UTStarcom Announces a Milestone in the Network Operating System Cooperation Agreement

UTStarcom, a global telecommunications infrastructure provider, announced that it achieved an important milestone in its cooperation with the Research Institute of one of the major mobile network operators in China. The Company completed Phase 1 development and integration of the disaggregated network solution and successfully passed the acceptance testing with the Customer.

The goal of the project is to implement an open and disaggregated network platform that is based on a white box switch/router and open-source software and is primarily intended to be used as a carrier-grade networking platform for the access segment of 5G transport network, which operates as IP RAN transport based on Segment Routing technology.

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Under the terms of the cooperation agreement, the Network Operating System (NOS) of the platform is based on an open-source network operating system, which is adopted and integrated by the Company for use in the intended application scenario. The platform is designed to ensure openness and prevent vendor lock-in, supporting a variety of hardware implementations that can be based on certain Broadcom DNX series and Centec switching chips, Intel x86 and ARM CPU, non-redundant pizza-box as well as redundant chassis platforms. In order to achieve this level of openness, UTStarcom has provided integration support for extended NOS hardware abstraction capabilities with support of different switching chip Software Development Kits (SDK) and integrated the Open Compute Project’s (OCP’s) Switch Abstraction Interface (SAI).

The project’s Phase 1 development, which is the scope of the current cooperation deal with the Customer, includes NOS integration based on an open-source network operating system and implementation of basic NOS functionality including development of certain software modules that were integrated with the NOS:

• Integration and optimization of NOS for porting to specific hardware platforms with support of Open Installation Environment (ONIE)
• Hardware abstraction layer to adapt different hardware platforms and chipsets
• Basic network functions including basic L2 and L3 features, L3 forwarding, ACL, QoS, SyncE
• Basic Netconf/Yang module for negotiating with 3rd party controller

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UTStarcom’s Senior Vice President of Product & Technology, Mr. Steven Chen, commented, “As 5G networks rollout is gaining momentum, the need for carrier-class network disaggregation solutions optimized for 5G transport applications becomes increasingly important. This current network disaggregation solution engagement with another major telecom operator that we have secured within a short period of time demonstrates this trend. The need to dramatically reduce costs, improve control over the telecommunication platforms, and accelerate innovation drives the adoption of the disaggregated network technology.”

Mr. Chen continued “Specifically, telecom customers expect carrier-grade platform quality and reliability, advanced hardware features such as redundancy and accurate hardware-based synchronization, and the latest communication technologies like Segment Routing, EVPN and more. Most importantly, they seek to rely on strong technological partners that are not only skilled in software development, but also possess strong telecom industry background with deep understanding of related intricacies and technologies, with the ability to deliver carrier-class software and hardware solutions based on the latest merchant silicon and networking technologies, as well as to provide critical solution support to ensure smooth network operation, fast development and integration of new features, bug fixing, and ultimately ensure peace of mind for network operators. As a leading global telecommunications infrastructure provider, we believe we are well-positioned to capitalize on the opportunity, bringing our rich expertise in carrier-class solutions design and strong customization design capabilities. This major milestone once again demonstrates our capabilities as a customization design powerhouse in the field of carrier-class disaggregated solutions.”