The telecom cloud journey started about a decade ago with virtualization and cloudification of core network infrastructure. Now the cloud transformation is expanding from core to the edge network with virtualization of RAN (Radio Access Network) elements and industry focus on Open RAN. 5G’s introduction has further accelerated the virtualization of RAN so that service providers can dynamically create end-to-end slices from the core through the edge network to the end user device and help introduce and manage new services dynamically.
Multiple standards bodies are defining Open RAN specifications and there is a very healthy collaboration among the vendor and operator community to evaluate and deploy Open RAN. However, to take full advantage of the benefits of Open RAN, operators and vendors must develop a few new operational capabilities. Many of these capabilities are also applicable to virtual RAN deployments. Read more now.