Telefónica Argentina (Movistar) last week announced that it has deployed the first mobile communication network in South America based on Open RAN technology, covering 81,000 inhabitants in the city of Puerto Madryn, in Chubut.
IBM has led the systems integration, bringing together components and systems from multiple software and hardware vendors - including Altiostar, Red Hat, Quanta, Gigatera and Kontron, pre-integrating the solution and enabling its end-to-end deployment.
Open RAN is the most advanced radio access network technology, allowing interoperability that turns the radio network into an open cloud environment in which multiple providers can participate to generate a better and more efficient service network. Open RAN is growing in use across the region and is also being validated in Germany and the United Kingdom.
Open RAN technology will be key both for coverage in rural or sparsely populated areas as well as for areas with higher traffic density. The presence of an open network ecosystem will facilitate greater digitization in line with the New Digital Pact promoted by the company.
Bringing more intelligence to the network:in a digital environment, where the network becomes more complex, with Open RAN, operators can add intelligence, adapt software to different services and automate operations.
Adrian Di Meo, Movistar Technology Director
For Movistar, it is essential to evolve the network architecture towards an open Telco Cloud model based on an open ecosystem of providers, which allows generating a solid base to develop, in the future, the deployment of 5G.
Roberto Alexander, General Manager, IBM Argentina
IBM’s cloud technology and best-in-class system integration capabilities align to the choice and flexibility needs of the industry as mobile operators embrace Open RAN.
