Ericsson aims to make network services smarter with 5G Core Policy Studio

Aiming to continue its mission to help communications service providers design and deliver 5G services to consumers and enterprises more quickly, Ericsson has unveiled the 5G Core Policy Studio, a new network programmability tool designed to assist the capture of 5G revenue through offering differentiation.

The tool is designed to handle the central management of all core network policies and is integrated with Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core, providing a central provisioning engine that works at the core of a communications service provider’s network. It enables the access and control of all policies that manage different 5G and 4G services through one graphical user interface (GUI), reducing complexity in network policy management.

The company claims such an ability can also allow communications service providers to configure dynamically “innovative” services within network slices for consumers and enterprise customers, and tailor those offerings to specific user needs and network circumstances.

Ericsson claims its testing has shown that the tool can deliver savings of up to as much as 70% in policy configuration operational expenditures by simplifying the design and configuration activities compared with similar network configuration execution without the tool.

“Working at the core of 5G evolution, we see that 5G is a software game. Through our software, we make networks smarter because that in turn enables smart business,” said Monica Zethzon, head of solution area cloud packet core at Ericsson.

“Smart networks are key for enabling communications service providers to offer customised services to consumers and enterprises.

“With our 5G Core Policy Studio, they will be able to provide tailored connectivity services across their customer base,” she said. “Ericsson’s 5G Core Policy Studio is a network programmability tool to adapt service performance depending on conditions such as the type of subscription, time of day, service area or device location.”

Analysing how the product could be received, Andy Hicks, principal analyst at leading data and analytics firm GlobalData, observed that the Ericsson 5G Core Policy Studio built on the company’s strengths in converged policy control and features support by introducing unified control of all policy enforcement mechanisms as well a new network programmability tool.

“GlobalData has assigned Ericsson’s policy control products a Leader ranking,” he said.

“Integrated with these products, Ericsson 5G Core Policy Studio should help operators to monetise 4G and 5G services and network slices, by speeding innovation and adjusting network service characteristics both granularly and dynamically.”