From matcha to milestones: Rakuten’s week at MWC 2025
MWC Barcelona 2025 has come to a close, and what a week it was! The world’s largest and most influential connectivity event saw 109,000 visitors from 205 countries convene in Barcelona to discuss the future of the industry, marking a return to pre-pandemic attendance levels. Over the span of four jam-packed days at the Fira Barcelona Gran Via, 2,900 exhibitors and an extensive conference program made this year’s MWC a true global stage for innovation.
Returning to Barcelona, Rakuten brought its unique sense of hospitality as it welcomed guests to the bustling Rakuten booth, which featured a diverse schedule of theater presentations and discussions, interactive experiences with tech leaders and developers, and more meetings and sideline chats than we can count.
A Scenic Start to the Week
Rakuten kicked off the week with an exclusive pre-MWC event on Sunday evening at Rakuten TV’s Barcelona headquarters. Amid a backdrop of breathtaking panoramic views – from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sagrada Família cathedral – the intimate gathering brought together 50+ analysts, industry experts, and senior Rakuten leaders. Following welcome remarks from Rakuten Group Chairman and CEO Mickey Mikitani, Masum Mir from Cisco, Diane Rinaldo from the Open RAN Policy Coalition and Rakuten Mobile co-CEO & Rakuten Symphony President Sharad Sriwastawa joined a conversation, led by AvidThink Founder and Principal Roy Chua.
Crimson and matcha
With its striking, two-story crimson booth, Rakuten’s presence in the exhibition hall did not go unnoticed. Designed to inspire and connect, the Rakuten Booth became a hub of activity throughout the week. Visitors enjoyed freshly made matcha and Japanese-inspired snacks and treats, explored interactive demos, and engaged with Rakuten experts to learn more about the company’s cutting-edge solutions.
MWC Barcelona attendees have come to expect inspiring and provocative speeches and presentations from Rakuten and our partners. This year featured more than 40 such sessions on topics ranging from agentic AI and the proliferation of edge cloud, to the power of ecosystems for open networks.
Leaders take to the stage
One of many standout moments of the week was a special fireside session with Mickey Mikitani and AST SpaceMobile’s Abel Avellan, who discussed the future of connectivity and innovative solutions to bridge the digital divide – including the goal to offer satellite-to-mobile services across Japan.
Next, Rakuten Mobile co-CEO and Rakuten Symphony President Sharad Sriwsatawa presented his vision for data monetization, detailing the financial benefits of operating an open mobile network linked to a robust ecosystem of Rakuten services.
The Rakuten International Showcase brought together Rakuten International CEO Amit Patel, Rakuten TV and Rakuten France CEO Cedric Dufour, and Rakuten Viber VP of Marketing Atanas Raykov to highlight the strength of Rakuten’s global ecosystem and its ability to create synergies across industries.
Rakuten partners were welcomed to share insights as well. Speakers from Google Cloud, Tech Mahindra, Airspan, and many more inspired an audience of mobile network operators, industry vendors, media, tech enthusiasts and government officials.
Big announcement from Barcelona
MWC 2025 was also a platform for a plethora of major announcements for Rakuten and its partners. Rakuten Symphony announced Cisco, Airspan, and Tech Mahindra as the first partners for its “Real Open RAN Licensing Program,” a significant step forward in driving Open RAN adoption globally.
Rakuten Symphony revealed a new partnership with Isbel to deliver Open RAN, Cloud, and OSS solutions to mobile network operators in Latin America, marking the company’s ambition to expand its global reach.
Additionally, Rakuten Mobile announced a partnership with Fujitsu to accelerate 5G network expansion, while taking the opportunity to reveal that its subscriber base has surpassed 8.5 million as of February 27, 2025, nearly five years after its full-scale launch as a mobile network operator.
A week to remember
From the exclusive pre-event at Rakuten TV HQ to the company’s dynamic Booth Theatre program, MWC 2025 was a strong showcase of Rakuten’s vision for the future of connectivity. Ending the week strong, the company was also recognized with a GLOMO award for “Best Mobile Innovation for Digital Life” for Rakuten NEO, which offers an effective way to manage unmanned workplace spaces is via AI-based space operation automation technology.
As we continue to lead the way in telecom, cloud, and beyond, we’re excited to build on this momentum and empower industries around the world.
