Customized services over virtual wireless networks: The path towards networks without borders

We propose a new architecture to enable wireless networks to meet the challenges of ever-increasing demand for high data rate services and ubiquitous connectivity, heterogeneity of access technologies, and spectrum scarcity. This architecture, which we call Networks without Borders, envisions a pool of resources (spectrum, infrastructure, network management, authentication, subscriber tracking services, etc.) from which a virtual wireless network can be orchestrated and instantiated. Flexibility and technology neutrality are key goals of this architecture, mirroring the Internet, where user services are independent of the underlying network control mechanisms or infrastructure. We outline some of the major trends in networking research and commercial deployments that provide an evolutionary path towards Networks without Borders. These trends include virtualization, reliance on small cells, dynamic spectrum sharing, crowdsourcing of wireless access, and inter-mobile operator resource sharing.