Category: Ultra Broadband

The Ultra Broadband topics look to innovations in the access layer – fixed and mobile network innovations aiming to put “fat pipes” into the hands of the end-user.

Nvidia Aims to Make AI RAN Innovation Quicker, Easier, and More Scalable

by edgubbins, posted in Net Transformation, Ultra Broadband
Ed Gubbins, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:

• Nvidia is working to ease adoption of new AI RAN applications with tools for training, simulation, and deployment that leverage the power of AI to speed up and scale these processes.

• New offerings include automatic code translators, digital twin simulators, and an “AI-native 6G lab in a box.”


Source: Nvidia

Artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant Nvidia is continuing its drive toward ushering in a new age of AI-enhanced radio access networks (RANs) – tackling some of the hurdles facing this young ecosystem and working to make it easier for software application developers to innovate in the space.

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6G Developers Work to Reduce the Need for Radio Replacement

by edgubbins, posted in Net Transformation, Ultra Broadband
Ed Gubbins, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:

• Operators want 6G migration to be more software-centric and require less expensive radio installation than 5G.

• Stakeholders developing industry standards for 6G are making progress toward such goals.

As the mobile telecom industry continues to work on defining 6G – the next generation of mobile technologies, expected to meet commercial reality before the end of this decade – operators have been vocal about the ways they want 6G to be unlike 5G. In particular, they want to avoid the disappointing return on their 5G network rollout investments, including the expensive nationwide installation of large massive MIMO radio/antenna units.
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DOCSIS 5.0: Cable’s (Prolonged) Strive to Survive

by yalmadani, posted in Net Transformation, Ultra Broadband
Yousef Almadani, Senior Analyst

Summary Bullets:

• Comcast, Charter, and Broadcom are collaborating to develop a unified DOCSIS 5.0 standard.

• Despite fiber’s advantages, existing cable infrastructure can be upgraded to meet future demands, delaying full-scale fiber adoption – at least in the US.

Just when some analysts felt comfortable proclaiming DOCSIS 4.0 as cable’s final chapter, the mirage of DOCSIS 5.0 now seems to be taking shape. The development comes after a phase marked by ambiguous comments on what lies beyond DOCSIS 4.0. These references often hinted at DOCSIS 5.0 (a.k.a., 25G DOCSIS, or 3 GHz DOCSIS) whenever the future of cable was in question, particularly in comparison to PON.

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Ericsson Bolsters vRAN Partnership with Dell, Signaling a More Committed Market Approach

by edgubbins, posted in Net Transformation, Ultra Broadband, Vendor Transformation
Ed Gubbins, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:
• Ericsson is expanding its virtual RAN (vRAN) partnership with server maker Dell to include more joint solution development, customer engagement, and support.

• The deal shows each vendor taking a more committed approach to pursuing the vRAN market, interest in which has surged in the past two years.

Ericsson is strengthening its partnership with server maker Dell Technologies in the vRAN space this week, boosting what was a mere supplier agreement into more of a joint solution partnership. Continue reading “Ericsson Bolsters vRAN Partnership with Dell, Signaling a More Committed Market Approach” →

MWC24: Ericsson and Intracom Introduce New E-Band Backhaul Gear, While Ceragon Teases a Major New Product Arriving This Year

by edgubbins, posted in Net Transformation, Ultra Broadband
Ed Gubbins, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:

• At Mobile World Congress (MWC), Ericsson introduced a new E-band radio with increased power output to extend the length of backhaul connections, and Intracom added a beam-tracking antenna to maintain link alignment.
• Wireless backhaul specialist Ceragon promoted a long-awaited product it hopes to unveil later this year, the first product based on the vendor’s new in-house silicon: an E-band radio promising a capacity of 100 Gbps.

At MWC, network equipment vendors introduced a wave of new products to help operators continue their 5G rollouts, including a large number of new radios. Wireless backhaul vendors followed suit, though with far fewer new products.
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Nokia Brings the Family Jewels (FPcx) to the Access Network – Raises Expectations

by Glen Hunt, posted in SDN/NFV, Ultra Broadband
Glen Hunt, Principal Analyst
Summary Bullets:

• Operators are challenged to build access networks that transition from the 1G era to meet 10/100/400G service expectations. It is not only a bandwidth issue, but one of sustainability, flexibility, and the adaptability to deliver 5G services.

• Nokia’s move to adapt its FPcx silicon to fuel a new range of access and aggregation routers elevates the access layer as an integral part of the intelligent network and changes the game.

The access and aggregation routers of the past were based on platforms designed to deliver effective access and aggregation services for 1G to 10G services. Most were based on merchant silicon, which hosted a vendor’s network operating system and networking features, including platforms such as Nokia’s 7250 IXR. In contrast, the higher-scale IP services edge and IP core have been based on proprietary silicon, which delivered high-scale switching capacity, rich telemetry, and programmability needed to meet automate and meet stringent performance, power, and security requirements. The use of merchant silicon was widely adopted by equipment vendors to deliver solutions that kept pace with market demands, and a few vendors also leveraged programmable silicon such as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Part of the draw for merchant silicon was driven by operators who desired to minimize vendor dependance – i.e., the white box era.

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Verizon Explores P2MP mmWave – A Bright but Not-so-New Idea

by Emir Halilovic, posted in Ultra Broadband
Emir Halilovic, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:

• Verizon recently announced that it has tested point-to-multipoint (P2MP) millimeter wave (mmWave) radio for providing broadband to multi-dwelling units (MDUs) in urban areas.

• The idea is good, but practical issues abound – a startup ISP Starry, which fielded a similar solution to lackluster response, is just emerging from Chapter 11 restructuring.

In its bid to make the process of expanding its broadband footprint more efficient, Verizon announced it has tested a new use case for its mmWave network in Texas (US). In the proof of concept, a centralized rooftop radio site (“donor” cell) was connected to a radio atop a simulated MDU with multiple endpoints requiring separate broadband connections. The signal was then transmitted via coaxial cable to a data processing unit equipped with a corresponding modem. The building’s existing wiring was used to transport the signal to end-user routers that provide broadband coverage to endpoint devices. Unlike “traditional” FWA, the solution uses a simplified broadband network gateway (BNG) instead of the company’s 4G and 5G core – Verizon claims this allows for “excellent” latency and capacity while reducing the load on the CSPs 4G and 5G mobile cores.

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Jio’s Acquisition of Mimosa is Another Sign of Indian Telecom Transformation

by , posted in Ultra Broadband, Vendor Transformation
Ed Gubbins, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:

• Radisys, a RAN software provider owned by India’s Reliance Industries, is acquiring Mimosa Networks, which supplies fixed-wireless gear to Reliance’s mobile operator Jio.

• Both private and public investment dedicated to securing India’s telecom independence is surging in India as the country rolls out 5G.

Roughly four years after it acquired the company in late-2018, radio access networking (RAN) vendor Airspan recently announced it has agreed to sell Mimosa Networks, its fixed-wireless unit, to Radisys, a RAN software provider owned by Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries, for $60 million. In 2022, Mimosa reported about $25 million in revenue.

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Eutelsat and OneWeb: Can LEO+GEO Combination Compete with Starlink?

by Emir Halilovic, posted in Ultra Broadband

Summary Bullets:

Emir Halilovic, Principal Analyst
  • The Eutelsat and OneWeb merger brings two operators’ satellite constellations together, promising to combine strengths of 36 Eutelsat GEO satellites with OneWeb’s 648-strong LEO constellation.
  • Orchestrating services by utilizing both constellations will represent a significant network management challenge and an industry first.

The announced Eutelsat-OneWeb merger claims to be the world’s first combination of geostationary orbit (GEO) and low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations, creating an opportunity to utilize the advantages of both to address the growing market for satellite connectivity. The announcement mentions intentions of creating a single GEO/LEO services platform over time, which will provide services to customers using hybrid terminals. The intention of the merger makes sense conceptually: GEO platforms will provide superior per-unit capacity and compelling economics, while LEO satellites will provide ubiquitous coverage and low latency.

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The FCC-Proposed Faster Broadband Spells Tectonic Changes for US Broadband Ecosystem

by Emir Halilovic, posted in Ultra Broadband
Emir Halilovic, Principal Analyst

Summary Bullets:

  • US FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel proposed raising the national standard for broadband speeds to 100 Mbps/20 Mbps and resetting the long-term goal to 1 Gbps/500 Mbps (upload/download).
  • The speeds proposed would mean the end of a practical lifetime for legacy technologies like xDSL and earlier generations of cable, while opening a way for FWA and satellite broadband, especially in rural areas of the US.

Chairwoman Rosenworcel’s proposal still needs to be accepted by the bipartisan FCC. Once accepted, the national standard would likely be tied with access to federal funding for broadband development, which was boosted recently as a part of wider US government infrastructure investment program. As such, it would become a de facto standard in parts of the US, benefiting predominantly rural and sparsely populated areas where internet speeds slower than the proposed 100 Mbps/20 Mbps are still the norm.

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