Open RAN ‘will definitely be part of 6G’
5G is already here and slowly transitioning from NonStandalone to Standalone networks with a 5G core. Open RAN, meanwhile, has high levels of interest from various players but is still quite early in technology maturity, particularly in terms of actual commercial deployments. And cellular research and development for as-yet-unstandardized 6G systems has already begun, with standards work on 6G expected to emerge as soon as the 2027 timeframe, and 6G networks themselves around 2030.
Does this mean that O-RAN is more likely to be a 6G technology than one that makes a splash during the 5G era?
Panelists tackled this question, among others, during the Open RAN Global Forum virtual event. Generally, they agreed that Open RAN isn’t tied to a particular generation of cellular, and that it will see implementation across “Gs.”
Additionally, “It’s not like 5G has started and tomorrow it will be completed,” said Alla Goldner, director of open network strategy at NEC. She added, “We know from previous generations that it takes years before full deployment comes into the picture.” And, she pointed out, the first years of 5G deployment have been NSA rather than SA, with full capability to support 5G core and associated features. While standardization work may begin relatively soon on 6G, she added, 5G will be ramping up to full capability roughly at the same time spread of Open RAN deployments. “We will see 5G deployed along with O-RAN … this is going to happen,” she said. “We still have many years to go with 5G before they move to the next generation.” As for 6G itself, she added, “I don’t see how 6G may exist without O-RAN. It will definitely be part of 6G.”
Sadayuki Abeta, global head of Open RAN solutions at Japanese operator NTT DoCoMo, said that the carrier’s Open RAN network allows it to be more flexible both about existing vendor choices as well as future upgrades to the network, so he is confident that Open RAN puts NTT DoCoMo into a position to adopt new technologies when it chooses to. Open RAN is already enabling a wider ecosystem of vendor choices, he said. “We have already achieved that mix-and-match network, and we choose the best solution every time. We choose the vendor based on the best price and the best performance.”
Meanwhile, Ronny Haraldsvik, CMO and SVP of business development for Cohere Technologies, sees that there has already been a shift in the conversations about the drivers for Open RAN adoption. Hsaid that while Open RAN conversations may have started with a focus around cost reduction and avoiding vendor lock-in (and pricing), the development of the RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) platform is driving a shift toward Open RAN as an innovation enabler—which very much puts it in line with both 5G SA and future 6G possibilities.
“The conversation has very much shifted from cost reduction … If you can do new things, develop new services, deploy faster, provision faster, see things in the network that you could not otherwise see and use that data—that’s really where Open RAN is going to be shining, moving forward,” he said.
“If you just think of Open RAN as equipment that can work together—what a boring story that is,” said Haraldsvik. “Frankly, that’s like not seeing the forest for the trees, if you ask me.” Open RAN, he added, is about disaggregation of network functions and the ability to move more and more of them into being cloud-native and cloud-based. Which sounds very much like the expectation both for mature 5G and future 6G systems. “It’s going to take years, but I think we’re well on our way,” Haraldvik added. When it comes to open networks, he said, “the paste is out of the tube—it’s not going back.”
