Deutsche Telekom’s VP of core network development, Franz Seiser, heads up the telco’s multiyear program to implement a 5G, cloud-native core. This will run in parallel with converting 900 of its telco locations in Germany into edge cloud centers, or cloudlets, which could host distributed core as well as other virtual network functions (VNFs) for DT’s own network, or to support customer or partner services. Seiser is keen to use open source technologies wherever possible, to ensure interoperability, reduce time to market, and to access the widest base of innovation in equipment and developers. However, he acknowledges open source may not, in the early years, save deployment cost because of the need for integration, and work to ensure the systems…