ORAN Seen Poised for Widespread Deployment in 2 Years: Jabil Survey

Nearly two-thirds of telecom decision-makers in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific think it will take another one to three years before 5G technology becomes mainstream, a Jabil poll found. “Continued growth in 5G complexity and diversity creates a wealth of opportunities as well as obstacles for traditional telco service providers, equipment manufacturers and software developers,” said Emanuele Cavallaro, Jabil president-communications and networking.

Jabil, the contract manufacturer of 5G mobile devices and wireless infrastructure products, hired SIS International Research to canvass 193 executives directly involved in the development, implementation or adoption of 5G technologies, it said. It found 59% of respondents think the 5G transition will create opportunities for new telecom companies, while 53% believe it will deliver new business models, it said.

Spectrum availability is “the most difficult technology challenge” for the 5G transition, said 32% of the respondents canvassed, said Jabil. Virtually all those polled believe 5G “will foster partnerships between service providers and software or web services companies,” it said.

Jabil’s survey participants “are not completely sold” on the idea that a yet-to-be-devised “killer app” holds the key to “unlocking 5G’s true potential,” said the company. Only 42% of respondents strongly agreed a killer app is needed to propel 5G, it said. More than half the respondents (58%) think the next 5G killer app will come from the business world, with a fifth (20%) looking at consumer-facing apps to accelerate adoption, it said.

Telecom decision-makers “are bullish about 5G’s prospects,” said Jabil, with 65% citing 5G as “a superior technology that will dramatically transform telecommunications.” That finding is up 16 points from a similar survey question in Jabil’s 2018 poll, it said.

Business model challenges for 5G “remain problematic” among those canvassed, with 31% citing the creation of subscription models as the top impediment, followed by government regulations (27%) and erosion of market share by over-the-top providers (25%), said Jabil. Operational challenges have subsided since the 2018 survey, but 32% of respondents said network mapping still cause problems, and 31% called a lack of 5G-enabled devices a significant headwind.

Interest in and adoption of open radio access network 5G has continued to expand, “along with its potential to transform networks with the prospect of open hardware, software and interfaces for interoperable, cellular wireless networks,” said Jabil. Most of those polled (57%) believe ORAN will be ready for widespread deployment alongside 5G within the next two years, it said.

Most survey respondents (55%) said they're seriously considering an ORAN strategy, and another 22% reported already having a viable ORAN strategy, said Jabil. Survey participants across the board believe ORAN will reduce capital and operational expenditures, it said.