Through its energy-efficient RU, Fujitsu will support Rakuten Mobile’s rollout of 5G commercial services across Japan
Japanese carrier Rakuten Mobile announced it will begin deploying base stations utilizing radio units (RU) developed by tech firm Fujitsu, as the telco accelerates the expansion of its 5G (Sub6) network area in 2025.
In a release, Rakuten Mobile said it will continue to rapidly deploy 5G Sub6 base stations and expand its coverage area. Meanwhile, Fujitsu, through its energy-efficient RU, will support Rakuten Mobile’s rollout of 5G commercial services across the Asian nation.
The RU model to be used by Rakuten Mobile, 44R21, adopts the O-RAN specifications established by the O-RAN Alliance. The RU facilitates communication between the base station’s distributed unit (DU) and centralized unit (CU) via a fronthaul interface, Rakuten Mobile said, adding that It has a proven track record of interoperability with equipment from various domestic and international vendors. Additionally, using Fujitsu’s proprietary technology, the radio units are designed to be compact, lightweight and energy-efficient, thereby contributing to leaner space requirements and lower network operation costs, according to the Japanese telco.
The RU 44R21 base model is being showcased at MWC Barcelona 2025.
Going forward, Rakuten Mobile also noted it will use its virtualization network technology and existing base station infrastructure to reduce lead times from construction to operation, ensuring cost-efficient deployments of base stations. Additionally, Rakuten Symphony will work together with Fujitsu to discuss future collaborations, aiming to drive the global rollout of these units and accelerate the worldwide adoption of Open RAN technology.
Sharad Sriwastawa, Co-CEO and CTO of Rakuten Mobile, said: “We are excited to partner with Fujitsu to accelerate the rollout of high-performance, energy-efficient 5G base stations. This collaboration will enable us to deliver exceptional mobile services to even more of our customers.”
Masaaki Moribayashi, corporate executive officer at Fujitsu Limited, said: “Fujitsu’s focus has been to develop an innovative wireless platform that is compact, lightweight and energy-efficient. In addition to this wireless device that complies with O-RAN standard specifications, Fujitsu will support Rakuten Mobile in building a flexible and efficient network, leveraging its extensive experience in O-RAN connectivity.”
In January, Rakuten Mobile had announced the launch of “Rakuten AI for Business,” a Generative AI (gen AI) solution designed to assist corporate clients in various business functions.
With advanced language understanding and task automation capabilities, the service provides quick and relevant responses to user queries. It supports activities such as document generation, translation, idea development, analysis and research through an interactive chat interface, Rakuten Mobile said.
The carrier also noted that Rakuten AI for Business operates in a secure environment, ensuring that user inputs are not utilized for AI model training without explicit permission. It also allows companies to manage sensitive data by restricting specific keywords from being processed by the AI.
In a separate release, Rakuten Mobile announced that its total number of subscribers has surpassed 8.5 million as of February 27, 2025, approximately five years since the telco’s full-scale launch as a mobile network operator in Japan.
