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Huawei is the king of both radio and core
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The MCN market had its worst performance in revenue growth rate since the first quarter of 2017
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5G SA should have some rollouts in the first half of 2024
Dell’Oro Group has released a dire fourth quarter 2023 report on radio access networks (RAN) and mobile core networks (MCN) — but not to fear, there may be some light at the end of the tunnel.
“Preliminary findings show that market conditions remained challenging in the fourth quarter, with total RAN shedding nearly $4 [billion] for the full year 2023,” VP and RAN ruler Stefan Pongratz said on LinkedIn.
“It is not all bad news,” he commented. “The results in the quarter were actually slightly better than expected, partly due to robust 5G activity in China. Also, two out of the six tracked regions are declining rapidly (North America and Europe). However, market developments are more favorable outside of these regions.”
He said that the top RAN vendors are Huawei, Ericsson, Nokia, ZTE and Samsung. Not an American vendor in the top five, although Cisco fetched up at number six last time we checked!
At the core
The MCN market had its worst performance in revenue growth rate since the first quarter of 2017, but there may be some green shoots coming. Maybe!
On the mobile core slide, research director and all-around core caller Dave Bolan said, “When we say ‘we are cautiously optimistic’ about growth in 2024,' it depends on subscribers willing to upgrade their phones to 5G standalone models and the assumption that mobile network operators need to purchase more 5G core capacity."
The latest smartphones from Apple, Samsung and Google can all support 5G standalone (5G SA).
Bolan said that he wouldn’t speculate on which specific operators will go 5G standalone next but noted that: “Several have already installed a dual-mode core in preparation for launching their 5G cores,” he said.
“Some already offer 5G SA for the enterprise — it may be available to limited consumers on a trial basis — but the MNOs have not launched it commercially for the broader consumer market. Timing for the broader launch may be awaiting for more compatible 5G devices, or trialing the network to be sure it is ready for prime time.”
Bolan said that the top three MCN vendors are Huawei, Ericsson and Nokia.
You can bet your bottom dollar, this will be a big topic at Mobile World Congress.
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