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Google Cloud announced at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023 a new collaboration with StarHub, a leading homegrown company from Singapore that delivers world-class communications, entertainment and digital services. Google Cloud also announced new telecom innovations to help communication service providers (CSPs) digitally transform their networks with hybrid cloud principles and unlock new revenue opportunities.

Through the collaboration, Google Cloud will support StarHub as it creates an open, secure, scalable and energy-efficient cloud-native network for enterprises in Singapore.

Aligned with StarHub’s Cloud Infinity transformation initiative, which aims to boost the delivery, scalability and performance of services while reducing operational costs, cloud-native networks have become critical for CSPs to thrive in a connected world. StarHub will therefore pilot Google Distributed Cloud Edge (GDC Edge) and Nokia 5G Standalone Core to create a unique, multi-access, software-based 5G cloud core network.

GDC Edge builds on Google Cloud’s existing telecom solutions and can empower companies like StarHub to run core network functions at the edge of the carrier’s network. This brings Google Cloud’s stable and secure infrastructure even closer to where data is being generated and consumed. By moving its 5G core network to a cloud platform, StarHub’s subscribers and enterprise customers across manufacturing, retail, hospitality, transportation and other industries will be able to reap the benefits of its newly scalable, secure, low-latency, and globally accessible, software-driven network.

StarHub will also explore leveraging Google Cloud’s rich expertise in data management, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) across its network operations. As part of the collaboration, StarHub will be able to break down information silos and drive insights gleaned from this new interoperability. Additionally, understanding the breadth of its data points will help StarHub simplify the management of day-to-day network operations.

Together, the companies will support StarHub’s technical teams through extensive upskilling and certifications on cloud-native architecture, principles and practices, thereby enabling StarHub to bring differentiated cloud-managed services to market.

“As we lift our 5G network to the cloud, we believe our collaboration with Google Cloud and Nokia will better enable us to improve the experience for our subscribers and help industry leaders reimagine their businesses for the future,” said Ayush Sharma, Chief Technology Officer at StarHub.

“StarHub’s commitment to cloud-native network transformation has raised the bar for telecommunication companies in the region. Combined with Google Cloud’s global scale and the capabilities of our leading data analytics, AI and ML technologies, StarHub’s next-generation network is built for faster innovation, efficiency, and scale for the benefit of its enterprise customers and more,” said Adaire Fox-Martin, President, Go-to-Market, at Google Cloud.

Leading CSPs across the Asia Pacific region, including Axiata Group, Chunghwa Telecom, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, KDDI, Maxis, Optus, Reliance Jio, StarHub, Telkom Indonesia and Telstra have chosen Google Cloud as a trusted partner to advance their digital transformation and innovation initiatives.

With the latest update to GDC Edge, CSPs are now able to bring Google Cloud’s infrastructure to the far edge of their radio access networks (RANs), in addition to their 5G core networks.

To empower CSPs to transform their networks with hybrid cloud principles and unlock new revenue opportunities, Google Cloud also unveiled three new telecom innovations at MWC 2023. Now available in private preview globally, Google Cloud’s Telecom Network Automation, Telecom Data Fabric, and Telecom Subscriber Insights will offer CSPs a unified cloud solution that helps them build, deploy, and operate their hybrid cloud-native networks; collect and manage network data; and improve customer experiences through AI and analytics.

Automating Network and Edge Deployments 

By late 2023, more than 70% of CSPs will have adopted cloud-native network functions, which are critical to accelerate network modernisation, simplify operations, alleviate interoperability issues and reduce costs. However, while automation will be key to unlocking the benefits of cloud-native networks, applying legacy automation practices or using enterprise cloud technologies at the network scale may not deliver the desired results. To achieve efficiency and flexibility, CSPs need to take a new approach.

Telecom Network Automation accelerates network and edge deployments by leveraging cloud-native automation tools based on Kubernetes and industry learnings from Nephio, an open-source project Google Cloud founded in 2022 in partnership with The Linux Foundation. Telecom Network Automation is the managed-cloud version of Nephio that helps improve time-to-market, enable multi-vendor interoperability, reduce error-prone configurations and lower operational costs.

Simplify Network Data Collection, Correlation and Exposure 

Telecommunication networks provide a wealth of data that CSPs can use to optimise their network deployments and improve reliability and operations. Yet CSPs are spending the majority of their efforts on the deployment and maintenance of legacy infrastructure and data management, limiting their ability to capitalise on and quickly put to use their core data assets.

Telecom Data Fabric helps CSPs quickly derive insights from their data by simplifying data collection, normalisation and correlation through an adapter framework. For better reusability, the data is exposed through unified data models, leveraging BigQuery and Dataplex data mesh architecture that meets CSPs’ needs for data governance and sovereignty. In addition, Telecom Data Fabric—coupled with Vertex AI—enables CSPs and independent software vendor (ISV) developers to create AI and ML analytics applications that support cross-domain network operations, energy efficiency, subscriber experiences and monetisation.

Accelerate Subscriber Growth, Engagement, and Retention 

With the rising costs of network operations and subscriber acquisition, CSPs are looking for new avenues to drive revenue, increase customer lifetime value and reduce acquisition costs. With the accelerated transition from a physical to a digital environment, CSPs need to invest in technologies that create both personalized and contextualized subscriber experiences.

Telecom Subscriber Insights is an AI-powered product that helps CSPs extract insights using their own existing data sources in a privacy-safe manner. The product ingests and analyses data with AI models to provide recommended actions and helps CSPs engage with their subscribers across a multitude of channels. The result is CSPs can better understand subscriber behaviour, cross-sell and upsell, manage churn and acquire new customers more effectively.

“To succeed in a connected world, communication service providers are under enormous pressure to build and manage next-generation networks against rising capital and operational expenses. By applying cloud-native principles to network architectures, and accelerating subscriber growth through a holistic data management source, CSPs have the opportunity to bridge the gap between the connectivity of today and connectivity of the future,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO at Google Cloud.

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