The Open Telekom Cloud of Deutsche Telekom AG was launched in 2016 and developed into a solid cloud platform since then. The Open Telekom Cloud platform offers many services on top of the standard IaaS set, e.g. for data analytics and for serverless functions.
The technology of Open Telekom Cloud is based on the Huawei “distro” of OpenStack called Huawei FusionSphere. Parts of the hardware for Open Telekom Cloud is also provided by Huawei. Some observers are therefore raising questions about true sovereignty of Open Telekom Cloud. Does Huawei possess a kill switch for Open Telekom Cloud? Is a US dependency simply traded for a dependency on a Chinese supplier? At least the spectrum of suppliers and dependencies is widened.
Features & Services
Open Telekom Cloud has a very broad service portfolio, including some unique services, e.g. for Big Data processing, the AI service ModelArts, an OCR service and the serverless compute engine FunctionGraph, a Service Mesh, a Data Warehouse and many more advanced services.
Data Centres
The Open Telekom Cloud is currently powered by 6 data centers. Two data centers are paired to form a twin core region. The 3 twin core regions are
- Biere and Magdeburg in Germany
- Almere and Aalsmeer in the Netherlands
- Zollikofen and Bern in Switzerland
For a complete overview of data centers, check the Data Centres Map.
Environmental Policy
According to Open Telekom Cloud Rechenzentren, Open Telekom Cloud data centres are fueled by 100% renewable energy.
Certifications
Open Telekom Cloud holds the typical certificates that are required for cloud operators in Germany, such as the BSI Cloud Computing Compliance Criteria Catalogue (C5). One certificate worth pointing out is the TISAX certificate, which automotive companies typically require from their partners.
An overview over certificates and test reports for the Open Telekom Cloud is collected here: Open Telekom Cloud Certificates & Test Reports.
Conclusion
OTC is a mature cloud platform with a service portfolio extending way beyond core IaaS offerings. It is actually one of the richest cloud services of all European players.
One specialty about Open Telekom Cloud is the fact that it is based on Huawei FusionSphere, the Huawei version of OpenStack.
The main target group of Open Telekom Cloud are corporate clients in the DACH region.
