In this interview, we’re joined by VMware’s Manish Shrestha as we dive into the transformative world of Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN) and discover how we’re progressing toward reshaping the telecommunications industry.
Critically, Open RAN is breaking down silos by enabling seamless interoperability between different vendors’ equipment, paving the way for a more flexible and cost-effective network architecture. However, despite the merits, the journey to adopting Open RAN isn’t without its hurdles.
In this quickfire Q&A, Shrestha highlights three key challenges telcos face on this transition: complexity, interoperability, and the feature parity gap between legacy RAN and Open RAN systems.
Here, he candidly shares insights on how APIs are crucial to overcoming these obstacles, emphasizing that “open APIs provide service providers a tool to make interoperability simpler.” Further, he also explains that by using APIs, telcos can leverage third-party applications for enhanced network optimization and monetization.
The conversation naturally gravitates to VMware’s own approach to APIs – one that provides a horizontal platform with automation and assurance, making it easier for service providers to collaborate with third-party applications and developers.
Thereafter, Shrestha also reflects on the current state of Open RAN. While asserting that “we are at the beginning where we started the journey,” he remains optimistic about future progress, noting the successful adoption of Open RAN by major players like AT&T.
Interested in the evolving landscape of telecommunications and the immense opportunities that Open RAN presents? Tune into the full interview for more.
Stephen Saunders:
Manish, what are the challenges that are being faced by telcos today when they're trying to migrate to an Open RAN environment?
Manish Shrestha:
Steve, what we see that operators are facing challenges to move to Open RAN in terms of complexity, in terms of for interoperability, and to a certain extent, in terms of the feature parity gap between legacy RAN and Open RAN.
Stephen Saunders:
Fantastic. And obviously we're hearing a lot about APIs and programmability. How do they help? What are the benefits they deliver, Manish?
Manish Shrestha:
Open APIs provide service providers a tool to make the interoperability simpler. It also provides a tool to open the network to the third-party applications for applications for the network optimization as well as for the monetization of the network.
Stephen Saunders:
When you say monetization, I mean, how does that work? How does deploying APIs help me monetize my RAN network?
Manish Shrestha:
If we have a standard API, we can attract more application developers to develop application in our telco platform. For example, if we take the SIEM API from CAMARA Project, if we can implement a fraud detection application on the top of it, if we take example of US, we have 200 million mobile banking users that the application developer can provide services. They can work with the AT&T, Verizons, TMOs of the world, along with the banks to provide this kind of application that helps to attract more and more talent for new applications.
Stephen Saunders:
Does VMware have a unique approach to the way that it approaches APIs? Is there a sort of USP about what you're doing which differentiates you from everybody else?
Manish Shrestha:
Our approach to API is to provide a horizontal platform with automation and assurance so that the service provider can work with the third-party application to develop applications in our platform easily, deploy it and monitor it. At the same time also, we provide our expertise in the Enterprise sites to connect the service providers with Enterprise so that they can use the APIs with the 5G network to interwork with other technology like SD-WAN to monetize 5G network as well.
Stephen Saunders:
Interesting. So combination of these APIs and programmability with the concept of RAN is designed to sort of create this open, peaceable kingdom, which we haven't had before in the radio access network. And ultimately, when you have competition, it's supposed to bring down prices and improve. Is that happening today or are we just at the beginning of this journey?
Manish Shrestha:
So that's a good question. So we have seen that the Open RAN is competitive in terms of pricing with the legacy RAN from CapEX perspective, challenging the OpEx side.
What we have seen is that for the greenfield deployment, Open RAN is the choice. In the brownfield service provider side doing the trial, they're also deploying in limited scale in the rural environment, et cetera. But with the new knowledge and automation and assurance technologies that are being available in our platform, for example, service providers will be able to deploy it easily from day zero, day one and day two perspective that will help them to implement the Open RAN in their network more easily going forward.
Stephen Saunders:
So, are we at the beginning of the journey, the middle, approaching the end? Where are we in the gestation process of Open Radio Area Networks, Radio Access Networks?
Manish Shrestha:
I would say we are at the beginning where we started the journey. There's a long way to go, I would say. But we have seen the service providers like this has deployed the Open RAN and we are also seeing that operators like AT&T moving with the Open RAN as well. So we are seeing a lot of traction in moving to the Open RAN direction.