DTW (Digital Transformation World)
Rakuten’s 5G-ready network will give it a massive cost advantage
Japanese Internet company Rakuten says that it can build a 5G network for just a third of what it would cost using the approach taken by a traditional LTE operator. The claims made by CTO Tareq Amin at this week’s Digital Transformation World conference in Nice, France, suggest that the company will take a highly disruptive approach when it launches its LTE service in October.
16 May 2019
Rakuten’s 5G-ready network will give it a massive cost advantage
Japanese Internet company Rakuten says that it can build a 5G network for just a third of what it would cost using the approach taken by a traditional LTE operator. The claims made by CTO Tareq Amin at this week’s Digital Transformation World conference in Nice, France, suggest that the company will take a highly disruptive approach when it launches its LTE service in October.
The comments come just two months after Rakuten told another set of conference delegates at MWC in Barcelona that its total cost of ownership was 45% below other leading telecoms operators around the world.
Amin said this week that Rakuten would be passing on its substantial cost savings to customers. While the company has yet to disclose details of the services it will be offering beyond core communications services, many characteristics of the Rakuten are beginning to emerge:
The comments come just two months after Rakuten told another set of conference delegates at MWC in Barcelona that its total cost of ownership was 45% below other leading telecoms operators around the world.
Amin said this week that Rakuten would be passing on its substantial cost savings to customers. While the company has yet to disclose details of the services it will be offering beyond core communications services, many characteristics of the Rakuten are beginning to emerge:
- The experience will be digital first. Rakuten has contracted with Netcracker to build its business support system (BSS). This will leverage Rakuten’s existing identity capabilities. Rakuten views its users as members rather than customers or subscribers.
- Onboarding will be much quicker than is the case for current mobile users. Rakuten will reduce the time to activate new customers from 2 to 3 hours to just 10 minutes.
- Consistent with Rakuten’s core business and value proposition, cash back will be offered as part of the value proposition of buying products and services (including mobile services) on the member platform.
- Amin talked this week about “content rich, customer-driven connectivity”. The implication here is that the company will bundle value-added into its core proposition and that this content will be personalised based on the information that Rakuten has about each of its member’s tastes and preferences.
Amin also gave a detailed explanation of the company’s network and operational support systems approach. Key focus areas include:
- Building a core network that will only need a software updgrade in the transition to 5G
- A fully virtualized radio access network that enables it to completely remove the need for field technicians
- Separation of the control plane and user plane
- Simplification of hardware requirements with just four types of servers needed across the technology function
Watch Amin discuss the company's strategy in this video filmed at Digital Transformation world.