Nokia has licensed Juniper’s RAN Clever Controller (RIC) know-how from HPE and absorbed its 45-person growth crew, enhancing its MantaRay SMO platform with AI-powered automation for multi-vendor 5G and open RAN networks.
In sum – what to know:
AI property – licensing deal provides Nokia entry to Juniper’s RIC IP and engineers, not a full acquisition.
HPE extras – the transfer follows HPE’s $14bn Juniper takeover and associated regulatory circumstances.
6G prep – integration strengthens Nokia’s AI-driven RAN automation and prepares it for 6G evolution.
Fascinating from Nokia; a bit of late from RCR – as everybody has reported, the Finnish vendor has agreed a take care of HPE to “acquire entry” to its RAN Clever Controller (RIC) property, housed inside its newly-acquired Juniper Networks enterprise, along with its related RIC growth crew. The association has been reported as an acquisition, in some locations, however is in actual fact a licensing deal for the mental property (IP) itself; the engineering knowhow, within the type of 45 employees, have transferred to Nokia, and can take up place in its ‘cell networks’ enterprise.
The ink has solely simply dried on HPE’s acquisition drawn-out buy of Juniper Networks, which mixes the second- and third-largest enterprise wi-fi local-area community (LAN) distributors. Regulatory approvals for the $14 billion deal had been sealed on each side of the Atlantic in August; the Division of Justice (DoJ), particularly, had performed exhausting ball, and ultimately stipulated a sure circumstances together with the sale of its Prompt On line of enterprise Wi-Fi {hardware}, licensing of its Mist AI supply code to rivals, plus licensing of different software program to rivals.
It seems to be just like the RIC association with Nokia, throughout the 180-day mark set down by the DoJ, is a consequence of these phrases. A technique or one other, Juniper’s RIC platform, initially geared for the open RAN market, has been jettisoned by its new dad or mum, successfully, and Nokia, enjoying catch-up with Ericsson for RIC componentry in open RAN programs, has stepped in – and given it a brand new dwelling, underneath Tommi Uitto, president of cell networks on the agency. Nokia will combine it with its MantaRay service administration and orchestration (SMO) platform for RAN automation.
As a result of the RIC mechanism isn’t just about orchestration, after all; it gives the intelligence layer for network-based AI. Primarily, it turns uncooked community telemetry into actionable insights – for predictive upkeep, dynamic useful resource allocation, and zero-touch operations. By integrating it into MantaRay, Nokia could make higher use of RAN information to drive AI for optimization, automation, and decision-making throughout multi-vendor 5G and open RAN networks, and in addition put together for the 6G period.
The MantaRay is already able to reaching level-four autonomy, per TM Discussion board’s ranking for autonomous networks. It’s totally open RAN compliant and helps open R1 interface for RAN purposes (rApps), the software program modules that run on the non–real-time RAN Clever Controller (RIC). Uitto mentioned the deal will “additional strengthen” Nokia’s MantaRay SMO portfolio. “Clients… will profit from the improved capabilities of Nokia’s AI-driven automation, orchestration and open ecosystems, enabling them to handle multi-vendor networks extra effectively and put together for the transition from 5G to 6G.”
