At least so far, the value of an IoT partnership or edge computing partnership between connectivity providers and hyperscale cloud computing firms follows the typical pattern: access supplied by the telco; services and apps by the partner.
To be sure, that is not the only conceivable role a service provider can play. In some cases, telcos might actually seek to create applications and services as well.
Still, so far, IoT and edge computing partnerships tend to be new examples of dumb pipe roles for connectivity providers, with a possible incremental boost to real estate revenue, when telco facilities are used as edge data centers.
Google’s Global Mobile Edge Cloud program aims to create a portfolio and marketplace of 5G solutions built jointly with telecommunications companies; an open cloud platform for developing these network-centric applications; and a global distributed edge for optimally deploying these solutions, Google Cloud says.
Verizon's partnership with AWS for the new Wavelengths service is a similar sort of deal, where Verizon supplies the edge real estate and AWS supplies the computing service.
A collaboration with AT&T is part of the Mobile Edge Cloud effort, where AT&T supplies the network while Google Cloud supplies the computing functions.
That might strike you as yet another instance of telcos supplying connectivity (dumb pipe) while somebody else supplies the applications. Realists might say that is about as good as it gets, in many cases.
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