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Please Welcome 5G and the Cloud Native Solutions

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Chitra Mishra, Special EditorThe broader definition of enterprise networking has always been about connectivity and providing the ability for different applications, servers, branches and campuses to communicate. We have come a long way from the era of networking that talked about 'dumb pipes'and was bound exclusively to physical hardware.

A discussion on this date can never be complete without mentioning 5G. 5G, the next generation of cellular wireless, will be deployed by carriers of all sizes by the end of 2019. While 5G deployment is a service provider issue, how it helps to enable organizations with different use cases is an enterprise networking concern. With 5G, Edge Computing becomes a reality. The expanded bandwidth and lower power consumption used by 5G enables
more edge of network deployments, whether it's for standalone Internet of Things(IoT) devices or for edge computing deployment. With an edge computing deployment, compute resources are remotely deployed and connected via 5G.

In years past, Virtual Network Functions (VNFs) and Network Function Virtualization (NFV) were all you can read about everywhere, but that has evolved in 2019 with the concept of Cloud Native Functions (CNFs). This new entrant has taken the world of enterprise networking with storm. With CNFs, networking concepts are encapsulated inside of cloud native technology approaches, namely containers and Kubernetes, in order to enable network functions.

Arpit Joshipura, General Manager of Networking at The Linux Foundation, explained in a video interview with Enterprise Networking Planet saying,‘What if we take the best of the telecom world which is full automation and lots of functions, then take the best of cloud native and marry them together?. The cover feature in this edition has answered the question. Affirmed Networks has revolutionized the world of Telecom by introducing Virtualization. Building their Cloud native solutions, this firm has shown new hope to the telecom operators struggling with scalability issues, when the world is beaming eyes for 5G.

This edition, we bring several more promising companies who have the potential to innovate, invent and transform the modus operandi of enterprise networking at large.
Do let us know what you think.