Final Thoughts
The transition to cloud-native networks urges telcos to reframe their value propositions. As much as the agility and scalability provided by cloud management for telecom and cloud infrastructure are undeniable, telcos shall act smart at maintaining control over their critical infrastructure.
As the market evolves into a cloud-predominant world, operators need to carefully consider how to ensure their position as a key for digital services, while leveraging the agility and innovation that cloud brings.
The ability to manage Open RAN, network cloudification, and cost management for telecom will be critical in maintaining their competitive edge. Finally, telcos’ response will determine to which degree telecom networks remain at the center of future connectivity or fall secondary to general cloud services.
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