Ericsson launches 'OTT Cloud Connect' service for mobile operators

Open cloud service allows mobile operators across the globe to connect to multiple OTT players

Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) today announced the launch of OTT Cloud Connect (OCC), an open cloud service that allows mobile operators across the globe to ‘connect’ to multiple OTT players to deliver new and creative services to users. The Ericsson OCC service strives to bridge the gap between operator networks and OTT services by exposing the OSS and BSS capabilities of operators to OTT players and vice versa. This brings simplicity to collaboration between OTTs and operators, making it possible to offer unique application-specific features to end users for better experiences.

The OCC platform is an open platform that would allow any OTT player to deliver innovative features to users based on integration with specific operator network capabilities. It acts as a gateway platform that abstracts the complexities of each operator’s network and provides simple integration for OTT players and applications.

Ericsson is collaborating with Google as one of the first partners to get on-boarded on the OCC platform. This integration enables Google to bring innovative features and services to products such as YouTube and reach large numbers of users by leveraging the scale that OCC provides.

Going forward, Ericsson will continue to bring additional OTT players onto the OCC platform for the benefit of one common interface or platform for participating operators and OTT players.

“Collaboration, between operators and OTT providers, would be key as we start seeing new innovative services being introduced towards the end users. Ericsson is strongly supportive of this approach and we believe we are in a sweet spot to play the role of an enabler to make this collaboration happen. We are very bullish about the OCC platform and very happy to have integrated with YouTube as the first video platform. We look forward to onboarding many more OTT providers” said Diomedes Kastanis, Head of Technology, Business Unit Support Solutions, Ericsson.

Jay Akkad, Sr. Product Manager on the YouTube Emerging Markets team said: “Mobile environments introduce a number of complexities, but also a range of opportunities when it comes to delivering quality experiences for users. Ericsson’s OTT Cloud Connect forges collaboration between operators and OTT providers to break down some of this complexity and open the door to a world of opportunity for enhancing services. We believe initiatives like these will accelerate innovation between operators and OTT providers, and we look forward to working with operators on new features and services to users.”