Imagine you run a telecom company and every time you want to offer a new network service — say ultra-reliable connectivity for a factory — you have to build everything from scratch, test it manually, and hope it works. 5GTANGO built something like an app store for network services: a toolkit to develop them, a store to automatically test and certify them, and a platform to deploy them. They proved it works in two real industries — smart manufacturing and live media streaming. Think of it as going from hand-crafting each service to having a production line for them.
Telecom operators and enterprises face a painful bottleneck: developing, validating, and deploying new 5G network services is slow, fragmented, and heavily dependent on specific vendors. Every new service requires manual testing, custom integration, and carries the risk of failures that only show up in production. This slows down the rollout of industry-specific 5G applications — from factory automation to immersive media — costing operators revenue and delaying digital transformation for their enterprise customers.
The project delivered three integrated components: an open-source Service Development Kit (SDK) for building network services, a Store with automated validation and verification for qualifying virtual network functions (including third-party ones), and a modular vendor-independent Service Platform for deploying them. All went through multiple release cycles from first prototype to final release, demonstrated in manufacturing and media pilots.
If you are a telecom operator struggling to launch new 5G services quickly — this project developed a vendor-independent platform with an SDK, automated validation store, and modular service platform that lets you develop, test, and deploy network services in a streamlined pipeline. The platform was demonstrated in two vertical pilots and delivered as open-source across 19 deliverables with a 20-partner consortium.
If you are a manufacturer needing reliable private 5G connectivity for your shop floor — this project built and piloted an end-to-end platform specifically tested in an advanced manufacturing scenario. The platform automates the validation and deployment of network services, reducing the time and risk of getting mission-critical connectivity running in your factory.
If you are a media company dealing with the complexity of delivering immersive content over 5G networks — this project validated its platform in an immersive media pilot. The automated service validation and deployment pipeline means you can roll out new streaming services without manually configuring network functions each time, backed by a store that qualifies third-party contributions.
The 5GTANGO platform and SDK were released as open-source, meaning no licensing fees for the core software. The EU invested EUR 6,983,507 across 20 partners to develop this. Your costs would be integration, customization, and infrastructure — but the open-source model significantly lowers the barrier to entry.
The platform was designed for production use and demonstrated in two vertical pilots: advanced manufacturing and immersive media. With 15 industry partners (75% of the consortium) involved in development and testing, including major integrator ATOS as coordinator, the platform was built with real operational requirements in mind.
The SDK toolset and platform were released as open-source. This means you can use, modify, and deploy the software freely. However, specific contributions from the 20 consortium partners may carry their own terms — check with the coordinator ATOS SPAIN SA for details on any proprietary components.
The platform was designed to be vendor-independent and compatible with common existing Virtual Infrastructure Managers (VIM) and SDN controllers already in the market. The customizable orchestrator means it can slot into your current network management setup rather than requiring a full replacement.
The project ended in January 2020. The open-source releases are available, but active development under the 5GTANGO name has concluded. The technologies and standards contributions (ETSI NFV, OSM) live on in the broader 5G ecosystem. Contact the coordinator for current status of the codebase.
5GTANGO actively contributed to ETSI NFV and IETF standards, as well as key open-source initiatives like OSM and Open-O. This means the platform aligns with the dominant industry standards for network function virtualization, reducing vendor lock-in risk.
Based on available project data, the platform went through multiple release cycles — from first prototypes to final integrated releases — over the project's 2.5-year duration. For an operator with existing NFV infrastructure, deployment of the open-source platform could be significantly faster, though the project data does not specify exact deployment timelines for end users.
The 5GTANGO consortium is heavily industry-driven: 15 out of 20 partners (75%) come from industry, with 6 SMEs adding agility alongside heavyweights like coordinator ATOS SPAIN SA. The consortium spans 9 European countries (Belgium, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Portugal, UK), giving broad geographic coverage across major telecom markets. With only 2 universities and 3 research organizations, this was clearly built to deliver usable technology, not just papers. The EUR 6,983,507 EU investment was spread across a large team capable of covering the full chain from SDK development to pilot deployment. For a business buyer, this consortium composition signals that the platform was shaped by real market needs rather than purely academic interests.
ATOS SPAIN SA coordinated this project — reach out to their 5G/NFV division for current platform status and potential collaboration.
Want a tailored briefing on how 5GTANGO's open-source platform could fit your 5G deployment strategy? SciTransfer can arrange an introduction to the development team and prepare a custom assessment for your use case.
