This report explores the need for new mobile network architectures in the era of 5G and the potential of virtualization to address this need. The authors argue that traditional monolithic telecom infrastructure based on proprietary hardware and closed interfaces is no longer sufficient to meet the demands for high throughput and low latency. They highlight the benefits of technology developments in hardware and software disaggregation, network function virtualization, and containerization, which allow for radical architectural changes across mobile network domains. However, they caution that to fully realize the benefits of network virtualization, telco operators must also consider changes to sourcing and deployment models and organizational structures. This report is the first in a series that will delve into these topics in more detail.
