Novel network paradigms can play a very important role for the integration of QKD in the operator’s networks. But it is not wise to look at the beneficial arrangement in only one direction. Within the operator’s network, QKD is a technology to be deployed only in secure areas or PoPs, where the rest of the network elements (NEs) are also deployed. This situation allows such NEs to make use of the QKD-derived keys to secure its own communications towards network management systems or SDN controllers. Therefore, upon installation we can simultaneously control the QKD elements, while securing any control plane channel between the PoPs and data centers. Examples of these channels are the communications between a SDN controller and a NE, or the communication between NFV architectures (e.g. OpenSource MANO-OSM) and remote virtual infrastructure managers (VIMs).