UPDATE Just when it seemed like the industry had enough (or too many) Open RAN intelligent controllers (RIC), NTT DOCOMO has just announced it is developing another one. RICs, which use software to automatically control and optimize RAN functions, play a role in interconnecting with multi-vendor base stations.
Working with the O-RAN Alliance, DOCOMO will verify different types of RIC application software by different vendors with the aim of optimizing and controlling multi-vendor base-station operating parameters. DOCOMO will also demonstrate how its envisioned RIC can intelligently optimize effective use of radio frequency through new RIC application software that controls antenna beams when signals are transmitted from base stations.
There has been other action recently in RICs, with industry OEMs jockeying to dominate the market. Late in February, Cohere Technologies and Mavenir announced their collaboration to accelerate the transition from proprietary RANs to a Multi-generational Open RIC solution.
SNS Telecom & IT estimates that global spending on RIC platforms will reach $120 million in 2023 as initial implementations move from field trials to production-grade deployments. With commercial maturity, the submarket is further expected to rise to nearly $600 million by the end of 2025.
With more than a dozen RICs in the marketplace, Joe Madden, Principal Analyst at Mobile Experts, said consolidation is inevitable. “It’s impossible for an app developer to support so many different versions of their application,” he said.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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