[May 05, 2015]

Orange Silicon Valley Partners with ConteXtream to Evaluate Its Subscriber-Aware SDN Fabric

ConteXtream, a leading provider of carrier-grade network virtualization solutions, today announced that Orange (News - Alert) Silicon Valley (OSV), a subsidiary of Orange, a leading telecommunications operator, has teamed up with ConteXtream in using and testing ConteXtream's ContexNet carrier-grade SDN fabric. ContexNet is part of OSV's NFV/SDN testbed for creating a solution that virtualizes Gi-LAN services and provides network interconnectivity and visibility with subscriber-level granularity.

"ConteXtream could be a great partner as they have a history of helping carriers seamlessly transition to virtualized networks," said Christos Kolias, senior research scientist and principal of the Netsquared Studio at OSV. "By leveraging ContexNet, we can create a programmable network and work with best-of-breed vendors for various network functions to quickly introduce new services while easily managing the network. This is part of our innovative E2E, integrated NFV/SDN testbed with the goal to enable us, our partners and customers to showcase solutions and potentially for third-parties to test theirs."

Mobile network operators are seeing dramatic increases in traffic due the exponential growth in data usage from mobile devices. ConteXtream's SDN software platform will help OSV work with various network functions and steer traffic to those specific network functions needed for each subscriber flow. The ConteXtream solution helps virtualize the functions deployed on the Gi interface while leveraging the existing mobile packet core infrastructure, eliminating the need for downtimes and network cycles.

"Operators are being faced with a tough decision - continue to invest in infrastructure so they can serve a growing subscriber-base, or find a way to better leverage their netwrks," said Anshu Agarwal, vice president of marketing at ConteXtream. "Virtualizing Gi-LAN services enables operators to more efficiently and effectively utilize their existing infrastructure to meet increased network demands, reducing the investment required while enabling for greater flexibility in the services they can provide."

ConteXtream's SDN solution brings all the benefits of virtualization to the mobile network for Gi-LAN function virtualization:

• Shared and lower cost hardware - The solution enables all functions running on COTS hardware. This enables functions to share compute resources on hardware at a much lower cost than proprietary systems.
• No overprovisioning of the functions is required because only traffic from subscribers that are utilizing the service pass through that function.
• Deploying network functions in software in the service provider cloud helps deliver service functions across geographical boundaries, greatly improving resource utilization.
• Service agility is greatly enhanced with the ConteXtream SDN solution, as it enables operators to test and roll out new services, introducing them in production networks without downtime or network upgrade cycles.

For more information about ConteXtream's ContexNet please visit www.contextream.com, or follow the company on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About ConteXtream

ConteXtream is a privately held software-defined-networking (SDN) company that enables carriers to deliver network capacity and functions in the same way cloud providers deliver applications effectively utilizing standard compute and storage. ConteXtream's SDN offering, based on standards is carrier-grade and enables Network Function Virtualization (NFV) for various solutions deployed on carrier networks. Deployed by Tier-1 operators globally, ConteXtream's Carrier-SDN fabric dynamically and elastically connects subscribers to services and enables carriers to leverage standard, low-cost server hardware and hypervisors to virtualize functions and services, while replacing costly purpose-built proprietary systems. Headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., ConteXtream is backed by Benhamou Global Ventures, Gemini Israel Funds, Norwest Venture Partners and Sofinnova Ventures as well as Comcast (News - Alert) Ventures and Verizon Ventures. For additional information, visit www.contextream.com.

About Orange Silicon Valley

Orange Silicon Valley (OSV) is the Bay Area division of Orange, one of the world's leading telecommunications operators. Through research, development, and strategic analysis, we actively participate in the disruptive innovations that are changing the way we communicate. OSV contributes to and engages with the regional Silicon Valley ecosystem through numerous programs, such as our Orange Fab startup accelerator, Orange Institute, and ongoing collaborations with our partners. We act as guides to the digital revolution occurring in the San Francisco Bay Area, regularly hosting startups, businesses, and corporate leadership from around the world.

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