Fastweb adopts Cisco and Qwilt’s Open Caching solution to enhance streaming experiences across Italy

New content delivery solution enables Fastweb to improve streaming experiences across its fixed and mobile network with more capacity and better streaming quality for its customers.

 

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., July 25, 2023 – Cisco and Qwilt today announced that they are working with Fastweb, one of Italy’s leading telecommunications operators, to bring their joint Content Delivery Network (CDN) solution, based on Open Caching, to the Italian market. The new solution will enable Fastweb to rapidly increase network performance, support rising data volumes, and enhance streaming experiences for all its residential and business customers across Italy.

Qwilt’s Open Edge Cloud for Content Delivery solution features Qwilt Edge Node Software, Qwilt Cloud Services, and Qwilt Open APIs, enabling Fastweb to benefit from high-quality content delivery. The solution works by pushing content caching and delivery to the very edge of Fastweb’s fixed and mobile network, closer to end users than ever before and reducing average latency by 60%. The unique architecture substantially reduces the cost of building network capacity, enabling Fastweb to scale rapidly and deliver media and applications at a higher quality than previously possible.

Qwilt’s solution combines with Cisco’s edge compute and networking infrastructure to deliver the solution as-a-service to service providers of all sizes globally. This new strategic partnership is the latest example of Cisco and Qwilt’s drive towards realizing a unified global content delivery network for the mutual benefit of content publishers and communication service providers worldwide.

Fabrizio Casati, Chief Wholesale Officer, Fastweb, said: “Fastweb continues to invest in its network to achieve the highest standard of excellence of service. Thanks to our partnership with Cisco and Qwilt, we can deliver exceptional digital experiences to our residential and businesses customers throughout Italy. This deployment marks an exciting transformation in our network infrastructure that will help us address increasing demands for bandwidth and ultimately enable us to deliver a superior quality of experience to our customers. We look forward to partnering with content publishers and bringing them more capacity and consistency in content delivery across Italy.”

Open Caching, an open architecture developed and endorsed by the Streaming Video Technology Alliance, offers a unified platform that federates content delivery infrastructure deployed deep inside service provider networks, providing open APIs and security mechanisms for content publishers. It enables service providers to deploy an edge CDN footprint rapidly and address the needs of global and regional content providers for more capacity, consistency in content delivery, and performance assurance.

“Together with Qwilt, we are thrilled to announce our partnership with Fastweb and work alongside them to launch a platform that will meet the requirements for delivering high-quality content today and serve as a foundation to meet the growing delivery requirements for future media,” said Theodore Tzevelekis, VP, Cisco. “Whether it’s video, virtual reality or other streaming content, we are committed to helping enable exceptional digital experiences for every Fastweb customer.”

“Fastweb, renowned for its excellent quality of connections and innovative services, can leverage our edge services model to deliver optimal experiences to its subscribers from the carrier edge,” said Alon Maor, CEO, Qwilt. “We’re delighted Fastweb has chosen Cisco and Qwilt’s unique model and architecture to deliver content closer to subscribers, while cementing its role in the end-to-end content delivery value chain.”

About Qwilt

Qwilt’s mission is to deliver connected experiences at the quality they were imagined. Its model is built on partnerships with service providers and content publishers, globally, to create a fabric that powers high-performance delivery of media and applications at the very edge of neighborhoods, big and small.

Qwilt’s open architecture and inclusive business model make local edge delivery more accessible than ever before, unlocking more reliable, higher quality-of-experience at greater scale than previously possible. A growing number of the world’s leading content publishers and cable, telco, and mobile service providers rely on Qwilt for Edge Cloud services, including Airtel India, BT, Telecom Argentina, Telecom Italia, and Verizon.

Founded in 2010, Qwilt is a leader of the Open Caching movement and a founding member of the Streaming Video Technology Alliance. Qwilt is backed by Accel Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, Cisco Ventures, Disruptive, Innovation Endeavors, Marker, and Redpoint Ventures. For more information, click here.

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About Fastweb

With 3,1 million wireline and 3 million mobile customers, Fastweb is one of Italy’s leading telecommunications operators. The company promotes the digital transformation of the society to build an increasingly connected, inclusive and eco sustainable future. Since its establishment in 1999, the company has focused on innovation and network infrastructure to guarantee the highest quality in the provision of ultra-broadband services and to promote the digitalisation of citizens and the country.

To help everyone build their future with confidence, the company continuously invests in high-performance Gigabit-speed networks and innovative services, encourages the widest possible development of digital skills among the population, promotes an inclusive culture, is committed to the growth of talents, and supports the fight against climate change. Since 2015, the company has acquired 100% of its energy from renewable sources and has set ambitious emission reduction targets in 2020 endorsed by Science Based Targets initiatives. Already Carbon Neutral for direct emissions and those from its customers’ operations and use of services, Fastweb has set the ambitious goal of becoming completely Carbon Neutral by 2025. Awarded second place in the Europe’s Climate Leaders 2021 ranking pf the Financial Times, Fastweb has received the “EE+” (Strong) sustainability rating from Standard Ethics. Fastweb has become a Benefit company since January 2022. For more information, visit fastweb.it