Earlier this month, at the world’s most influential event for the connectivity industry, Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2022, a number of telecom operators in the region, namely, Batelco, Etisalat Group, Saudi Telecom Company (STC), Zain Group, Mobily, du, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), and Omantel, were signatories to a memorandum of understanding to explore open radio access networks (Open RAN) in the development of their future 5G systems. 

The news comes at a time when the global telecommunications industry has the mandate of exploring more use cases of 5G for corporates and consumers, in addition to assessing the hype around this network architecture’s suitability for the coming years. As a real-world and practical implementation, is Open RAN near ready in the future despite the hype and optimism? That’s a debate that still continues.

Briefly, your wireless devices, be it, computers, mobile phones, tablets, etc connects to a mobile network via a radio access network (RAN). The RAN hardware and software are coupled and provided by a single supplier as a closed, proprietary solution that is tightly integrated inside the hardware. 

Most operators today use RAN to manage wireless devices connected to its core network. Upgrading or making any changes to the wireless network is a challenge that requires replacing physical hardware throughout the network, which of course is a costly affair. 

Needless to mention Mobile operators too have become locked with the same supplier for any changes required. O-RAN also promises to resolve the traditional RAN challenges by decoupling the hardware and software making it open and interoperable for other vendors to innovate and support.  

What is O-RAN? Short for Open Radio Access Network, O-RAN is a new technology concept that promises faster 5G implementation, improved network performance and allows different hardware and software components produced by other vendors to interact with each other seamlessly over open and interoperable network interfaces.  

The concept is defined and supported by a worldwide community of mobile network operators, vendors, research and academic institutions operating in the Radio Access Network (RAN) industry. Their chief mission is to re-shape the RAN industry towards more intelligent, open, virtualised and fully interoperable mobile networks. 

The goal is to end vendor lock-in, offer diversity and lower costs for mobile operators in return. For the last 40 years, however, most telecom operators have relied on the same traditional architecture to build RAN.  The discussion commands attention as millions of dollars are regularly being funnelled to enhance 5G connectivity as part of countries’ national digitalisation plans. Oman and the wider GCC were among the early global frontrunners in 5G deployments. 

The debates behind Open RAN could change how these mobile networks are fundamentally designed and deployed.  This in turn influences the network’s capability to support other industry verticals through superior service value, efficiency, and price competitiveness. 

Open RAN schemes essentially call for mobile RAN to support interoperability between different vendors’ equipment. It is not a standard, but a method of network implementation. However, this “open” method has yet to be verified in line with global network standards such as those from international bodies like 3GPP and the GSMA.

The debate around Open RAN today also considers that the region’s telecommunications industry has long benefitted from strong alignment between government regulators, equipment vendors, and operators in defining standards frameworks. If the progress built on common standards is deflated, it could greatly undermine the growth of digital economies in the region. 

The financial savings of the Open RAN method have meanwhile been under review. While the open-market model would in theory encourage greater competition amongst equipment vendors and lower network development costs, few real-world examples of this have been seen. 

In this model, operators must also consider how to manage the integration of network sites from different vendors, who may no longer take responsibility for network operation and maintenance if they are only contributing to one element of an open network. There is also a need for operators to make extra investments in fibre-to-site solutions to deploy Open RAN in the first place. 

Some global organisations behind the Open RAN method have admitted that it may have been too much too soon. For instance, executives at BT Group have noted that 2027 could be the earliest opportunity for urban commercial Open RAN deployment. T-Mobile’s US president of technology was also early to raise doubts about the maturity of Open RAN systems. Analysts cite network performance degradation and fragmented service innovation as being among the other challenges that remain to be addressed. 

European operators have carried out systems tests on Open RAN in the past few years. Meanwhile, Open RAN promises have yet to garner widespread appeal with Chinese telecom vendors who are not in a rush to join in, although their 5G technology R&D has led much of the market.  The U.S. is the main driver of Open RAN, and even U.S. carriers are now asking regulators and the government to remain technology-neutral. 

There is optimism that Open RAN could catch up and eventually become a mainstream alternative to the current network model. However, further examinations are clearly needed before the technology will have an impact and live up to its promise. 

O-RAN presents a great opportunity to evolve and disrupt the vendor ecosystem. Yet, the time it takes for a technology to evolve into an integrated ecosystem of solutions remains a question and debate primarily due to its status as an early stage of development.

Disclaimer : The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of TAS and TAS does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.