Historically associated with using beauty contests to allocate mobile spectrum, Japan took a major step towards staging its first auction in 2022. Read more...

Japanese operator SoftBank is a segment of the SoftBank Group, which describes itself as a "capital provider driving the Information Revolution". It says it has been at the forefront of key technical shifts, from computers to the internet and from broadband to smartphones. Its focus now is on the "next… Read more...

NTT Docomo remains Japan's largest telecom provider. It also offers mobile services in the Philippines, Taiwan and Guam, as well as various ICT, enterprise and R&D services globally. It is a key player in 5G, 6G and Open RAN activities. Read more...

UK-headquartered Vodafone Group aims to "build a digital society that enhances socioeconomic progress, is inclusive for all and does not come at a cost to our planet". It has 323 million mobile customers and operates in 21 countries. It offers broadband, TV, Internet of Things, financial and other services. Its… Read more...

Some administrations are choosing to wait for WRC-23 before making a decision on the 6 GHz band, but others, notably in the Americas and the Middle East, are proceeding to open the full band for unlicensed use. Read more...

Many 5G policy visions are described as piecemeal, uncoordinated and lacking in actionable measures. 6G policy planning is different. In learning from the past, a number of countries are seeking to develop more integrated and comprehensive strategies, drawing on a diverse range of stakeholders and leveraging cross-border partnerships. Read more...

There has been significant uptake of B5G (beyond 5G) and 6G R&D initiatives in many countries, along with a growing pool of regional and cross-border collaborations. Many of these initiatives involve diverse stakeholder participation and long-term funding models focused on building broad 6G ecosystems. Read more...

While Japan’s Rakuten and Dish in the US have launched greenfield Open RAN networks, India’s Jio missed its Q2 2021 launch date for its 5G rollout. In Germany, newcomer 1&1 is planning its greenfield play that will be built and managed by Rakuten. This research note outlines the Open RAN… Read more...

One thing that Open RAN has in common with traditional network deployments is the need for sufficient spectrum. Similarly, delays in the availability of spectrum affect operator plans for both 5G and Open RAN. Policymakers are increasingly supporting the Open RAN movement and many are implementing measures to promote Open… Read more...

Despite its critics, the Open RAN movement continues to take shape in 2022, expanding beyond greenfield operators to a growing number of brownfield operators with plans for the phased integration of Open RAN and vRAN into legacy networks. Among brownfield operators, there is a trend to promote shared Open RAN… Read more...