NTIA Hears Carriers Want ORAN Push -- Not Mandates

Provide an open radio access network push for 5G, stopping short of a mandate, NTIA heard at virtual “listening session” Thursday, its second on the topic (see 2101280053). FCC members will vote March 17 on an ORAN notice of inquiry (see 2102240063).

AT&T is “very active” on ORAN and is now in trials, said Chris Boyer, vice president-global public policy. “It’s a complex issue,” he said. “It’s just a matter of time” before ORAN is a part of the carrier’s network, he said: “There are still some issues that have to be sorted out, and we’re doing a lot of work to do that. … It would be inappropriate to mandate a solution.”

The federal government shouldn’t ask providers to commit to adopting a specific architecture for their networks, agreed Brian Hendricks, Nokia Americas vice president-policy and government relations. Carriers face “an extremely complicated environment” and aren’t seeing a solution that meets all their needs, he said. Any federal demonstrations should focus on “easing the anxieties and showcasing the capabilities that operators want to see, not forcing them to make a commitment … on the adoption of a particular architecture,” he said.

Industry needs government incentives here, said Liam Madden, ‎Xilinx general manager-Wired and Wireless Group. “Time is not on our side.” U.S. companies sell limited network equipment, while ORAN offers “a diversity of opportunity,” Madden said. “As a country, we can’t afford to be in a position where we don’t have leading-edge technology know-how,” he said: “From a semiconductor point of view, we’re in an extremely strong position, but from a systems point of view, we’re not.”

Offer incentives for “homegrown” technology, not mandates, said Anirban Sengupta, Google senior director-Anthos. “Talk about the whole ecosystem.”

The supply of network radios comes from outside the U.S., said John Baker, Mavenir senior vice president-business development. That's “a critical issue that does need addressing,” he said. The U.S. is behind, he warned: “While U.S. policymakers have taken some positive steps, governments from South America to Asia to Europe are advancing aggressive policies to build their next-generation mobile networks … and preferencing local suppliers.”

The U.S. government can help by educating other governments about the benefits of ORAN, said Alex Botting, Open RAN Policy Coalition director-international programs. “It’s important that there’s ongoing information sharing between governments so that we’re not … making the same mistakes.” Some argue the U.S. should encourage more companies to participate in the standards process, said Dileep Srihari, Access Partnership senior policy counsel. The concern, he said, is the U.S. could be seen as “trying to politicize” the process.