Skip to content
Tiatra, LLCTiatra, LLC
Tiatra, LLC
Information Technology Solutions for Washington, DC Government Agencies
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Services
    • IT Engineering and Support
    • Software Development
    • Information Assurance and Testing
    • Project and Program Management
  • Clients & Partners
  • Careers
  • News
  • Contact
 
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Services
    • IT Engineering and Support
    • Software Development
    • Information Assurance and Testing
    • Project and Program Management
  • Clients & Partners
  • Careers
  • News
  • Contact

Open Radio Network Deployments Help Ease 5G Economics

The only constant in life is change, and businesses need flexibility to evolve quickly to take advantage of that change. With change comes opportunity, and now more than ever that opportunity extends through the mobile network.  

Change can create entirely new industries and will push traditional business models to be reimagined.  Consider the past decade, where we have seen the rise of cloud services, artificial intelligence (AI), and a shift to hybrid work. And the mobile network is at the center of much of this change – arguably the most important tool businesses have for facilitating and harnessing the value of change. The newest tool is the fifth generation of mobility (5G) which delivers speed and low-latency for real-time accuracy and improved connectivity – traits that can increase efficiencies and create new business opportunities.

There is another kind of “speed” that is important in 5G and that is the speed that comes with flexibility found in open (non-proprietary) technology. It is well established that open technology can deliver new features faster while driving down costs thanks to a competitive market. (Recall the early days of computing when every system was “unique” and costly). Therefore, the more open we can make the network, the more simple, intuitive, and secure it becomes, and the better off you are to pursue new opportunities. So why would any business lock themselves into a proprietary system that is resistant to change? The answer is simple: they shouldn’t.

This logic extends into what was the last proprietary segment of mobile networks – the radio access network (RAN). Until recently, all RANs were proprietary, locking users into a single vendor and limiting competition that drives faster advancements and lower costs. Fortunately, there is a growing trend to open the RAN. The last five years have seen the rise of the O-RAN Alliance and other partnerships driving and sharing innovations. Several new companies have emerged to offer Open RAN products designed to run on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware and offer best-of-breed interoperability. Adopters of Open RAN can enjoy agility and flexibility both today and well into the future, allowing businesses to more quickly and cost effectively take advantage of new opportunities.

In fact, a recent survey of global service providers by Heavy Reading has shown that while only 22% of respondents stated their company has already deployed commercially. The report goes on to show that another 60% foresee commercial deployment of Open RAN in the next 24 months (23% of respondents expect commercial deployment within the next 12 months, plus an additional 37% of respondents are looking to commercial deployment in 12-24 months)1.

Graph 1

Cisco

Today, Open RAN is being planned and deployed for both public and private enterprise networks, including public venues, urban densification, and general outdoor macro-RAN deployments. The Heavy Reading survey showed that approximately 57% of respondents plan to use Open RAN for private networks. This report also stated that 57% of respondents plan to deploy Open RAN for venues and other gathering spots1. Open RAN is appealing for the velocity of change it can bring – particularly important for companies looking to gain and maintain competitive edges. 

Graph 2

Cisco

Aside from the clear benefits of avoiding vendor lock-in, Open RAN is considered by many to be a more securable solution2. While open products are assumed to have greater vulnerabilities than closed-proprietary products, these open products also have more security tools available. Open RAN solutions are inherently compatible to use a wide range of network infrastructure security products providing visibility, isolation, and threat remediation. Conversely, proprietary solutions can only operate with the limited products made available by that specific vendor (or a close partner). Such limitations expose your business to risks while likely increasing the cost to protect your assets.

And speaking of cost, while proprietary vendors warn that Open RAN could be more expensive, their view is not shared by the majority of the respondents to the Heavy Reading survey which found 57% believe Open RAN offers similar (21%) or greater (37%) total cost of ownership (TCO) savings. Supporting this belief, commercial deployments of Open RAN by Rakuten are proving to deliver greater than 30% Capex and OpEx reduction3. Recently, Cisco and Rakuten Symphony entered into a partnership for software-centric Open RAN-based solutions and a go-to-market model that will help make it even more cost effective, easier, and quicker to adopt Open RAN technologies.  

Open RAN is a relatively new and promising shift in technology that is changing the industry’s mindset regarding this network segment. This non-proprietary technology does not sacrifice quality while improving security – and gives businesses the flexibility needed to succeed. Indeed, Open RAN is playing an increasingly important role for evolution of open network standards and for current 5G deployments in both public and private networks. Open technology platforms like this could well become the de facto radio technology as we move into the 6G era and beyond.

We encourage you to learn more about the exciting possibilities and improved TCO that Open RAN provides.

1. https://img.lightreading.com/downloads/whitepapers/2021-Heavy-Reading-Open-RAN-Operator-Survey.pdf?

2. https://www.redhat.com/cms/managed-files/ve-451-research-telco-vran-security-analyst-material-f23695-en.pdf

3. https://www.abiresearch.com/market-research/product/7778118-rakuten-mobiles-open-virtual-radio-access-/#:~:text=Rakuten’s%20open%20vRAN%20approach%20expects,more%20than%2025%2C000%20active%20subscribers.


Read More from This Article: Open Radio Network Deployments Help Ease 5G Economics
Source: News

Category: NewsApril 6, 2022
Tags: art

Post navigation

PreviousPrevious post:Increasing Real-Time Efficiency Through AIOpsNextNext post:Data-Aware Security: How to Take a 360 View of Cloud Security

Related posts

Barb Wixom and MIT CISR on managing data like a product
May 30, 2025
Avery Dennison takes culture-first approach to AI transformation
May 30, 2025
The agentic AI assist Stanford University cancer care staff needed
May 30, 2025
Los desafíos de la era de la ‘IA en todas partes’, a fondo en Data & AI Summit 2025
May 30, 2025
“AI 비서가 팀 단위로 지원하는 효과”···퍼플렉시티, AI 프로젝트 10분 완성 도구 ‘랩스’ 출시
May 30, 2025
“ROI는 어디에?” AI 도입을 재고하게 만드는 실패 사례
May 30, 2025
Recent Posts
  • Barb Wixom and MIT CISR on managing data like a product
  • Avery Dennison takes culture-first approach to AI transformation
  • The agentic AI assist Stanford University cancer care staff needed
  • Los desafíos de la era de la ‘IA en todas partes’, a fondo en Data & AI Summit 2025
  • “AI 비서가 팀 단위로 지원하는 효과”···퍼플렉시티, AI 프로젝트 10분 완성 도구 ‘랩스’ 출시
Recent Comments
    Archives
    • May 2025
    • April 2025
    • March 2025
    • February 2025
    • January 2025
    • December 2024
    • November 2024
    • October 2024
    • September 2024
    • August 2024
    • July 2024
    • June 2024
    • May 2024
    • April 2024
    • March 2024
    • February 2024
    • January 2024
    • December 2023
    • November 2023
    • October 2023
    • September 2023
    • August 2023
    • July 2023
    • June 2023
    • May 2023
    • April 2023
    • March 2023
    • February 2023
    • January 2023
    • December 2022
    • November 2022
    • October 2022
    • September 2022
    • August 2022
    • July 2022
    • June 2022
    • May 2022
    • April 2022
    • March 2022
    • February 2022
    • January 2022
    • December 2021
    • November 2021
    • October 2021
    • September 2021
    • August 2021
    • July 2021
    • June 2021
    • May 2021
    • April 2021
    • March 2021
    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • November 2020
    • October 2020
    • September 2020
    • August 2020
    • July 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    • September 2019
    • August 2019
    • July 2019
    • June 2019
    • May 2019
    • April 2019
    • March 2019
    • February 2019
    • January 2019
    • December 2018
    • November 2018
    • October 2018
    • September 2018
    • August 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • May 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • July 2017
    • June 2017
    • May 2017
    • April 2017
    • March 2017
    • February 2017
    • January 2017
    Categories
    • News
    Meta
    • Log in
    • Entries feed
    • Comments feed
    • WordPress.org
    Tiatra LLC.

    Tiatra, LLC, based in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, proudly serves federal government agencies, organizations that work with the government and other commercial businesses and organizations. Tiatra specializes in a broad range of information technology (IT) development and management services incorporating solid engineering, attention to client needs, and meeting or exceeding any security parameters required. Our small yet innovative company is structured with a full complement of the necessary technical experts, working with hands-on management, to provide a high level of service and competitive pricing for your systems and engineering requirements.

    Find us on:

    FacebookTwitterLinkedin

    Submitclear

    Tiatra, LLC
    Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.