MEF launches network-as-a-service (NaaS) blueprint

Oct. 5, 2023
The blueprint aids providers in designing NaaS services and enterprises make informed decisions about what offerings fit their needs.

MEF has made its Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) Industry Blueprint designed to help service providers develop, market, and deliver the next generation of NaaS offerings available. The blueprint lets enterprises decide which NaaS offerings fit their needs and customers.

The MEF NaaS Industry Blueprint was unveiled during the MEF’s inaugural Global Network-as-a-Service Event, a multi-day event designed to propel the advancement of NaaS offerings across an automated ecosystem.

MEF defines NaaS as on-demand connectivity, application assurance, cybersecurity, and multi-cloud-based services across a standards-based automated ecosystem. With NaaS, organizations achieve business outcomes without building and maintaining their infrastructure.

Traditionally, there has been no industry alignment defining NaaS or the core components and capabilities of NaaS solutions, which challenges service providers and enterprises. The MEF NaaS Industry Blueprint is designed to address this by providing a common framework for understanding and defining NaaS. The blueprint will focus on four core missions:

·      Define NaaS and its core components and capabilities

·      Propose primary building blocks of NaaS solutions, including services, automation platforms, ecosystem, and certifications

·      Reference available MEF service and Lifecycle Service Orchestration (LSO) automation API standards and other industry tools for building and delivering NaaS services

·      Present initial NaaS use cases in the areas of on-demand transport, SD-WAN, SASE, and multi-cloud

“The MEF NaaS Industry Blueprint provides a foundation for the industry to build on as it develops the NaaS ecosystem,” said Nan Chen, President of MEF. “By providing a common framework for understanding and defining NaaS, the blueprint will help service providers develop and deliver innovative offerings and enable enterprises to make informed decisions about which are right for them.”

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