Europe’s first fully virtualized, Open RAN-based mobile network is making strides: Friendly User Test success in July
On August 4, 2022, at its second quarter earnings results, 1&1 shared an update on the progress of the buildout of Germany’s fourth mobile network – and the signs look great.
Network buildout progressing smoothly
According to the update, 1&1 and its partners, including Rakuten Symphony, initiated operation of the first antennas and data centers in the first half of 2022, and the expansion in the urban areas is progressing. As required by the expansion obligations relating to the 5G frequencies, 1&1 will cover 50 per cent of households in Germany by the end of 2030 – a goal that the company is confident it will exceed.
Great results from first Friendly User Test for fixed wireless access: speeds of 1 gigabit per second, latency times of 3 milliseconds
As the wireless network will initially be available solely in the proximity of these locations, 1&1 is starting with 5G mobile services as an alternative to landline connections. On this basis, a fixed-network replacement product implemented via mobile communications was tested under real conditions in a Friendly User Test (FUT) launched in July.
The 1&1 OpenRAN delivered the predicted performance values with speeds of 1 gigabit per second, latency times of 3 milliseconds for gaming applications in the EDGE cloud, and stable data transfers of more than 8 terabytes per customer within 24 hours.
In the coming months, additional functions will begin operation in 1&1’s network. They will include in particular telephony, for which the 1&1 OpenRAN will be connected to networks in Germany and abroad. Once these steps have been completed, presumably in the second half of 2023 – the national roaming services agreed with Telefonica Germany will be activated, enabling 1&1 to offer to its customers nationwide reception even during the rollout phase.
For further input on 1&1’s financial results and network roll-out, please visit: https://www.1und1.ag/investor-relations-en
