TOKYO, JAPAN – NTT DOCOMO, INC. (DOCOMO) and NEC Corporation (NEC) have launched a proof-of-concept (PoC) testing to run NEC's 5G core network (5GC) service in a hybrid cloud environment that leverages the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud using end-to-end cloud-native network architecture. Through the PoC, DOCOMO, NEC, and AWS expect to prove the viability of cloud-native mobile networks leveraging a public cloud for network function virtualization (NFV).

The PoC will validate the energy efficiency and high performance that AWS Graviton2 processors can bring to NEC's 5GC in the AWS cloud to achieve an energy-performance advantage over comparable solutions. As the first step, 5GC network functions will run in the cloud on AWS infrastructure and corresponding 5GC network functions will reside on DOCOMO's on-premises infrastructure to verify availability and operational feasibility. The second step will deploy the 5GC network function on AWS Outposts (on Amazon EC2 compute instances powered by Graviton2 processors) on DOCOMO's premises. AWS Graviton2 processors deliver a major leap in performance and reduce the carbon footprint for energy efficiency.

“We are excited to conduct this proof-of-concept with NEC's advanced cloud-native 5GC and AWS's innovative cloud infrastructure technology. We believe this collaboration will lead to the further evolution of networks and network virtualization," says Naoki Tani, Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer, Executive General Manager of the R&D Innovation Division of DOCOMO. "The PoC will realize a hybrid cloud environment for telecom operators, resulting in accelerating the telecom industry's evolution by delivering significant value to our customers."

“I am delighted to be able to contribute to the successful verification of 5GC running on a hybrid platform of AWS's public cloud and DOCOMO's private cloud," said Atsuo Kawamura, Executive Vice President of NEC Corporation. “This achievement is proof of NEC 5GC being operable under a multi-platform environment. Together with DOCOMO and AWS, NEC is committed to introducing a highly available, highly reliable, sustainable and environmentally friendly next generation mobile infrastructure and to contributing to acceleration of digital transformations."

“We are thrilled to be part of DOCOMO's innovation project for their digital transformation journey with NEC's cloud-native 5G Core on AWS," says Adolfo Hernandez, Vice President and General Manager Telecom Industry Business Unit at AWS. “AWS Graviton2 processors accelerate a carbon footprint reduction and meet high-performance requirements for 5G SA networks."