IBM, AT&T tighten virtual networking partnership

IBM and AT&T said they will expand their partnership to distribute the communication company's FlexWare software that is used to manage virtual network functions.
Under the deal, AT&T will run applications on IBM's cloud, analytics, and security services. IBM's sales team will sell FlexWare around the world to enterprises.
AT&T's FlexWare falls under the software defined networking and network functions virtualization umbrella. The general idea is that providers can quickly deploy IT as a service and other items over networks.
FlexWare used to be called AT&T Network Functions on Demand and is used to manage virtual networks on a device. IBM said that it will use AT&T's FlexWare on many of its sites.
In the grand scheme of things, IBM and AT&T are combining more to play in hybrid cloud deployments.