MWC26: The telco edge is alive and kicking in Europe

• AI has reignited the telco edge which, for years, was a technology option in search of a use case
• European telcos and their partners are working together to support emerging services, especially sovereign offerings

BARCELONA – #MWC26 – Is the telco edge about to have its day in Europe? It seems so, and Telefónica, which has already turned a number of former telco exchanges in Spain into edge datacentres, seems to be at the centre of multiple cross-border initiatives linked to the provision of sovereign services. 

The Spanish telco is leading a consortium of more than 70 European companies, including other telcos, that has teamed up with the European Commission to unveil EURO-3C, which is described as “the first pan-European sovereign infrastructure, integrating telco, edge, cloud and AI capabilities under a federated, open and secure model”. 

The EC likes the development so much it has allocated €75m from its Horizon Europe fund to the consortium, which also boasts the likes of BT, Deutsche Telekom, KPN, Meo, Orange, Swisscom, Telenor, Telecom Italia (TIM) and Vodafone as members. (For the full list of members and partners, see this announcement.) 

According to Telefónica, EURO-3C comprises a “federated multi-telco and multivendor infrastructure in production environments, with more than 70 edge and cloud nodes distributed in more than 13 European countries.” It also integrates “advanced AI-enabled orchestration capabilities and interoperable services, ensuring a resilient, efficient infrastructure.”

That network of edge nodes “makes it possible to offer advanced digital services with high standards of performance, interoperability and security, responding to critical needs in the automotive, transport, energy and public safety sectors, among others,” noted the Spanish giant. 

Renate Nikolay, deputy director general of the EC, stated: “The European Commission strongly promotes secure digital communication infrastructures made in Europe, aiming to make the most of telco-edge-cloud convergence, with and for AI. The EU-funded project EURO-3C announced today federates the efforts of a very large number of European players around a common goal: To build a secure and sovereign convergent communications landscape, for the benefit of industrial sectors supplying and using technology, and for society at large.”

Juan Montero, director of public policy, competition and regulation at Telefónica, said: “The European Union has made technological sovereignty and industrial competitiveness a priority. Achieving this requires not only advanced digital infrastructures but also strong collaboration across sectors and countries. And the telecommunications sector is a key player in this effort. This is precisely what EURO-3C aims to deliver: A European-scale cooperative computing network that brings together telco capabilities, connectivity, edge and cloud, all enhanced with AI. It is a shared effort to reinforce Europe’s industrial leadership and lay the foundations for true digital sovereignty.”

News of the EURO-3C consortium’s funding comes only days after five of those European telcos – DT, Orange, Telecom Italia, Telefónica and Vodafone – announced they had successfully federated their edge environments in a joint effort they called the European Edge Continuum. 

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV