Virtualized Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2021 - 2026)

The virtualized evolved packet core market is expected to register a CAGR of 52% over the forecast period (2021-2026). A virtualized evolved packet core refers to a framework that helps the convergence of voice and data on 4G and 5G networks. Growth in the market is primarily attributable to the potential of vEPC and promotion of high-quality mobile services because of it.

• Due to the rapid increase in the number of mobile long-term evolution (LTE) subscribers across the globe, the vEPC market is growing at a fast pace. Enterprises are adopting vEPC, and it is expected to trigger the growth of the vPEC market in the upcoming years.
• Development of 5G infrastructure is driving the virtualized evolved packet core market. There have been many new advances in technology, such as 5G in the telecommunication industry. Due to increasing data traffic, the use of technologies such as IoT is encouraging MNOs to deploy 5G infrastructure. 5G will enable faster data transfer and provisioning of network services on demand. Thus, MNOs across the world are expected to implement vEPC to enhance their networks to utilise radio resources and increase their network capacity efficiently.
• The factor responsible for hindering the growth of the market is the reluctance in transiting from legacy infrastructure to virtualization.
• Companies are implementing vEPC for enterprise data centre networks. The rising deployment of vEPC by telecommunication operators is also encouraging enterprise cloud and ISPs for adopting vEPC. The implementation of vEPC is mostly taking place for improving the flexibility of cloud-based services while increasing the focus on network virtualization by enterprises.

Key Market Trends

IoT & M2M Expected to Have Significant Growth

• IoT and M2M services segment is expected to have significant growth during the forecast period. vEPC has been deployed in the IoT packet core network by various mobile operators. vEPC solution providers are also preparing NFV solution for IoT cellular network. By implementing the vEPC solution in IoT core network enables, it becomes easy for the operator to bring superior connectivity for M2M devices and explore new services for customers.
• IoT and M2M will be the most significant opportunity for vEPC solution providers in the upcoming years due to the increasing number of deployments done by telecom operators in the North American, APAC, and MEA regions.
• vPEC enables IoT opportunities for various mobile operators. IoT applications have very different network requirements than the smartphone and tablets that predominate in the current networks.
• AT&T makes use of vPEC to fuel European IoT business. The company has a virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) network to handle its growing Internet of Things (IoT) traffic in Europe. That IoT traffic is primarily from General Motor’s OnStar service, which AT&T powers in selected European countries.

North America Expected to Have Significant Market Share

• North America region is expected to have significant market share for vEPC solution providers due to the presence of big telecom giants. Mobile operators are using their networks such as (Internet of Things) IoT, Machine to machine (M2M), and wireless broadband. In 2018, The US government has planned to rollout Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) band for private operators and enterprises which will act as a catalyst for the growth of vEPC solution in the enterprise's segment. There is increasing use of multimedia services and the increasing demand for VoLTE is responsible for the growth of the market in this region.
• Due to the presence of advanced telecom network infrastructure and increased adoption of 4G technology, the market is witnessing propelled growth in the region. Furthermore, the presence of many telecom giants in the region and supportive government initiatives are assessed to augment the virtualized evolved packet core market.
• Many companies providing virtualized evolved packet core solutions belong to this region. For instance, Mavenir Inc. is a leading provider of vEPC solutions and services. The company offers 5G-equipped, software-centred solution for CSPs, enterprises, and application providers. It also provides cloud-based NFV and SDN solutions.

Competitive Landscape

The virtualized evolved packet core (vEPC) market is moderately fragmented with companies focusing on deploying 5G infrastructure services for offering high-quality services to the consumers. The companies are adopting partnership and acquisition strategies to expand their customer base and mark their presence in the market.

• June 2019 - Mavenir started offering a virtual Radio Access Network alternative to the global mobile network supply oligopoly and is currently contesting several tenders and requests for information (RFI) for mobile networks across the APAC region.
• May 2019 - Vodafone Idea Limited to deploy Ericsson cloud packet core to enhance network performance. VIL will benefit from Ericsson’s market-leading core network applications and Network Functions such as Ericsson virtual Evolved Packet Gateway (vEPG), Service-Aware Policy Controller (vSAPC) and Virtualization Infrastructure (NFVI) solution enabling the fast introduction of new services and providing full-service continuity.
• November 2017 - Ericsson partnered with Telefónica Chile to deploy Ericsson’s Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) solution, including vEPC, virtual Authentication Authorization and Accounting (AAA), Virtual IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), and NFV Infrastructure (NFVi) to virtualize their network function.

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