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Huawei’s ‘NFV Solution’ awarded ‘Best Enabler’
MUMBAI: At Mobile World Congress 2017 in Barcelona, Huawei’s NFV solution was awarded Best Technology Enabler. This award points to the recognition within the industry of Huawei’s leading capabilities and outstanding performance in NFV architecture, technology, commercial application, and the evolution toward Cloud Native. Organised by the GSMA, Mobile World Congress is the world’s most influential event in the mobile communications sector, and the GSMA Global Mobile Awards are considered the highest honor within the industry.
Huawei hit the ground running by developing NFV solutions using the Cloud Native concept. Moving beyond basic virtualization, Cloud Native enables telecom networks to become fully distributed and automated, giving them greater elasticity, robustness and agility. This helps operators enhance network efficient and deliver inspired user experiences, and enable agile innovation in services for better digital transformation.
Elastic: The Cloud Native network has a distributed architecture, so resources can be dynamically deployed wherever they are needed to support applications. It is a “sensing” network that recognizes the services deployed, and an elastic network that can adapt to support those services. There are two types of elasticity: capacity elasticity and topology elasticity. Capacity elasticity means that all network resources are pooled. Network software can orchestrate any part of the fabric across multiple data centers and capacity is no longer the bottleneck. Topology elasticity means the ability to deploy resources to any required geographical location, enabled by control/user plane separation and service orchestration.
Robust: An intelligent network builds in robustness at the network and service levels. The network is decentralized, with stateless elements, N-way redundancy and inter-DC service provisioning. Active fault injection, monitoring and self-healing processes are combined with big data analysis and management of services, enabling fault prediction and automated controls. Ultimately, an intelligent network delivers carrier-class service reliability even over unreliable infrastructure.
Agile: Agility means service orchestration + programmability + ISSU (in service software upgrade). Flexible service assembly, service autonomy, and distributed deployment are achieved by decomposing network functions into microservices, and applying a service governance framework, data model and a programmable user interface. Services and new functions can be delivered as needed, so the network can instantly respond to the needs of very different services required by different industries.
Using key Cloud Native technologies, Huawei has already rolled out its Cloud Native VNF solution, which has been widely adopted on core networks. Huawei remarked at MWC 2017 that the company will continue to optimize solutions revolving around service needs and through such efforts will help to build 5G and better connected agile networks.
As of January 2017, Huawei had won over 170 contracts for cloud core networks. In addition, Huawei is a strategic partner and co-innovator with Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom and other global leading operators on their Cloud Native strategies. At MWC 2017, Huawei presented a Cloud Native demonstration developed with Vodafone. Looking to the future, Huawei will continue to help operators build more open, more innovative, more sustainable ecosystems around their Cloud Native networks, with the aim of creating more new services and more value.
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Microsoft faces worst quarter since 2008 financial crisis
Cloud giant battles soaring AI costs and fierce competition from nimble startups.
MUMBAI: When the tech titan starts looking a little wobbly, even the Magnificent Seven can feel the tremors because Microsoft is currently starring in its own sequel, “Clouds and Doubts.” Microsoft is on track for its worst quarterly performance since the 2008 global financial crisis, according to Bloomberg, as investors grow increasingly uneasy about rising capital expenditure and intensifying competition from nimble AI firms. The company has been pouring money into AI infrastructure, yet markets are questioning when these hefty investments will finally deliver stronger revenue growth.
At the same time, investors are shifting away from traditional software stocks amid fears that AI startups such as Anthropic and OpenAI are developing autonomous agents capable of replacing established products, including those from Microsoft. Jonathan Cofsky, portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors, noted growing concern that customers may bypass Microsoft and deal directly with AI vendors, potentially disrupting its core business and putting pressure on pricing and margins.
Microsoft’s stock has tumbled 25 per cent in the first quarter, putting it on course for its largest drop since a 27 per cent fall in the fourth quarter of 2008. It has also emerged as the weakest performer among the so-called Magnificent Seven technology stocks, while a broader index tracking the group has fallen 14 per cent over the same period. The shares slipped a further 1.7 per cent after markets opened on Friday, marking a potential fourth consecutive session of declines.
Cofsky pointed out that Microsoft has become more capital intensive and that improved investor confidence will hinge on assurances that software growth will not slow materially. Despite the sell-off, the stock is now trading at less than 20 times projected earnings over the next 12 months, its lowest valuation level since June 2016. Its valuation remains slightly above that of the S&P 500 Index, although it has recently traded at a discount to the broader benchmark for the first time since 2015.
Bloomberg data shows Microsoft’s capital expenditure, including leases, is expected to surge to $146 billion in fiscal 2026, up around 66 per cent from $88 billion in fiscal 2025. Spending is projected to climb further to $170 billion in fiscal 2027 and $191 billion in fiscal 2028, based on average estimates. Investors are growing cautious about such levels of spending without clearer signs of stronger growth.
Microsoft’s Azure cloud division has reported a slight slowdown in growth compared with the previous quarter, while its Copilot AI product has seen limited user traction, prompting internal changes aimed at improving performance. Ben Reitzes, an analyst at Melius Research, warned in a March note that Microsoft’s upside in Azure could be constrained as the company works to address challenges related to its AI models and Copilot offering, adding that these issues are unlikely to be resolved in the short term.
Of the 67 analysts covering Microsoft, 63 maintain buy ratings, three hold ratings and one a sell rating. The average 12-month price target of $592 implies a potential upside of more than 64 per cent, the highest on record based on data going back to 2009. The stock is also trading below its 200-day moving average by the widest margin since 2009.
Reitzes suggested the dominance of buy ratings may indicate complacency among analysts, while highlighting risks in Microsoft’s productivity and business processes segment as well as its More Personal Computing division. In contrast, Tal Liani of Bank of America reinstated coverage with a buy rating, citing durable multi-year growth prospects across cloud and AI. Jake Seltz, portfolio manager at Allspring Global Investments, maintained that Microsoft retains strong long-term value and that its AI strategy is likely to be validated over time, viewing near-term concerns as a potential opportunity for longer-term investors.
The report highlights a growing divergence in market sentiment, with optimism around long-term AI potential weighed against immediate execution risks and investor uncertainty. In the world of big tech, even the mightiest clouds can have silver linings but right now, Microsoft’s investors are scanning the horizon for clearer skies.
