While mobile operators and equipment manufacturers often pursue energy efficiency as a cost-saving measure, researchers and academics have set out sustainability as a pillar upon which to build their vision of 6G. Read more...

Eutelsat is a French satellite company which operates a fleet of 36 GEO (geostationary orbit) satellites covering Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the Americas. In June 2022, the company announced plans for a merger with satellite company OneWeb. 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...

Support for Open RAN continues to grow, although the path forward for the Open RAN ecosystem remains unclear. In a series of research notes, PolicyTracker outlines the development of the Open RAN movement, the benefits claimed for Open RAN and how it is being implemented by both green and brownfield… 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...

The proliferation of a diverse range of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), particularly those operating at low-altitude, is challenging traditional air traffic management systems where traditional airspace classifications and rules of flight do not map to drone operations. Read more...

Spectrum allocated for satellite services and/or mobile broadband are increasingly being considered for UAS. In 2022, battle lines are forming between supporters and opponents of WRC-23 satellite allocations enabling beyond line of sight C2 link for UAS. Read more...

Several international and national bodies are working to provide protected aviation spectrum for use by safety critical applications. Read more...

Flying at very low-altitude, small drone operations have generally relied on the use of unlicensed, unprotected spectrum resources. This framework is neither appropriate nor sustainable for the burgeoning low- to medium-altitude Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) sector. In 2022, two key barriers to UAS take-off remain – the feasibility of UAS… Read more...