Convergencia Research, Consultoría especializada en Latinoamérica y Caribe
Thursday, March 28, 2019

Interview with Ian Hood, Technological Head of Red Hat Global Service Providers area

Hybrid cloud, native cloud and EDGE virtualization are some of the proposals that Red Hat brings for 5G

The Technological Chief of the area of Global Service Providers of Red Hat, Ian Hood, explained to Convergencialatina the new projects that are being developed together with their partners in order to implement 5G. He also explained the importance of monetizing the deployment of this new network, with the purpose of making the large investment that must be made profitable for the countries.

<strong>Convergencialatina (CL): What is your assessment about 5G network implementation process in Latin America?

Ian Hood (IH): As it happens in any other place worldwide, 5G is still under development, it is being tested in China, Australia, the United States, even here in Latin America, but it is still in laboratory phase.

The reality is that the chipsets are not yet ready, the base stations we need are still under development, they need to be standardized. In addition, the scales in which these networks are developed are changed, so they are not mature enough to have the quality we expect.

CL: What projects is Red Hat developing for 5G?

IH: Currently, Red Hat laboratories in China, the US, Europe and Australia are working with our partners (Nokia, Samsumg and AudioStar) to validate the 5G infrastructure. Additionally, we developed the next generation mobile networks called "cloud native global network" with our customer Rakuten Mobile in Japan, which is being built in a private cloud, using our technology. We help this company build the longest network of its kind. This is the first stage for the creation of its own 5G infrastructure in Japan. Red Hat built the platform, AudioStar contributed the audio software, Cisco the software and Rakuten the mobile network. That is, these three elements for 5G, work together on the Red Hat platform.

Previously, what the company had been doing was to virtualize the Core, the entire central part of the network, but with the 5G network, the EDGE, which is the closest point to the client, is being virtualized. This allows the standards that were previously closed, now to be opened, precisely because of the need to bring EDGE virtualization.

CL: What solutions does Red Hat offer to Latam to help them with the implementation of 5G, in order to monetize that investment?

IH: Firstly, there is the implementation of the OpenShift platform, it is a platform, an accelerator that allows to create, develop and implement applications quickly and easily in almost any infrastructure, whether in a public or private cloud. The second thing, is the Ansible tool that allows operating networks, through the automation of operations, which could previously take months. Then, the staff that was needed to do those tasks manually, is no longer doing it, now they can dedicate themselves to other tasks focused on improving the business.

CL: In what tangible way does the use of an open source benefit from the use of a closed code, specifically in the implementation of the 5G network?

IH: With technologies such as open source, OpenShift and Ansible we can develop changes, as a community, much faster than if we were just a company. In the case of closed code, the only way to receive support is from the company to which you purchased the service. We have detected that all our Telcos customers want to move forward very fast and are demanding the use of open source, because in this way they not only take advantage of what we do, but also of what the whole community does.

OpenStack, Artificial Intelligence Mark-up Language (AIML) and other innovations for 5G are made with open codes. The key to the business is to accelerate the development and implementation processes. That is why any of the applications involved in the 5G network, if they were not started with an open source, were improved by open source.

The deployment of 5G on the Red Hat platform allows other open source applications to be mounted thereon, which facilitates improvement in services and in the network, since it allows for faster innovation. One of the benefits is that by joining our platform with the 5G network we can offer new services for the final consumer because the scale is much longer and more efficient; one of the most important improvements is that the scale in 5G is immense in comparison with 4G, 3G and 2G networks.

Another important aspect is the transformation of people in the learning of these new codes, it is the great challenge of digital transformation. In that sense, Red Hat has spent more than three years investing in that, in the learning of our Telcos clients so they can work on these projects. Both in Argentina and in the rest of Latam, we are helping to create the necessary work teams so that the operators advance faster and have the adequate support.

CL: What is your insight on the digital transformation in Telcos in relation to digital economy in Latam?

IH: I think that in Latin America they tend to wait for other countries to venture first with new technologies. However, I have seen positive progress in some of the operators in Latam, who are already thinking how they are going to transform their business, people, their culture to move fast, because the challenge for any of them is that, if they do not move fast enough, economy will get difficult. I think they are very focused on solving this problem.

In this sense, there are two aspects that must be taken into account: The first one is to build this highway for 5G, and as the economy grows they must incorporate services on top of the new applications in telemedicine, IoT, among others; as this kind of thing is what pays the investment in this new network. So they must consider those two aspects at the same time to be able to pay for this expansion.

According to my perspective, the Latin American market, like Canada, has been characterized by following the experiences of other countries, but once they advance, they do it quickly.

To monetize the investment, which will be great, the key is to take the multiple businesses -mobiles, business networks, IT- and unify them in an open source platform to get the best out of them, which will allow them to innovate more quickly.

CL: What do you think about the current evolution of the Blockchain and the way it is transforming the digital economy?

IH: Blockchain has many applications in various aspects of the economy. Initially it entered the financial field, but currently in Estonia it is being used for health records, to guarantee that they are stored and protected appropriately.

In the mobile market there is a key participation: the first one is referred to international roaming. When we travel to another country we have to pay roaming and it is foreseen to use blockchain to make payments for that service, which would be much easier and avoid fraud between companies that provide global services.

The second aspect is "slide network" in different applications for IoT, applied for companies, since it allows the division of the network to make different payments.

CL: It is foreseen for IBM to complete the purchase of Red Hat by mid year, how is the negotiation going?

IH: We still do not handle many details because the purchase has not materialized. The expectations are that Red Hat will be a separate company from IBM and we will continue working as usual, as a company that is rapidly advancing in the open source market.

CL: What benefits would Red Hat, as an open source IT solutions provider, bring to IBM?

IH: Red Hat's proposal is to build the hybrid cloud, which will allow moving applications from one infrastructure to another, from private clouds, Amazon, Google, among others. It is an advantage for IBM to have our technology, in which we are currently leaders. In that sense, IBM will be able to expand its business in the hybrid cloud business.

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