Rakuten Symphony is bringing true telco transformation to MWC Barcelona
Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona is the largest gathering of the mobile networking industry worldwide, drawing telecom innovators and leaders eager to discuss the ideas and technologies that will “shape the future of connectivity.” It’s a place for industry players, large and small, to connect, pitch their vision and plot out what’s next.
In reality, “what’s next” for industry leaders has too often meant “more of the same.” More futuristic visions of VR surgery and flying cars, more 10-year sales cycles for the latest “G,” and all of it to the detriment of mobile operators and customers.
This year, however, Rakuten Symphony is taking a different approach. Hot off the heels of major announcements this week about Symworld — a platform to help telecom operators scale at the speed of cloud — and ambitious European expansion, Rakuten Symphony will seek to challenge the traditional industry approach to “what’s new,” with a busy schedule of product demonstrations, panels, presentations and news announcements.
Below are some events to watch for at MWC Barcelona 2022.
Demonstrating telecom transformation
Having built the world’s first nationwide network based on open standards, Rakuten Symphony is sharing its expertise with other mobile network operators looking to get the competitive advantage that comes from cloud-native solutions.
On Tuesday, March 1 from 10:00 – 11:30 CET in Theatre 4, Hall 7, the company will host the Rakuten Symphony Telco Transformation Lab — a series of product demonstrations that will provide an opportunity for attendees to learn firsthand the service automation secrets developed by the pioneering team at Rakuten Mobile. Live demos will give attendees a front row seat into learnings from the development of Rakuten Mobile’s network in Japan.
As part of the Telco Transformation Lab, attendees will also hear from the architect of the Rakuten Mobile network — Rakuten Symphony CEO Tareq Amin. Amin will deliver a keynote speech on how the future of telecom will provide greater accessibility, programmability and choice and outline Rakuten Symphony’s vision to empower the industry.
More details: https://www.mwcbarcelona.com/agenda/session/rakuten-symphony-telco-transformation-lab
Expert opinions available live and streamed
Outside of the Rakuten Symphony Telco Transformation Lab, company leaders will also participate in panel presentations and video interviews throughout the conference. These include:
OpenRAN: A Vision of 5G & the Future of 6G
Monday, February 28: 13:15 – 14:15 CET; MWC Stage A, Hall 5
5G is growing fast — 2 billion connections are predicted by 2025. One driver of this rapid rollout is Open RAN-based solutions. “OpenRAN: A Vision of 5G & the Future of 6G” will bring a panel of industry experts together to discuss the benefits of Open RAN for 5G and for coming 6G networks.
Featuring: Azita Arvani, general manager of Rakuten Symphony Americas
More details: https://www.mwcbarcelona.com/agenda/session/openran-a-vision-of-5g-the-future-of-6g
5G Security: Connecting Us To A Secure Future
Monday, February 28: 14:45 – 15:30 CET; The MWC Broadcast Stage, Hall 4
What can be done now to embed security into 5G and prevent, or at least reduce the opportunities for malicious attacks in the future? That’s just one of the key questions that this panel of experts will explore, reviewing the progress made so far in 5G security and discussing how the industry can leverage the power of 5G to connect and innovate, while also mitigating risk.
Featuring: Rabih Dabbousi, Rakuten Symphony Chief Revenue Officer
More details: https://www.mwcbarcelona.com/agenda/session/5g-security-connecting-us-to-a-secure-future
Cloud & Edge: A New Approach to Innovation
Thursday, March 3: 11:00 – 12:00 CET; MWC Stage B, Hall 5
For mobile operators, edge cloud plays a key role in enabling architecture innovation to cost effectively build and evolve their 5G networks. Learn how the ecosystem is coming together for faster uptake of 5G and hear session speakers share edge cloud vertical use cases that will be driving revenue for operators.
Featuring: Rabih Dabbousi, Rakuten Symphony Chief Revenue Officer
More details: https://www.mwcbarcelona.com/agenda/session/cloud-edge-a-new-approach-to-innovation
Telecom TV: Strategy Outlook for 5G RAN
The Open RAN revolution is being televised by Telecom TV, which has developed a panel of experts to talk about the outlook for 5G RAN, including the role of mmWave, network densification with small cells, and the evolution of RAN intelligent controller (RIC).
Featuring: Shabbir Bagasrawala, Head of Go To Market, Rakuten Symphony
More information: https://www.telecomtv.com/content/spotlight-on-5g-agenda/
Fireside Chat with Tareq Amin
Also on Telecom TV will be a fireside discussion with Tareq Amin about Rakuten Symphony’s vision to be a leading cloud-native software platform company. Amin will discuss the advantages that this approach will have on next generation networks. Details on this interview will be announced soon and will be found on the Telecom TV website: https://www.telecomtv.com/content/spotlight-on-5g/
Stay tuned for more Telecom TV interviews
Rakuten Symphony executives will also provide perspective on news from the show floor. More details will be announced here: https://www.telecomtv.com/content/spotlight-on-5g/
Network Media Group Open RAN webinars
Tech webinar specialist Network Media Group will host two streamed Open RAN panel discussions during the conference featuring Rakuten Symphony expertise. The first will take place on Monday, February 28 at 11:00 CET and will feature Rakuten Symphony’s Azita Arvani, GM Americas, and Thierry Maupilé, SVP, Technology & Product Strategy, Rakuten Symphony, along with Partha Seetala, CEO, Robin.
The second webinar will take place on Wednesday, March 2 at 11:00 CET. Azita Arvani will discuss “Simplifying Open RAN Deployments at Scale” with Raj Yavatkar, Juniper Networks CTO.
Making headlines
Lastly, conferences like MWC Barcelona are great places to make news. Rakuten Symphony took the opportunity to announce the availability of its latest solutions as well as an expansion of its operations in Europe just days ahead of the show. And that’s not all — more news will be coming to the Rakuten Symphony site soon.
While Rakuten Symphony may be an MWC Barcelona first-timer — having just officially launched the new company in August 2021 — the company is primed to make major waves at the world’s biggest telco industry event this year. Join us at MWC 2022 to see how Rakuten Symphony is bringing much needed change in the mobile telecommunications industry today, while helping shape the future.
