Telefonica UK’s migration to an automated and cloud-based IP network is one step closer to reality. Juniper Networks today announced that the first phase of the network operator’s move to what it calls the Fusion Network is complete.

Telefonica manages networks in 17 countries spread across Europe and Latin America, and has been working with Juniper Networks to upgrade its networks to support 5G deployments. The global operator recently completed a similar initiative in Spain to bolster its network there as well.

The project aims to combine legacy networks into a single IP network that reduces complexity, improve operations with network automation, and enable the operator to design new services for its customers.

“As we prepare for our 5G rollout from October 2019 with the end goal of building a 5G economy in coalition with British industry, we need a network infrastructure that benefits customers from the outset, with better speeds, intelligent security, and improved user experience,” Telefonica UK CTO Brendan O’Reilly said in a prepared statement. “This requires a network that is sophisticated, but also simpler to deploy, operate and maintain. … This overhaul of our network provides the flexibility, scalability, and performance to meet those demands."

Juniper Networks provided multiple pieces of equipment and services to Telefonica UK, including the vendor’s PTX Series Packet Transport Routers, the MX Series 5G Universal Routing Platform, Junos Fusion Edge, Junos Node Slicing virtualization, and Juniper’s Automation Framework. The vendor is also supporting Telefonica’s network migration by installing and maintaining the new hardware and services.

Telefonica-owned O2 UK previously announced plans to launch 5G this year, although its first phase only appears to be targeting Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, and London. The operator also has a network-sharing agreement with Vodafone UK to extend their existing networks as both operators ramp-up the delivery of 5G services.

Vodafone UK started offering 5G service in seven cities across the United Kingdom in early July, and plans to expand to a total of 19 cities by the end of the year. BT-owned mobile operator EE turned on commercial 5G services in six U.K cities at the end of May, and plans to roll out service to 10 additional cities by the end of the year. Three UK, meanwhile, launched 5G home services in central London in August, and has embarked on a project to build a “fully virtualized cloud core network with Nokia.”