Verizon, AWS take mobile edge computing to 13 of top 20 US metro areas

US communications provider Verizon has extended its relationship with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to broaden the reach of its Verizon 5G Edge real-time cloud computing platform to three new locations in major metro areas in the US – Chicago, Houston and Phoenix.

The partnership between the firms began in August 2020 with the aim of offering US enterprise customers private mobile edge computing – or multi-access edge computing – with a dedicated infrastructure on-premise that enables ultra-low latency, higher levels of security and deeper customisation.

Verizon 5G Edge includes AWS Wavelength to bring AWS compute and storage services to the edge of Verizon’s wireless network. AWS Wavelength extends AWS compute and storage services to the edge of Verizon’s public mobile network and provides access to cloud services running in an AWS region, thereby minimising the latency and network hops required to connect from a 5G device to an application hosted on AWS.

The combination is designed to minimise the latency and network hops required to connect from an application hosted on AWS to the end-user’s device.

The companies now offer 5G mobile edge computing via Wavelength Zones in 13 of the top 20 metropolitan areas in the US for a variety of applications, such as machine learning, internet of things, and video and game streaming.

“Companies in every industry are finding exciting ways to bring 5G and 5G Edge to life – leveraging the full capabilities of 5G from throughput and low latency to strong reliability,” said Sampath Sowmyanarayan, chief revenue officer at Verizon Business. “By unlocking the full power of 5G with edge cloud computing, developers can rapidly innovate and build apps and services that take advantage of 5G to improve performance, and create new revenue streams.”

As they announced the geographic extension, Verizon and AWS revealed that a number of companies are already testing edge systems over Verizon’s 5G network with AWS Wavelength. These include Aetho, maker of the Beame telepresence solution, which is working with Morehouse College to create a 3D, fully interactive, online version of the campus so that prospective students can tour the campus with an experience that feels like in-person without travelling to the school.

Beame provided augmented reality (AR) and extended reality (XR) communication and collaboration to deliver meaningful engagements through photorealistic 3D avatars.

Using 5G Edge with AWS Wavelength, said Verizon, Beame is enabling Morehouse College to offer students and prospects a high-fidelity co-presence experience with low latency. Using Beame’s application on their smartphone or AR headset, students and prospects can receive an XR experience and interact with Morehouse ambassadors and admissions staff in near-real time.

“With 5G and MEC, we saw material performance improvements in retaining nearly instantaneous co-presence, which really helps bring the XR experience to life,” said Harrison Lee, chief executive officer at Aetho. 

Jose Mallabo, vice-president for marketing, communications and admissions and chief revenue officer at Morehouse College, added: “By using augmented reality and other extended reality platforms to extend our integration of education and cutting-edge technologies into the admissions process, Morehouse College continues to reimagine the student experience from prospect through graduation.

“Building a widely accessible interactive engagement on the 5G Edge spatial computing platform is an evolution of Morehouse’s historic traditions as a trailblazer and innovator in higher education.”