Verizon, SAP Launch Joint IoT, Edge Initiative

Verizon and SAP are combining their capabilities to build new edge computing solutions.

The companies will use SAP Edge Services as well as the SAP Leonardo Internet of Things (IoT) solution alongside Verizon’s 5G and software-defined networking capabilities. They hope to yield a “new class of data analytics, management and services.”

The companies made the announcement at Mobile World Congress Americas in Los Angeles. They demonstrated how Verizon asset sensors and the SAP Field Service Management solution can give businesses real-time business insights into their warehouses and factories.

“We are unleashing the next generation of cloud capabilities through global data centers, across the edge of the network,” said Eric Stine, SAP North America’s chief customer innovation officer. “With data volumes growing exponentially and the capabilities of new wireless technologies like 5G to further expand the reach of IoT and enterprise computing, SAP and Verizon are uniquely positioned to drive a new class of data analytics, management and services at scale to help the world’s great companies create amazing customer experiences, and unlock new business models and monetization strategies.”

Verizon will integrate its ThingSpace IoT platform into the SAP Cloud portfolio to improve analytics and lower costs for IoT management, according to George Fischer, president, of global enterprise for the Verizon Business Group.

Verizon’s George Fischer

“This combined solution is not just about massive IoT. We are also enabling computer vision, augmented reality, blockchain and machine learning using Verizon’s network, Fischer said. “These are a truly comprehensive set of capabilities to help our customers better manage critical functions including asset life cycles, supply chains, customer experiences, human capital and plant operations.”

The companies have already been working with each other. Verizon began deploying the SAP HANA cloud platform in its data centers five years ago, and SAP last year chose Verizon to build a “next-generation” global network for SAP offices and provide internet connectivity for the company’s customer-facing data centers.

“Secure, resilient global connectivity is crucial for our future business success and critical to running our business,” said Thomas Saueressig, SAP’s chief information officer and executive vice president of global cloud infrastructure. “As we move more of our business to the cloud, our customers’ success depends on our ability to connect them to our applications, and to help ensure those applications deliver the highest standards of performance and security.”