Among the many dilemmas facing operators as they move towards the new software-based 5G architectures is one of timing. They can deploy relatively mature virtualized cores right now, if they rely on virtual machines and the NFV (network functions virtualization) platform that has been the bedrock of telcos’ cloud migrations so far. But this approach is increasingly seen as a compromise – far more complex, heavy and cumbersome than the emerging cloud-native platforms. These rely on lighter containers and agile orchestration frameworks, which can configure, reconfigure, assemble and reassemble microservices on the fly, and in limitless combinations, to meet a particular user requirement. However, if an operator is in a hurry, cloud-native platforms remain immature and there are question marks…