Last week, leading edge-to-cloud company Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced it is acquiring private cellular network technology provider Athonet for an u********** amount. The acquisition comes exactly a year from HPE’s visionary move to bring together cellular 4G, 5G and and Wi-Fi technology for private networking. Banking on its existing 5G technology for private networks, HPE offered countless opportunities in data-first ecosystem for Wi-Fi and cellular customers. HPE’s latest MoU with Nokia is a testimony of its growing clout in edge-to-cloud for CSPs.
Here is a brief overview of the latest HPE-Athonet deal and its impact on the global enterprise and private communications industry.
Extending Wi-Fi with private cellular networking
By acquiring Athonet, HPE telco and Aruba networking portfolios could deliver a synergistic approach for 5G and Wi-Fi solutions. By end of 2022, global 5G subscriptions topped 1 billion with 235 communication service providers (CSPs) adding 5G services to their portfolio.
It would bolster HPE’s existing private 5G solutions to work seamlessly with Aruba Air Pass, which automates 5G and Wi-Fi roaming. This would propel HPE into the leadership position in the global private LTE/5G wireless infrastructure market.
Enterprise integration within HPE (Aruba) networking portfolio
Athonet’s 4G and 5G mobile core solutions could solve connectivity issues across remote sites once it integrates with HPE Aruba networking portfolio. HPE customers are already familiar with Aruba’s SD-WAN and SSE architectures. These would power 5G and Wi-Fi deployments with secured environment for remote workforce within Zero Trust and SASE frameworks. Enterprise integration with HPE GreenLake could speed up connectivity with high levels of coverage, reliability and mobility across campus and industrial environments.
At the time of this announcement, Tom Craig, global vice president and general manager, Communications Technology Group at HPE said, “Telco customers are looking for simpler ways to deploy private 5G networks to meet growing customer expectations at the connected edge. At the same time, enterprise customers are demanding a customized 5G experience with low-latency, segregated resources, extended range and security across campus and industrial environments that complement their existing wireless networks. With the acquisition of Athonet, HPE now has one of the most complete private 5G and Wi-Fi portfolios for CSP and enterprise customers – and we will offer it as a service through HPE GreenLake.”
Focus on AI-powered telco transformation
Aruba and Athonet could work on AIOps workflow to deliver SaaS-based telecom modernization. HPE has officially announced it will integrate Athonet’s technology into its existing CSP and Aruba networking enterprise offerings. The focus is to create a private networking portfolio that accelerates digital transformation from edge-to-cloud. In the current context, AI is already adding tremendous value to business models that rely on 5G, IoT and enterprise Wi-Fi technologies. With Athonet under its hood, HPE could easily scale its private networks and expand coverage of AI-powered private 5G with sustainable results.
Accelerated 5G deployments
5G deployments continue to be slow and sluggish. However, with improved agility and faster mobile core technology specialization that Athonet brings to HPE, enterprise customers could benefit from quicker deployment. Currently, HPE already partners with Celona to accelerate private cellular adoption in the US. Athonet’s addition would largely benefit optimize enterprise market for CBRS-based LTE solutions, guaranteeing large-scale dependence on Aruba platform for various wireless use cases.
Full automation of P5G orchestration for cost efficiency
Automation in 5G deployment is a game-changer. It enhances vision into security challenges and delivers highest levels of customer satisfaction for telco companies. Competitors like Ericsson have already announced their GitOps-based automation approach for network-function operations and management. HPE-Athonet could take this automation game-plan a step forward.
HPE has clearly stated that the company would fully integrate Athonet’s private 5G offering within its existing plans, expanding beyond what Aruba currently provides across 4G, 5G and Wi-Fi frameworks. Zero-touch automation would be the cornerstone of Athonet’s addition to HPE’s telco portfolio.
Prices of edge-to-cloud deployment around 5G orchestration could decrease significantly, even as HPE continues to support telco companies looking for new enterprise revenue streams in emerging markets. Customers could largely benefit from differentiated services leveraging 5G and Wi-Fi through HPE GreenLake, reducing the risk of entering new markets.
Final take
Communication service providers (CSPs) are constantly looking for innovative solutions to reduce their deployment and scaling costs. According to RedHat, the “distributed nature of edge computing can enhance both availability and resiliency for telcos.” HPE’s edge-to-cloud for private 5G and W-Fi networks would help CSPs reduce cost of adoption and upkeep powered by newer capabilities specifically designed for new B2B services in connected edge marketplace.
“Athonet was founded to provide customers with private 4G and 5G solutions that deliver carrier-grade reliability and performance to suit their increasing and more challenging connectivity needs,” said Gianluca Verin, CEO and co-founder of Athonet. “We are excited to join HPE and combine our highly skilled teams as we expand our joint service provider offerings for the rapidly growing private 5G market and build on HPE’s strategy to be the leading edge-to-cloud solutions provider.”
Currently, HPE delivers unique, open and intelligent technology solutions as a service. With offerings spanning Cloud Services, Compute, High Performance Computing & AI, Intelligent Edge, Software, and Storage, HPE provides a consistent experience across all clouds and edges, helping customers develop new business models, engage in new ways, and increase operational performance.
