DoCoMo to deploy Ericsson’s UDN

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo has contracted Ericsson to provide the vendor’s Unified Delivery Network (UDN) global content delivery network solution for the DoCoMo mobile network.

The contract marks Ericsson’s first deployment of its UDN in Japan. DoCoMo will initially use the platform to roll out content distribution services, and will follow this up by introducing future value added services including toll-free data for certain content.

Ericsson’s UDN is designed to connect content providers worldwide with the last mile reach network operators can offer.

It is designed to aggregate network capabilities to allow services to be optimized and monetized in new ways, while offering operators the ability to efficiently scale the delivery of OTT services and high-quality video content.

“For future services, NTT DoCoMo foresees that consumption of 4K video, virtual reality and augmented reality content will increase and believes a platform like a UDN adds value in the high-speed 5G era,” the operator’s GM of service design Takaaki Sato said.

Ericsson head of UDN service provider partnerships Cillilan Maher said its UDN ecosystem now encompasses 55 content providers and 40 operators worldwide.

“As part of [this ecosystem], DoCoMo will be able to significantly advance the traditional content delivery network model,” he said.

“As a service provider partner, they will be able to garner incremental revenue and can participate as a content provider, driving traffic through both their own network and the UDN ecosystem.”