Transforming Mobile Networks: Delivering on Programmable Platform Promise

We’re at an inflection point in the mobile industry – with huge potential for growth and innovation. Mobile connectivity has become more important than ever for the enterprise. Workers are everywhere, intelligent machines are proliferating, and organizations demand smarter, more connected spaces. The challenge is that current service provider infrastructure is complicated and inflexible, making it a difficult foundation to build for these exciting advancements. This is a generational opportunity for Communication Service Providers to grow revenues and returns, but there needs to be a different approach.

That “different approach” can’t be incremental. It requires a holistic view of what it takes to deliver lasting value to our Communication Service Provider partners and their customers. This means helping their enterprise customers adopt new services faster on a global scale. Clearly, AI will drive more complex traffic and higher security requirements. We are at the beginning of a new era, and we need radical change. Our conclusion has been this:

Radically simplify, think globally, and harness an ecosystem for innovation.

The Mobility Services Platform is our response to this challenge. Built and deployed globally, delivered as-a-service, and with an extensive API ecosystem, it’s open to developers, Communication Service Providers, and enterprises to create new, differentiated value from the network, from traditional IoT and voice services to a new wave of AI-based services for people, spaces, and intelligent machines.

We’ve seen our approach work firsthand: Our platform is proving its versatility and reliability across high-value use cases for people, places, things, and fast-evolving intelligent machines. Whether we are bringing branch offices securely online with eSIM provisioned Meraki devices, providing first line DNS security to enterprise IoT devices with Cisco Umbrella, or allowing cars to have retail subscriptions through dynamic policy and charging, our platform is making a difference to our Communication Service Provider partners and their customers. The value of the platform has been recognized by both Frost & Sullivan and Counterpoint as the industry-leading Connectivity Management Platform (CMP).

At Mobile World Congress (MWC) this year, we are proud to announce several partnerships and enhancements that advance the Cisco Mobility Services Platform. Let’s dive into them.

Customers joining the Mobility Services Platform 

We’re excited to announce that a diverse set of customers from new verticals and new geographies are joining the Mobility Services Platform. They exemplify the adoption of cutting-edge technologies, innovation, and new go-to-market models.

Mobile IoT and Intelligent Machines 

We are pleased to announce newly established or recently renewed partnerships, including:

• BT: BT and Cisco announce a 3-year renewal of go-to-market Mobility Services Platform partnership, capitalizing on our long-standing relationship, to accelerate IoT connectivity in the UK
• KPN: KPN and Cisco are renewing our relationship and strengthening our go-to-market partnership to accelerate IoT connectivity. This reinforces our mutual commitment to driving innovation and growth across Europe
• Türk Telekom: Together with Türk Telekom, we’re investing to drive the delivery of IoT services in Turkey
• TIM Enterprise Italy: We are working with TIM Enterprise Italy to enable faster deployment of IoT applications and use cases across their extensive enterprise’s customer base

Private networks 

• Deutsche Telekom: We are partnering to deliver a secure, high-quality, and reliable Private 5G network for Enterprise customers in Germany
• Telefónica o2: We’ve partnered to deploy Private 5G in its German SME market, the first customer is already in implementation and going live this month
• ACES: Together, we’re leveraging their system integration expertise to accelerate digital transformation across oil and gas, transportation, and manufacturing in Saudi Arabia
• Peel Ports Group: With the UK government, Intel, and Logicalis as partners, we are evaluating the economic case for Private 5G to support Peel Ports, a major UK port operator
• Ministry of Communications and Information Technology of Saudi Arabia (MCIT) and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST): We are working together to foster innovation and technological advancement across the use of 5G and 6G communication technologies, the Open Radio Access Network, and research, development, and innovation in the field of connectivity

Connectivity partnerships 

• Deutsche Telekom: Deutsche Telekom will become a connectivity partner for Cisco 5G cellular gateways and routers in selected markets. We are embedding eSIM technology into our Meraki MG 52 cellular gateways and Catalyst routers to enable seamless, secure boot-up and onboarding, and back-up services if fixed line connectivity fails or Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services are needed through our partners. Our deep integrations with partners, create simple environments where customers can leverage their familiar IT dashboards and easily activate services.

Expanding Our Mobility Services Developer Partner Ecosystem 

This year at MWC, we are showcasing a maturing Mobility Services Platform partner ecosystem across multiple verticals and domains. These partners commercially and/or technically integrate into the platform to add value. For our Communication Service Provider partners, and their end-users, our ecosystem partners bring faster access to more applications with greater ease and at less cost.

Our ecosystem includes partners bringing value across three broad categories – Enterprise applications and enablers, mobile communications and productivity, and pre-integrated BSS systems.

Some key examples include:  

• Ubicquia: Platforms that bring the power of AI to critical infrastructure; boosting energy grid reliability, improving energy efficiency, and enhancing public safety globally
• Upstream: AI-powered data management and cybersecurity platform purpose-built for connected vehicles, smart mobility, and the IoT ecosystem
• Kajeet: Provides secure and reliable connectivity solutions across education, healthcare, and transportation, with expertise in Private 5G, neutral-host, and macro cellular
• Qualcomm Technologies: The QPoint™ solution is a positioning system integration solution that provides enhanced IoT location for businesses and developers, exposed as CAMARA APIs from Cisco Mobility Services Platform (not yet commercially available)
• LinkerVision: AI video analytics delivering real-time insights, automated monitoring, and advanced Vision Language Model (VLM) capabilities for better situational awareness
• Ecrio: Edge AI-powered communication solutions for seamless human-to-human and human-to-machine interactions in business and industrial verticals.
• Blues: Simplifies wireless with turnkey modules adding Cellular, Wi-Fi, LoRa, or Satellite connectivity to any product, with secure cloud services for data delivery and intelligence
• Cavli Wireless: Cellular IoT hardware and Hubble SaaS platform for efficient global deployment and management of IoT devices worldwide
• OnRelay: Simplified UCaaS where mobile numbers and PBX numbers become one and the same
• productive ai: Intelligent in-call assistant for cellular calls that enhances productivity through AI-driven note-taking, workflow automation, and CRM integration
• Voxist: Intelligent voicemail and simultaneous live translation in-call
• Youtello: Instant access to customer details right from the smartphone’s native dialer. Post-call follow ups, collaborative mobile mini CRM, and CRM integration
• Amdocs: connectX SaaS BSS is an end-to-end platform for customer management, commerce, and monetization
• CSG: SaaS and on-premise BSS, offering billing monetization, payment processing, and enhanced customer experience interactions

From the broader Cisco portfolio, there are numerous platform integrations that continue to evolve even deeper, including Webex for integrated collaboration services, Umbrella for DNS based security, Cisco 5G connected SD-WAN (Meraki, Catalyst and Industrial portfolio), and Splunk for digital resiliency.

Finally, we are delighted to announce we will be working with Rakuten Symphony to create a unified Private 5G mobile network offering with a combination of Cisco’s Private 5G Advanced capabilities and Rakuten Symphony’s Open RAN software, designed to enable enterprises to transform their network architecture as they look to build AI-ready infrastructure.

Introducing Cisco Programmable Core: Innovation Through Mobile Core-as-a-Service 

Now generally available, the Cisco Programmable Core transforms a mobile core network into a source of differentiation, innovation, and growth.  Fully orchestrated by Cisco and delivered as-a-Service, the Programmable Core frees up operational assets so Communication Service Providers can quickly target high-growth opportunities, including Network-as-a-Service deployments, Mobile Virtual Network Enablement platforms, Fixed Wireless Access, IoT solutions, complex enterprise use-cases, and multi-country deployments.

The Programmable Core is a fully scoped end-to-end offering that handles voice, messaging and data services for IoT, private networks and public network use-cases which also unleash the innovation of 5G advanced services. It can be deployed as an adjacent growth core alongside existing deployments or as a primary core for Communication Service Providers that want full as-a-service offerings.

Today, the programmable core is already in mass-scale production for more than half of our Mobile IoT services and we are expanding to enable additional Mobile services for wholesale, MVNO, etc. With Systegra Technologies, a fully owned subsidiary of Interswitch Limited, we’re announcing the entry of our platform into the African market. Systegra Technologies will be the anchor tenant in Nigeria leveraging Cisco Programmable Core to drive innovation in its consumer business as well as offering next generation MVNE services to other MVNOs.

Mobility Services Platform: Driving Differentiated Value with New Functionality  

For our current IoT and mobility customers on Mobility Services Platform we are excited to announce highlights of new functionality becoming available to our partners and their enterprise customers.

New monetization opportunities for our Communication Service Provider partners 

• Smart grid, simplified: Our Mass Scale IoT Solution enables service providers to offer comprehensive smart meter solutions with automated device management, real-time monitoring, analytics, and security capabilities, all through a new IoT Control Center licensing option that minimizes upfront investment for utilities and municipalities
• Borderless business connectivity: Fixed Wireless Access aaS enables Communication Service Providers to deliver high-speed wireless connectivity to both businesses and branch offices, through virtualized network functions, centralized management, and streamlined eSIM provisioning
• Adapt networks to use-case: Communication Service Providers and car OEMs can leverage radio networks more efficiently and effectively by dynamically prioritizing traffic and quality of service
• Retail subscriptions in cars: Connected Car OEMs can launch retail subscription services for car owners making use of Dynamic Policy and Charging as well as on-demand 5G standalone network slicing orchestration
• Monitor and monetize API usage: Communication Service Providers can monetize actual usage and enable enterprises to track and understand their API usage, and buy capacity as needed
• Seamless security with enterprise integration: We now tightly integrate with existing enterprise security, leveraging shared identity and policy to deliver cross-network security
• eSIM Flex: Matches business process with device management, ensuring the optimal profile for each device. eSim Flex supports the M2M profiles today for IoT and is being extended to support the SGP .32 GSMA standard to support even more devices and outcomes for customers

Improved flexibility and operations 

• In-country or cloud deployment: We can deploy in-country on dedicated hardware, and on AWS infrastructure globally – increasing flexibility and speed to market
• TMForum-based API exposure: With catalog-driven service creation using standard API exposure (TMForum) we can deliver more rapid service creation and seamless orchestration of services
• Improved analytics: You can now identify anomalies in usage and traffic patterns, account churn, provisioning and business analytics as well as dynamic dashboarding and reports
• AI assistant: The new Mobility Services Platform AI assistant helps users and customers to realize more value from the platform more quickly

New packet core capabilities 

At the heart of our platform, the Converged Core technology is also delivering new capabilities for our customers:

• 5G Advanced: Powering services like mass scale IoT, RedCap support and low latency, and Agentic AI workload integrations
• Flexible optimization: Flexibility to support 5G Advanced capabilities while maintaining support for traditional voice and data services – with a single software base and deployment automation
• Multi-access, multi-network support: Seamless policy and service authorization for end customers across multiple access networks, including fiber access, via converged policy solutions.

A new path for existing packet core customers 

For our existing 4G and 5GNSA customers we have created a new path to 5G standalone and 5G advanced network services, which require different levels of flexibility within the mobile core and specifically the gateway function. Converged Core “personalities” are used to deliver the right performance at the cost profile desired, building on the advances in silicon (designed for AI traffic) to offload packet handling, while disaggregated microservices are used to adapt between legacy networks and modern AI workloads.

With our 4G/5GNSA technology and our 5G standalone software (proven in one of the largest networks in the world), we’ve built a best-in-class packet core software that supports a seamless deployment of 5GSA and 5G Advanced. Customers who choose this path will also have an easier option to migrate to the Mobility Services Platform, should they choose to do so in the future.

With this new path forward, we’ve also ensured the Communication Service Providers can provide seamless policy and business logic for their end customers including fiber access and mobile access networks, via converged policy software. By combining the policy and business logic functionality and deployment flexibility of these mobile core software with a fully integrated and automated service factory, customers can now turn on-premise networks into global cloud-based enterprise solutions.

We are excited to announce that Rakuten Japan has chosen this evolution path with the Cisco Converged Core product for their journey to 5G Standalone and 5G Advanced. We are also pleased to announce that Jio is leveraging Cisco’s common policy suite for 5G and Fiber to enable their fixed wireless access and fiber deployments.   

See our innovations live at MWC Barcelona 2025 

We invite you to experience these innovations firsthand at our MWC booth (Hall 3 – 3D5). See how our partners leverage the platform for various use cases, from vertical-focused industry solutions to security-enhanced capabilities. Witness the power of our developer ecosystem through demonstrations of AI Vision, location services, and quality on-demand features.

As we expand our ecosystem and enhance our platform capabilities, we are excited to partner with Communication Service Providers and enterprises who share our vision of transforming mobile growth through innovation and collaboration.

Visit us at Mobile World Congress to learn more about how you can be part of this exciting journey.

QPoint is a trademark or registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. QPoint is a product of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.

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