Page 76 - SAMENA Trends - January 2021

TECHNOLOGY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

European Big Hitters Make Open RAN Pledge

Operator heavyweights Deutsche Telekom, 2020. Vodafone, a major backer for a few RAN concept. In Japan, we have the same
Orange, Telefonica and Vodafone Group years now, in November 2020 detailed situation. In Europe, we need a strong
established a collaboration covering the plans to deploy open RAN equipment at push, we need an ecosystem, and we need
rollout and development of open RAN 2,600 networks sites in the UK by 2027, to be really clear as operators that open
technology, in a bid to ensure the continent while Orange outlined plans to open a RAN is the future,” he said. Simon added
keeps up with early pacesetters, the TIP Community Lab in Paris focused the European Commission and national
US and Japan. In a joint statement, the on trialling the technology. Telefonica governments were the targets of the
operators detailed the signing of an MoU struck a partnership with Rakuten Mobile operators’ collaborative message, and it
covering “their individual commitment” to covering ecosystem developments while was inviting these bodies to fund R&D, lab
implementing open RAN across Europe, Deutsche Telekom continued calls for tests and to help small companies grow.
with the aim of creating an interoperable the inclusion of laws related to open “Public authorities need to be conscious
market and ensuring the availability for RAN, claiming operators were becoming about how important this breakthrough is,”
a timely deployment in the continent. more independent from hardware said Simon. Simon noted other European
They plan to work with existing and new manufacturers. Orange’s global director operators were also free to join the
ecosystem partners, industry bodies of radio innovation Olivier Simon told collaboration, while it had not sought any
including the O-RAN Alliance and Telecom Mobile World Live the continent’s major vendors to join the pact. Addressing the
Infra Project, and European authorities operators were as committed to open role of major European vendors Ericsson
“to ensure open RAN reaches competitive RAN as rivals across the world, but some and Nokia, Simon lauded the fact the pair
parity with traditional RAN solutions”. regions were “already ahead of Europe”. had also committed to the technology,
The quartet increased their respective “In the US, you can see a lot of different while noting open RAN was both a “threat
commitments to open networking in companies really embracing the open and an opportunity” for them.

China to Build 30 'Fully Connected' 5G Factories By 2023

China aims to build 30 "fully connected" 5G factories in 10 key
industries by 2023, as the country has fast-tracked industrial
Internet development through integration with 5G technologies.
Three to five industrial Internet platforms with international
influence will come into being and a big data center for industrial
Internet will be established by 2023, said an action plan on
industrial Internet development for the next three years, which
was unveiled by the Ministry of Industry and Information
Technology (MIIT). The action plan pointed out that the next
three years (2021-2023) will be the period of the rapid growth of
China's industrial Internet. Emerging business formats will prevail
such as intelligent manufacturing, network-based collaboration
and personalized customization during the period, it said. The
industrial Internet, also known as the Internet of Things (IoT) for
industry, refers to the broader adoption of advanced technologies over 70 industrial Internet platforms into regional influence,
such as next-generation wireless networks, big data and artificial connecting about 60 million sets of industrial equipment and
intelligence and IoT. MIIT data showed China has already nurtured more than 400,000 industrial enterprises.

Swedish Cellcos Boost 5G Speeds Using New Spectrum

Swedish operators Tele2 and Telenor auction earlier this week and the operators service has been made available by Tele2
have announced an expansion of their 5G have moved quickly to activate the new in 30 Swedish cities and by Telenor in 37
services under the umbrella of their network frequencies. This has enabled them to cities. By the end of 2023 the Net4Mobility
sharing joint venture (JV) Net4Mobility. upgrade to what Tele2 terms as ‘real’ 5G, partners expect to have rolled out 5G
The JV won 100MHz of spectrum in the with download speeds of over 1Gbps, up connectivity to more than 99% of Sweden’s
3.5GHz band in the government’s 5G from 500Mbps previously. The gigabit population.

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