Global Operators Collaborate with Industry Partners to Facilitate O-RAN Testing and Integration

Leading Tier 1 operators driving a common goal to accelerate multi-vendor, open and disaggregated next gen 5G wireless infrastructure by providing test and integration centers to facilitate product readiness.

HONG KONG, Sept. 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Open Test and Integration Center (OTIC) initiative was launched today, led by a group of global operators, vendors and integrators. China Mobile and Reliance Jio along with participation from China Telecom, China Unicom, Intel, Radisys, Airspan, Baicells, CertusNet, Mavenir, Lenovo, Ruijie Network, Inspur, Samsung Electronics, Sylincom, WindRiver, ArrayComm, and Chengdu NTS are collaborating on multi-vendor interoperability and validation activities for realizing O-RAN compliant disaggregated 5G access infrastructure that leverages open software and hardware hardened for commercial deployments.

The OTIC initiative is an operator-led collaboration with the aim to facilitate OEM and other open source products and solutions to be functionally compliant to the specifications of the O-RAN Alliance, through verification, integration and testing of disaggregated RAN components and to deliver the desired architecture that supports a plug-n-play model.

"O-RAN Alliance is driving RAN innovation to address operational efficiencies, mobile broadband traffic growth, and vertical industry requirements with the necessary flexibility and agility. Its disaggregated architecture focuses on open interfaces, open source software, open hardware reference design, and embedded AI/ML and data analytics. CMCC will initiate an OTIC in Beijing, China, which should provide the common platform for solutions to be operationally ready to enable end-to-end interoperability and deployment in scale; as well as to be hardened for reliability, performance, scalability, and security that operator networks require," said Dr. Li Zhengmao, EVP of China Mobile.

"Jio is creating an OTIC to accelerate the telecom industry transformation by driving ready-for-commercialization products and solutions that allow operators to fully realize industry standard, interoperable O-RAN based open platform deployments. We will work with industry partners, including the O-RAN Alliance, operators, OEMs, SOC providers, and SIs, offering a platform for innovation and cooperative development with enhanced tools, systems, and automation. This platform will be inherently interoperable, programmable, and economically disruptive through its creation of a robust ecosystem for O-RAN compliant products and solutions," said Mathew Oommen, President, Reliance Jio.