Please see the 5G Magazine, 5G Magazine Jan edition for Open RAN state as of Dec 2021. See 5G Magazine, Open RAN edition for comprehensive details on Open RAN. Get the latest news on Open RAN here.
BT and Nokia trial Open RAN solution in Hull, UK, to enhance the mobile broadband experience
Jan 26, 2022
BT announced details of a trial in Hull, UK, showcasing the company’s continued dedication to the advancement and implementation of Open RAN technology. The Nokia RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) for Open RAN will be installed across a number of sites by BT to optimize network performance for customers of EE’s mobile network. Link to BT’s press release: here
Vodafone switches on UK’s first 5G Open RAN site
Jan 21, 2022
Vodafone has switched on the UK’s first 5G Open RAN site in Bath, Somerset. The new site is the first of 2,500 planned and marks the beginning of the first scaled Open RAN project in Europe.
In Jun 2021, Vodafone had unveiled its strategic vendors – Dell, NEC, Samsung Electronics, Wind River, Capgemini Engineering, and Keysight Technologies – to jointly deliver the first commercial deployment of Open Radio Access Network (RAN) in Europe. Vodafone’s initial focus will be on the 2,500 sites in the UK that it has committed to Open RAN in October 2020. Link to Vodafone’s press release: here
O2 / Telefónica activates Germany’s first Open RAN mini-radio cells
Jan 17, 2022
O2 / Telefónica announced it has activated the first mini-radio cells with innovative Open RAN technology (ORAN) in Munich, Germany. In addition to the very well-developed O2 network, this will provide all O2 customers with even more capacity and higher bandwidths at busy locations in the future. The installation of pure 5G Open RAN mini radio cells (“5G standalone”) will follow later in the year.
With the compact, flexibly deployable latest-generation mini mobile cells, the company is able to increase 5G/4G capacities in the O2 network at high-traffic locations in urban areas faster than before. The mini-radio cells, attached to a building facade on Klenzestraße in Munich’s Gärtnerplatz district, supplement the 4G/5G mobile network installed on rooftops in the city center but do not replace it. Link to O2 / Telefónica’s press release: here
KT, NTT DOCOMO, & Fujitsu Cooperate Test Interoperability for Open RAN in Korea
January 6, 2022
KT Corporation and Fujitsu Limited have completed a verification facility at the KT Research and Development Center in Seoul, South Korea, at which the two companies leveraged Fujitsu’s Open RAN-based 5G base station equipment to successfully test call connection during interoperability trials for open fronthaul. NTT DOCOMO has provided Fujitsu with technical support throughout the project. With the construction of this new test facility, KT will accelerate the introduction of Open RAN technology to Korea’s 5G network.
As a result of their successful collaboration, the three companies have concluded a Memorandum of Understanding (effective date January 6, 2022), centering on the introduction of software-defined virtualized RAN (vRAN) and RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) in alignment with the “5G Open RAN Ecosystem”, an initiative whose participants include NTT DOCOMO and Fujitsu. In this Memorandum of Understanding, the three companies agree to cooperate towards further activities including the construction of an O-RAN test facility and multi-vendor interoperability testing in Korea. Link to Fujitsu’s press release: here