UK invests R$530 million for 35% of RAN traffic in 2030 – Digital Convergence

The UK government has injected £88 million – R$530 million – to fund 19 OPRN projects, part of the Open Networks Ecosystem (ONE) competition. The 19 successful projects will demonstrate the reliability and viability of open radio access network technologies.

The projects will conduct open trials of the 5G network in key areas of the UK. Locations including major urban centers of Glasgow, Cambridge, Liverpool, Bath and London; Various sports and entertainment venues. As well as the seaside resorts of Blackpool and Worthing.

It will be implemented by March 2025, and is part of the government’s Open Networks R&D Fund, dedicated to building secure and resilient communications infrastructure – which is another way of saying the UK is closing its doors on some suppliers.

Leading mobile network operators including BT/EE, Three UK, Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone have endorsed the Open RAN principles in the UK. The government and mobile network operators have signed a memorandum of understanding aiming for 35% of UK network traffic to pass through Open RAN technologies by 2030.

ONE Competition is part of the UK. The government’s strategy to diversify the 5G telecom supply chain is worth around £250 million.