“Radio access networks are on the cusp of change thanks to the Open RAN movement”

Airtel and Mavenir have created one of the first field trials on Open RAN that aims to demonstrate end-to-end integration, management, and deployment. What is the path forward?

Open RAN has become an important part of building 5G mobile networks. Our partnership with Airtel has given impetus to the Open RAN ecosystem towards faster deployment of Open RAN in India. The commercial deployments on a scale are the likely next step.

Red Hat is working with Mavenir for Cloud-Native ORAN platforms. What does this aim at in the ecosystem?

Our solutions are all in software, in any cloud, and in one network. Red Hat is also working with Mavenir to enable developers to employ the Red Hat OpenShift platform, based on Kubernetes, to build container network functions (CNFs).

Mavenir solution offers containerized network functions (CNFs) and uses cloud-native architecture with granular micro-services, following web-scale principles which provide the required scalability, agility, and reliability to address a range of 5G use cases and 5G performance requirements for end-to-end latency, high-throughput demand, and network availability.

From the pioneering work in Rakuten and global deployments, where do you see the ORAN movement going in Asia and other parts of the world?

The Dell’Oro Group OpenRAN advanced research report calculated that Open RAN revenues are expected to account for around 15% of the overall 2G-5G RAN market by 2026, reflecting healthy traction in multiple regions with both basic and advanced radios.

The analyst expects the Asia-Pacific region to dominate the Open RAN market in this initial phase and to play a leading role throughout the forecast period, accounting for more than 40% of total 2021-2026 revenues. To find out where mobile network operators (MNOs) are on their journeys, Mavenir commissioned a survey with the GSMA’s Mobile World Live, reaching executives from 156 global network operators. It enabled operators to share their views on virtualisation, public and private cloud strategies, multi-generation networks, Open RAN, and network automation. Overall, the Mavenir survey found almost total acceptance of the need to virtualise mobile networks, embrace the use of public or private cloud services and adopt software-led open network architecture. It also showed an overwhelming number of operators were well advanced on the path to network virtualisation.

The study revealed that 95% of MNOs understand the importance of virtualisation and have it on their roadmaps, with 98% of MNOs considering open architectures or the opening of network architectures.

Specifically, the study revealed that 95% of MNOs understand the importance of virtualisation and have it on their roadmaps, with 98% of MNOs considering open architectures or the opening of network architectures.

Is ORAN the beginning of a new age in the Telecoms industry as a whole, which has traditionally been dominated by very large vendors and operators?

It is the future of mobile networks. Historically, RAN vendors used proprietary equipment with tightly coupled hardware and software. Because they controlled the distribution, use, access, service, and maintenance of the RAN, operators were heavily dependent on their vendors for advances and upgrades. This hindered their ability to innovate as proprietary RAN cannot sync with other equipment, leading to vendor lock-in and higher total cost of ownership (TCO).

Today radio access networks are on the cusp of change thanks to the Open RAN movement that brings together vendors, software developers, telcos, and more to develop new RAN prototypes based on open-source, open architecture, and open networks. Open RAN is a vendor-neutral disaggregation of RAN at both the hardware and software levels on general-purpose processor-based platforms. It breaks all proprietary bonds between hardware, virtualized components, and even software, exposing all interfaces and connections.

This deconstruction provides an open playground for true innovation. Open RAN is an important opportunity and a huge area of commercial interest. It could lead to substantial savings for telecom operators. The combination of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware and standards-driven solutions is expected to offer operators a significant gain in CAPEX reduction. The traditional RAN domain is the most expensive part of a mobile network, representing 65 to 70 percent of its total cost.

According to Deloitte, OpenRAN can reduce CAPEX by 40 to 50 percent. The open standard promotes faster innovation cycles, improves supply chain diversity, and encourages automation of network operations to enable a lower overall network TCO.

What else is Mavenir working on in the Indian market?

Mavenir is committed to the Indian market with its continued investments in the development of cutting-edge technologies at R&D centers across India. We have been working with all Indian operators. We’re also building radios with Jabil in Pune.

Sanjay Bakaya

Country Head - India & Regional Vice President,

India & South Asia, Mavenir

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