Five years on, Rakuten Symphony’s opportunity to change telecom is greater than ever

Mickey Mikitani, Chairman and CEO, Rakuten Group

In August 2021, we launched Rakuten Symphony to prove that the global telecom industry could be different – to export the principles we had pioneered in Japan with Rakuten Mobile as the world’s first end-to-end, fully virtualized, cloud-native Open Radio Access Network.

Our vision was simple – to provide a future-proven, cost-effective cloud-native connectivity platform for other global mobile network operators.

Many derided us when we started building out Japan’s newest mobile network in 2018 – but to this day, Rakuten Mobile is living proof that mobile network operators don’t need to be bound to a single supplier, that a network can be deployed at twice the speed and run much more efficiently than the previously accepted status quo – all in one of the world’s most competitive, quality-conscious markets.

So much has changed since then. Rakuten Mobile has now marked itself out as a world-leading MNO in the ways it is deploying AI to deliver better operational outcomes and better customer service.

Rakuten Symphony’s software has had a far-reaching effect – and it offers the best way for MNOs across the world to transform their business. Our RAN software enabled the deployment of Europe’s first commercial-scale Open RAN – another market known for exceptionally high standards. Our OSS platform is helping AT&T transform its network operations in the United States. Our cloud-native storage is built into Google’s edge cloud services.

Meanwhile, with the support of the Japanese Government, we have worked to accelerate global Open RAN adoption to diversify the telecom supply chain and make networks more competitive and secure. Their support has allowed us to roll out initiatives in India, Ukraine, Vietnam, Kuwait, Kenya, Sri Lanka and more.

In Japan, Rakuten Mobile’s 10.75 million subscribers (as of June 2026) have enriched our ecosystem. After subscribing, they spend on average 30% more on Rakuten Card, 50% more on Rakuten Ichiba and 20% more on Rakuten Travel. Rakuten Mobile subscribers use on average 2.43 times more services than non-subscribers.

Rakuten Symphony has a major advantage – its ability to export this knowledge and expertise to support MNOs and enterprises with their transformation needs. This applies to their technology stacks, and perhaps more importantly, their business models.

As has been well documented, we are an ecosystem company that moved into telecom – many mobile operators are attempting to navigate that journey in reverse as they try to find new ways to apply their technology.

I cannot stress enough just how much of an opportunity lies in the data that telcos possess – they are sitting on a goldmine that has the potential to save many of them from becoming a utility. MNOs have more information than some of the biggest hyperscalers – the challenge for them is figuring out effective and ethical ways to glean value from it.

Rakuten is only scratching the surface when it comes to creating value from a mobile network through its ecosystem model, which understands customers based on the use of data and builds loyalty through Japan’s leading points program. We have data from roughly more than 3 trillion transactions every year – a vast amount of insight that we are turning into new value for our 45 million monthly active users.

It is only a matter of time before everyone realizes – and eventually acts upon that realization – why a fundamental change in network architecture is imperative. Connectivity is critically important, but in many ways, the mobile industry is trapped and heading in the wrong direction.

The last decade has clearly demonstrated why we cannot be complacent when it comes to the reliability of supply chains. The same principle applies to telecom. We need to redefine what a mobile network actually is.

For the health of the industry, we must encourage innovation in mobile networks – that means new technologies, more suppliers and more affordable plans for subscribers. Connectivity should be a universal right and affordable for all.

Rakuten Symphony’s technology stack is only getting better. Alongside Rakuten Mobile, it continues to mature and develop an increasingly sophisticated understanding of the best ways that mobile networks can be operated. Like AI models, our software, originally tried, tested and proven in Rakuten Mobile, gets better the more we learn.