AT&T, Microsoft "Private 5G Edge" Illustrates How MEC, 5G are Often Indistinguishable

AT&T Private 5G Edge--now under development--allows enterprises to more easily set up internet of things edge computing networks based on Microsoft Azure multi-access edge computing. 

“A feature we are working on for AT&T Private 5G Edge is the ability to roam off these private networks but still stay connected via AT&T’s U.S. public mobile network,” AT&T says. 

For example, a hospital might use its private network to precisely track ventilators, wheelchairs, and other critical items in its building. But if a ventilator gets loaned to another hospital, that feature ensures the “roaming” machine always remains accounted for even outside the private network, AT&T suggests. 

source: Microsoft 

AT&T also runs its 5G core using Azure, so in a sense, AT&T Private 5G Edge will be running on an AT&T 5G core network that uses Azure cloud computing infrastructure. 

The new offering is designed to help enterprises deploy private wireless networks rapidly across radio spectrums, including Citizens Broadband Radio Service spectrum, licensed or unlicensed, and uses the public network to support a private 5G deployment.

The new offer from AT&T and Microsoft creates private 5G networks using public network resources. Logically, the network is private. Physically, the private network is built using public network resources. 

ABI Research believes “5G network” capital investment, by about 2036, could rival mobile operator capex on the “public” network. Keep in mind that forecast includes what enterprises spend on infrastructure to create their own private 5G networks as well as what mobile operators spend on public 5G. 

That spending includes support of private and enterprise networks “on the premises” and “indoors” instead of being spent on the outdoors infrastructure. What is not yet clear is how much of that investment will create private 5G networks using public network resources, and how much is invested building private 5G networks on a “do it yourself” basis. 

source: ABI Research, Enterprise IoT Insights 

It is one more example of how virtualized public networks create new opportunities for use cases and applications. 

 source: Janakiram & Associates, Forbes. 

Our terminology and thinking evolves as edge computing evolves and we might, in some cases, be overthinking the concept. 

Not all edge computing requires use of the public networks. “Micro edge” computing does all the computation directly on a device microprocessor. “Mini edge” computing also runs autonomously from the public network, but at the device level. 

“Medium edge” uses a cluster of edge machines, while “heavy edge” runs gear in a data center rack. In addition to MEC, which supplies computing someplace outside the enterprise premises, but within a regional location, some refer to “cloud edge,” which is the running of distributed functions at a remote location beyond the metro region.