Challenges in Open RAN testing embrace inconsistent output from OTICs, in line with trade consultants
It has been practically a decade because the telecom trade started its concerted push towards Open Radio Entry Networks (Open RAN). Open RAN gave the impression to be hitting its stride as revenues accelerated between 2019-2022, however then a RAN market slowdown beginning in 2023 interrupted its momentum.
Throughout 2024, the general RAN market recorded what Stefan Pongratz, VP of RAN market analysis at Dell’Oro Group, known as the “steepest full-year decline in additional than 20 years,” and Open RAN revenues fell 30% year-over-year throughout the first three quarters of the 12 months.
Nevertheless, Pongratz has indicated cautious optimism for the RAN market this 12 months, and forecasts that Open RAN revenues will develop and account for 5-10% of the overall RAN market. The “when” of Open RAN could also be pushed out, however it’s nonetheless a “when” slightly than an “if.”
Increase CTO touts Open RAN efficiency and adaptability
Whereas revenues and deployments might not have moved as shortly as hoped, Open RAN testing progress signifies different indicators of know-how maturity. O-RAN Alliance’s spring plugfest for 2025 ran by way of mid-Could, and its six themes have shifted away from fundamental conformance testing and towards use instances and functions of O-RAN to attain issues like power financial savings, system testing with Layer 1 acceleration and open fronthaul transport testing with a number of open radio items.
In the course of the current CTIA 5G Summit in Washington, D.C., Eben Albertyn, EVP and CTO of Open RAN community operator Increase Cell, touted not solely Open RAN’s flexibility, however its efficiency—and, amid a backdrop of accelerating geopolitical tensions, emphasised that its community was constructed utilizing solely know-how from American distributors and shut allies.
In January, Accenture and its testing unit, Umlaut, launched a report from drive- and walk-testing carried out in New York Metropolis which ranked Increase Cell over all three of the opposite nationwide cell community operators on information efficiency scores and information reliability (Verizon edged Increase out on voice-related metrics).
“Open RAN will not be a science experiment,” Albertyn declared on the 5G Summit. “It actually works.” He went on so as to add: “Open RAN not solely works, however it additionally offers completely unbelievable high quality. … You’ll be able to present the absolute best high quality in essentially the most aggressive and most troublesome surroundings utilizing these applied sciences.”
In keeping with Albertyn, Open RAN can be dwelling as much as guarantees of its flexibility. “This 12 months now we have modified two very vital parts of our structure, with out our prospects being conscious of it in any respect. And we did so in days, not months or years, like we’d have if we used a special structure,” he mentioned. “We have been in a position to do this as a result of we reside within the cloud, and subsequently we are able to innovate on the velocity of the cloud.”
Integration, configuration prospects and inconsistent OTIC outcomes are among the many present Open RAN testing challenges
Nevertheless, establishing interoperability and constant, repeatable methods to check and measure the conduct and efficiency of O-RAN components and programs has been one of many main challenges for the know-how. Discussions on the current Check and Measurement Discussion board occasion mirrored the real-world complexity that’s nonetheless taking part in out with Open RAN testing.
“Remember the fact that this isn’t a simple job,” cautioned Venkatesh “Venki” Ramaswamy, distinguished chief technologist for NextG at Mitre Labs. “That’s one thing that we already knew from the start, however that is an enormously advanced job placing this stuff collectively. So, we made loads of progress. We’re not there but.” He sees a present pattern towards Open-RAN-compliant options that come from the identical vendor—which doesn’t fairly reside as much as the thesis of Open RAN as supporting a various set of suppliers.
Nirlay Kundu, head of know-how requirements at analysis institute IMDEA Networks and a longtime veteran of Verizon, mentioned that he thinks success in Open RAN will come when service suppliers are literally in a position to simply combine and match radio items and distributed items from completely different distributors, with out further Open RAN testing being a heavy elevate. “For my part, it’s getting there, however it’s not there but,” Kundu mentioned. And, he added, the extra integration and testing prices make it unclear whether or not the overall price of possession (TCO) for Open RAN is definitely higher at this level.
One of many double-edged swords for Open RAN testing is lies within the number of configuration prospects.
“Let’s say that you’re getting [a radio unit] from vendor A, they usually have a given configuration for testing—and that configuration goes to be fairly completely different from a special vendor’s configuration,” Ramaswamy mentioned. That not solely makes it troublesome for the particular person conducting the assessments, however the configuration “will not be going to supply the identical set of conduct throughout completely different RU distributors.” Throw in a 3rd element, say, for scheduling, and the parameters immediately skyrocket.
“Even when you’ll be able to match one-on-one with these parameters, it’s unimaginable to get the identical conduct throughout these completely different parts,” Ramaswamy mentioned. “In order that makes [testing] very, very sophisticated; very, very time consuming; very, very inconsistent and never reproducible.”
Even amongst Open Check and Integration Facilities (OTICs), that are certified by O-RAN Alliance, testing outcomes might be inconsistent. Kundu mentioned that OTICs usually are not all equal when it comes to capabilities or testing assets for numerous layers. “In case you check sure interfaces or sure layers, it must be very, very constant. And we’re seeing that consistency will not be there,” he added.
Ramaswamy steered a accreditation program for OTICs that might certify not simply the labs’ help constant testing throughout labs. “Proper now, there’s nothing like that. So you can’t reproduce the outcomes that you just get from certainly one of them to the opposite,” he mentioned.
He steered that it could be useful to have the ability to create “pre-tested variations” of Open RAN community parts for particular verticals, which might help personal O-RAN networks and in addition be a place to begin, to which particular testing can be added for given use case or implementations. “Having a pre-integrated resolution the place you could have some confidence and a few belief for a given tools ecosystem for a given vertical, I believe that’s going to assist as properly. However the at first, in my view is to have the accreditation of the testing lab itself,” he added.
Kundu mentioned that he additionally wish to see extra test-result cross-checking from O-RAN Alliance, of which he’s a collaborating member. However he famous that one other hole is that service suppliers haven’t but jumped in to require particular parameters from the labs. Why? “As a result of the service supplier remains to be not assured of the repeatability of the outcomes,” he mentioned. “So what the Tier One service suppliers do is, even when it’s examined by the OTICs, they’ll do many of the testing in their very own labs themselves. That step shouldn’t be there.”
O-RAN will probably be profitable, he continued, on the level at when service suppliers have faith within the outcomes popping out of OTICs and may put a listing of necessities in an RFP, slightly than conduct in depth further system testing and integration themselves.
“Everyone knows that simply plugging completely different distributors collectively and standing again and turning on the on swap and hoping it’s going to work, it’s not the best way that it really works,” mentioned Simon Fletcher, chief technique officer from Small Cell Discussion board. He added that product improvement groups must be working with check and measurement firms to create standardized profiles for testing, and that this can be a gradual course of.
He added: “To some extent I’m listening to some frustrations that maybe we don’t make a lot progress, however I used to be at all times of the thought that this was not going to be a short-term achieve. You’ve actually acquired to stay at this. … However hopefully we are able to work by way of that over the following couple of years.”
Adam Smith, director of product advertising and marketing for testing firm LitePoint, made the purpose that whereas O-RAN interfaces might be “wildly sophisticated,” in different methods the know-how has made nice strides in the direction of a standardized software program check automation framework, regardless of disparities throughout distributors. “I believe what we have to transfer in the direction of is testing in the direction of a group of expertise,” he provided. “We’re discovering issues that fail in the true world, that don’t interoperate in the true world. And with the ability to feed that again into the check, I believe is essential, transferring ahead.”
For extra insights, watch the entire content material from Check and Measurement Discussion board on-demand, and take a look at the RCR Wi-fi Information Check and Measurement Market Pulse Report.
