1&1 contracts Rakuten for German 5G Open RAN network

Germany’s 1&1 AG has given a fillip to Open RAN and the Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP) by contracting Rakuten Group to help build its new mobile network, which will be Germany’s fourth.

1&1 AG currently operates as a MVNO. In 2019 it acquired a 5G licence in Germany for 70 MHz spectrum at a cost of approximately EUR 1.07 Billion. Its choice of partner to build a virtualized Open RAN 5G network points to Rakuten’s potential to shake up the telecoms industry.

“The Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP) and Rakuten Symphony has the potential to be very disruptive in the telco supply chain and here we see 1&1 Drillisch added to the list of around 20 CSPs worldwide opting to engage with Rakuten as their main contractor for a 5G network build,” according to Dean Ramsay, principal analyst, TM Forum.

The RCP platform could make business sense for smaller communications service providers, such as 1&1 that are looking to launch swiftly, Ramsay explains.

“RCP customers can access an online marketplace where they can choose and deploy components to their own cloud-native, virtualized 5G mobile network utilizing Open RAN, so it’s a really attractive prospect for smaller MNOs that have some spectrum and want to get up and running quickly.”

Drawing on experience

Rakuten, which also started life as an MVNO, went into commercial service with its fully virtualized cloud-native OpenRAN mobile network in April 2020 in Japan. This month it announced the acquisition of U.S.-based virtual and Open RAN company, Altiostar Networks, Inc., in which it already owned a stake. The purchase valued Altiostar in excess of USD 1 billion.

Rakuten will be responsible for both building 1&1’s active network equipment and the overall performance of 1&1’s mobile network, according to a release issued by 1&1. In addition, 1&1 will have access to the Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP) stack of access, core, cloud and operations solution, its partner network and Rakuten’s orchestration software, which can be used to automate much of its network operations.

This combination of technology and experience could prove helpful to 1&1, given the size of the challenge of launching a new 5G network and competing in the German mobile services market against Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica Germany and Vodafone.

“RCP is it is not only a set of cloud native network building blocks, but access to a knowledge base of what Rakuten have already achieved in Japan, that aspect of the proposition can’t be underestimated. 1&1 Drillisch has been an MVNO, which is where Rakuten started in consumer mobile, but the transition to being a network operator is a big leap, so it makes perfect sense for 1&1 to take this route and avoid the costly trial and error themselves,” says Ramsay.

Network automation

Network construction is due to start in the last quarter of 2021. The core network will be supported by four central data centers, connected to hundreds of decentralized data centers throughout Germany, which in turn will be linked to thousands of antenna sites nationally, according to the German operator. 1&1's sister company Versatel will supply the data centers and fiber optic network links.

“Together we are building a high-performance mobile network that has extensive automation and agility to fully exploit the potential of 5G," says Ralph Dommermuth, CEO of 1&1 AG in a release. "Through complete virtualization and the use of standard hardware, we can flexibly combine the best products. This will make us a manufacturer-independent innovation driver in the German and European mobile market.”

1&1 is not the only German operator deploying Open RAN. Deutsche Telekom announced its first multivendor Open RAN in the north-eastern German town of Neubrandenburg, delivering 4G and 5G services from an initial 25 macro cell sites, including massive MIMO capabilities. The deployment is a genuine multivendor deployment with equipment supplied by Dell, Fujitsu, Intel, Mavenir, NEC and Supermicro, according to Ramsay.

Nevertheless, 1&1's new partnership raises fresh questions about how vendors should approach their relationship with Rakuten. “On the software side, Rakuten has been building a partner base of OSS/BSS/network vendors to deploy cloud native microservice architected solutions as part of their new deployments. So new deals like this certainly strengthen the value proposition for vendors to enter into partner arrangements with Rakuten rather than see the RCP as just an outright competitor,” says Ramsay.