5G Factor: MWC24 Preview – Innovations on the Rise

An Assessment of Key 5G-IoT Innovation Developments Including DTaaS' Growing Readiness, Multi-G Progress, and Wind River's Role in NTT DOCOMO vRAN Launch.

In this episode of The 5G Factor, our series that focuses on all things 5G, the IoT, and the ecosystem as a whole, I look at the top 5G innovations and what's going on that caught my eye in the lead up to MWC24. Key innovation developments include DTaaS making strides in China that indicate readiness for 5G deployments on a global scale, the Multi-G initiative's major industry support from key 5G value chain players such as Cohere, Intel, Juniper, VMware, and Mavenir, including top-tier operators Vodafone, Bell, and Telstra, and Wind River's pivotal role in the launch of NTT DOCOMO's first vRAN commercial service. 

My analytical review spotlighted:

DTaaS Ready for 5G Prime Time. Digital Twins as a service (or DTaaS) is emerging as a technology that can drive ecosystem-wide 5G innovation, since it can eliminate the need for users to deploy a local digital twin network system, thereby reducing system overhead and maintenance costs in 5G-related R&D. DTaaS built-in benefits include usability, sharing, flexibility, stability, security, and cost-effectiveness that can accelerate wireless network technologies and application innovation such as greater network self-intelligence, service quality improvement, and energy efficiency enhancements. In a Q4 2023 white paper, ZTE proposed a double closed-loop DTaaS architecture, including physical networks, digital twin networks and use cases. Double closed-loop refers to the twin closed-loop and the virtual reality closed-loop during the operation of the network. I examine why DTaaS can power 5G innovation in 2024 as it has already found its application in several regions of China, including port and high-speed railway use cases that use the technology to enhance network planning efficiency and cost optimization.

Cohere, Intel, Juniper, VMware, and Mavenir Fire up Multi-G Initiative. In Q2 2023, Cohere Technologies, Intel, Juniper Networks, Mavenir and VMware embarked on a collaboration to develop the industry's first framework for a multi-generational (Multi-G), software-based Open RAN architecture. The Multi-G initiative would define frameworks, interfaces, interoperability testing, and evaluation criteria that would provide the interfaces to support full coexistence of 4G, 5G, and future waveforms. Intel's FlexRAN platform is used by most current vRAN deployments; Mavenir has a strong presence in providing open RAN equipment and software; and Juniper Networks and VMware are both contributing their work with RIC development. Cohere's contribution is through its Universal Spectrum Multiplier software that can be integrated by RAN vendors or as an app into a telco cloud platform. I review why I see the initiative can ensure network programmable all the way from layer one to the highest layers of the mobile architecture. Plus, why it's a positive indicator that major operators such as Vodafone, Bell, and Telstra are already on-board to help advance performance and capacity benefits for all existing cellular networks as well as assisting the publication of the critical E2 interfaces into the relevant O-RAN Alliance and TIP Working Groups.

Wind River Studio Cloud Platform. Wind River delivers software for mission-critical intelligent systems, including Wind River Studio which is being used by NTT DOCOMO for its 5G virtualized network, which started commercial deployment in Japan during Q3 2023. For the launch of NTT DOCOMO's first vRAN commercial service, Wind River Studio Cloud Platform was integrated with Fujitsu's vCU and vDU along with the latest NVIDIA-converged accelerator. I assess how Studio Cloud Platform provides a fully cloud-native, Kubernetes- and container-based architecture, based on open-source software, for the development, deployment, operations, and servicing of NTT DOCOMO's distributed edge networks at scale.