The UK government has announced two new laboratories to speed up the development, testing and deployment of 5G OpenRAN technology.
One of the new SONIC Labs will be located in London and the other in Brighton. These facilities will allow multiple manufacturers to supply components for 5G radio equipment and test their interoperability and performance before real-world rollouts.
Digital Infrastructure Minister Matt Warman officially opened the SONIC Labs at a virtual event. He commented:
“I’m thrilled that SONIC Labs is opening its doors to the wealth of telecoms expertise we have in this country to explore new ways of building 5G networks.
Our investment is a crucial element of our strategy to tackle the world’s over-reliance on a small number of telecoms vendors by growing our own cutting-edge solutions at home.
I look forward to seeing how the lab will help deliver the social and economic benefits of new technology for people around the UK.”
OpenRAN promotes supply-chain diversity by enabling smaller vendors to produce interoperable, standards-based products.
Beyond the competition and cost benefits, OpenRAN reduces operators’ dependence on single vendors. If equipment from a particular supplier is compromised or becomes unavailable, the broader network impact is reduced because operators can mix and match components from different providers.
Governments worldwide support OpenRAN for its security and resilience benefits. Last month, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission announced an OpenRAN showcase scheduled for 29 June 2021.
Jessica Rosenworcel, Acting Chairwoman of the FCC, said the showcase aims to make OpenRAN information more accessible and to connect stakeholders so companies can keep innovating and operators are encouraged to invest in network security. “If we do these things right, we have an opportunity to build a bigger market for more secure 5G equipment,” she added.
The UK has been especially proactive in promoting OpenRAN. The government’s strong support is likely influenced by national security concerns that led to the UK’s decision to ban Huawei equipment from its networks. That move prompted operators to remove and replace affected hardware, a process that has been costly in time and money.
All major UK operators previously used Huawei equipment across multiple generations of networks and some had started 5G rollouts using that vendor’s gear prior to the ban. The transition away from that equipment has been a major driver for exploring alternative and more diverse supply options like OpenRAN.
SONIC Labs will be operated by the UK telecoms regulator Ofcom in partnership with the government innovation agency Digital Catapult.
Dame Melanie Dawes, Chief Executive of Ofcom, said:
“SONIC Labs is an exciting project that gives us the opportunity to explore how new telecoms technology could operate in the UK market.
It’s all about bringing innovation to our communications networks — helping to support fast, secure and reliable connections for the future.
A number of companies are already getting involved and we look forward to more joining too.”
Joe Butler, CTO of Digital Catapult, added:
“In SONIC Labs we are experimenting to make interoperability a reality.
This effort supports our mission to drive UK capability in advanced digital technology and we are grateful to Ofcom for working with us in this partnership and to DCMS for the opportunity to leverage the 5G testbeds we have developed.”
Vendors already participating in SONIC Labs include Accelleran, Mavenir, Radisys, Benetel, Phluido, Druid and Effnet.
The government says it will collaborate closely with industry, Ofcom, academia and other stakeholders to ensure the UK’s mobile infrastructure supports the country’s ambition to rebuild stronger after the pandemic, delivering social and economic benefits across the nation.
(Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash)
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