SON (Self-Organizing Network) technology minimizes the lifecycle cost of running a mobile network by eliminating manual configuration of network elements at the time of deployment right through to dynamic optimization and troubleshooting during operation. Besides improving network performance and customer experience, SON can significantly reduce the cost of mobile operator services, improving the OpEx-to-revenue ratio and deferring avoidable CapEx.

Early adopters of SON have already witnessed a multitude of benefits in the form of accelerated 5G NR and LTE RAN (Radio Access Network) rollout times, simplified network upgrades, fewer dropped calls, improved call setup success rates, higher end user throughput, alleviation of congestion during special events, increased subscriber satisfaction and loyalty, operational efficiencies such as energy and cost savings, and freeing up radio engineers from repetitive manual tasks.

Although SON was originally developed as an operational approach to streamline and automate cellular RAN deployment and optimization, mobile operators and vendors are increasingly focusing on integrating new capabilities such as self-protection against digital security threats and self-learning through AI (Artificial Intelligence) techniques, as well as extending the scope of SON beyond the RAN to include both mobile core and transport network segments – which will be critical to address 5G requirements such as end-to-end network slicing.

In addition, with the cellular industry’s ongoing shift towards open interfaces, virtualization and software-driven networking, the SON ecosystem is progressively transitioning from the traditional D-SON (Distributed SON) and C-SON (Centralized SON) approach to open standards-based components supporting RAN programmability for advanced automation and intelligent control.

The surging popularity of innovative Open RAN and vRAN (Virtualized RAN) architectures has reignited the traditionally niche and proprietary product-driven SON market with a host of open standards-compliant RIC (RAN Intelligent Controller), xApp and rApp offerings, which are capable of supporting both near real-time D-SON and non real-time C-SON capabilities for RAN automation and optimization needs.

This report estimates that global spending on RIC platforms, xApps and rApps will reach $120 Million in 2023 as initial implementations move from field trials to production-grade deployments. With commercial maturity, the submarket is further expected to quintuple to nearly $600 Million by the end of 2025. Annual investments in the wider SON market – which includes licensing of embedded D-SON features, third party C-SON functions and associated OSS platforms, in-house SON capabilities internally developed by mobile operators, and SON-related professional services across the RAN, mobile core and transport domains – are expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 7% during the same period.

The “SON (Self-Organizing Networks) in the 5G & Open RAN Era: 2022 – 2030 – Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts” report presents a detailed assessment of the SON market, including the value chain, market drivers, barriers to uptake, enabling technologies, functional areas, use cases, key trends, future roadmap, standardization, case studies, ecosystem player profiles and strategies. The report also provides global and regional market size forecasts for both SON and conventional mobile network optimization from 2022 till 2030, including submarket projections for three network segments, six SON architecture categories, four access technologies and five regional submarkets.

The report comes with an associated Excel datasheet suite covering quantitative data from all numeric forecasts presented in the report.

Topics Covered

The report covers the following topics:
– Introduction to SON
– Value chain and ecosystem structure
– Market drivers and challenges
– SON technology, architecture and functional areas
– D-SON (Distributed SON), C-SON (Centralized SON), H-SON (Hybrid SON), RIC (RAN Intelligent Controller), xApps and rApps
– Review of over 40 SON use cases across the RAN, core and transport domains, ranging from ANR (Automatic Neighbor Relations) and rapid equipment configuration to advanced traffic steering, QoE-based optimization and automated anomaly detection
– Key trends in next-generation 5G SON implementations, including Open RAN and vRAN (Virtualized RAN) architectures, dynamic spectrum management, network slicing, edge computing, Big Data, advanced analytics, AI (Artificial Intelligence)/ML (Machine Learning) and zero-touch automation
– Case studies of 20 commercial-scale SON deployments and examination of ongoing projects covering both traditional D-SON/C-SON and RIC-x/rApp approaches
– Future roadmap for the SON market
– Standardization, regulatory and collaborative initiatives
– Profiles and strategies of more than 230 ecosystem players
– Strategic recommendations for SON solution providers and mobile operators
– Market analysis and forecasts from 2022 till 2030

Forecast Segmentation

Market forecasts are provided for each of the following submarkets and their subcategories:

SON & Mobile Network Optimization
– SON
– Conventional Mobile Network Planning & Optimization

SON Network Segment Submarkets
– RAN (Radio Access Network)
– Mobile Core
– Transport (Fronthaul, Midhaul & Backhaul)

RAN Segment SON Architecture Submarkets
– Traditional D-SON & C-SON
○ Embedded D-SON (Distributed SON) Features
○ Third Party C-SON (Centralized SON) & OSS Platforms
– Open RAN RIC, xApps & rApps
○ RIC (RAN Intelligent Controller) Platforms
○ Near Real-Time xApps
○ Non Real-Time rApps
– Mobile Operators’ In-House SON Tools & Systems

SON Access Network Technology Submarkets
– 2G & 3G
– LTE
– 5G NR
– Wi-Fi & Others

Regional Markets
– North America
– Asia Pacific
– Europe
– Middle East & Africa
– Latin & Central America

Key Questions Answered

The report provides answers to the following key questions:
– How big is the SON opportunity?
– What trends, drivers and challenges are influencing its growth?
– What will the market size be in 2025, and at what rate will it grow?
– Which submarkets and regions will see the highest percentage of growth?
– How do SON investments compare with spending on conventional mobile network optimization?
– What are the practical, quantifiable benefits of SON – based on live, commercial deployments?
– How can mobile operators capitalize on SON to ensure optimal network performance, improve customer experience, reduce costs, and drive revenue growth?
– What is the status of D-SON and C-SON adoption worldwide?
– When will open standards-based RIC platforms, xApps and rApps replace the traditional SON approach?
– What are the prospects of AI/ML-driven automation in the SON market?
– What opportunities exist for SON capabilities in the mobile core and transport network domains?
– How can SON ease the deployment of private 4G/5G networks for enterprises and vertical industries?
– In what way will SON facilitate network slicing and other advanced 5G capabilities?
– How does SON impact mobile network optimization engineers?
– Who are the key ecosystem players, and what are their strategies?
– What strategies should SON solution providers and mobile operators adopt to remain competitive?

Key Findings

The report has the following key findings:
– The surging popularity of innovative Open RAN and vRAN (Virtualized RAN) architectures has reignited the traditionally niche and proprietary product-driven SON market with a host of open standards-compliant RIC (RAN Intelligent Controller), xApp and rApp offerings, which are capable of supporting both near real-time D-SON and non real-time C-SON capabilities for RAN automation and optimization needs.
– The report estimates that global spending on RIC platforms, xApps and rApps will reach $120 Million in 2023 as initial implementations move from field trials to production-grade deployments. With commercial maturity, the submarket is further expected to quintuple to nearly $600 Million by the end of 2025.
– Annual investments in the wider SON market – which includes licensing of embedded D-SON features, third party C-SON functions and associated OSS platforms, in-house SON capabilities internally developed by mobile operators, and SON-related professional services across the RAN, mobile core and transport domains – are expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 7% during the same period.
– The third party SON vendor ecosystem is exhibiting signs of consolidation, with several prominent M&A deals such as Qualcomm’s recent acquisition of C-SON specialist Cellwize – in a bid to strengthen its 5G RAN infrastructure offerings, Elisa Automate’s merger with Polystar to form Elisa Polystar, and HCL’s acquisition of Cisco’s SON technology business.
– However, on the other hand, newer suppliers are also beginning to emerge – extending from VMware, Juniper Networks and other RIC platform providers to x/rApp specialists such as Cohere Technologies, DeepSig, Groundhog Technologies, Subex, B-Yond, Net AI and RIMEDO Labs.
– SON capabilities are playing a pivotal role in the ongoing proliferation of private 4G/5G networks, as evident from a growing number of cross-sector partnerships. For example, private wireless service provider Betacom is collaborating with Qualcomm to accelerate enterprise adoption of private 5G networks by  combining the former’s 5GaaS (5G-as-a-Service) offering with the latter’s enablement ecosystem, including the Cellwize RAN automation and management platform. Similarly, Germany-based systems integrator Opticoms has entered into a partnership with SON specialist Innovile to automate and optimize Open RAN standards-compliant private 5G networks.
– Over the last two years, with the steep rise of mobile data consumption in residential areas during the COVID-19 pandemic-imposed lockdowns, mobile operators – despite coping relatively well – have recognized the importance of a more dynamic and automated approach to the optimization of network assets in order to provide a consistent and seamless user experience.
– The 2020-2022 period saw large-scale C-SON deployments by several operators, including but not limited to Verizon, EE (BT Group), Orange, Telefónica, Turkcell, beCloud (Belarusian Cloud Technologies), VEON, Ooredoo, Zain, BTC (Botswana Telecommunications Corporation), LTT (Libya Telecom & Technology), Telstra, Singtel, Telkomsel, Globe Telecom, Smart Communications (PLDT), and Telecom Argentina.

The post SON (Self-Organizing Networks) in the 5G & Open RAN Era: 2022 – 2030 – Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts first appeared on CRI Report.

The term“Wireless Network Infrastructure” has conventionally been associated with macrocell RAN (Radio Access Network) and mobile core segments of mobile operator networks.

However, the scope of the term is expanding as mobile operators increase their investments in Heterogeneous Network or HetNet infrastructure such as small cells, carrier Wi-Fi and DAS (Distributed Antenna Systems), to cope with increasing capacity and coverage requirements.

In addition, mobile operators are keen to shift towards a C-RAN (Centralized RAN) architecture, which centralizes baseband functionality to be shared across a large number of distributed radio nodes. In comparison to standalone clusters of base stations, C-RAN provides significant performance and economic benefits such as resource pooling, multi-cell coordination, network extensibility and energy efficiency.

Despite a rapid and persistent decline in standalone macrocell RAN infrastructure spending, SNS Research estimates that the wireless network infrastructure market will grow at a CAGR of 2% between 2017 and 2020. Driven by investments in HetNet infrastructure and 5G NR (New Radio) rollouts – beginning in 2019, the market is expected to be worth $56 Billion in annual spending by 2020, up from $53 Billion in 2017.

The “Wireless Network Infrastructure Ecosystem: 2017 – 2030 – Macrocell RAN, Small Cells, C-RAN, RRH, DAS, Carrier Wi-Fi, Mobile Core, Backhaul & Fronthaul” report presents an in-depth assessment of the wireless network infrastructure ecosystem including enabling technologies, key trends, market drivers, challenges, investment trends, mobile operator revenue potential, regional CapEx commitments, network rollout strategies,

future roadmap, value chain, ecosystem player profiles and vendor market share. The report also presents forecasts for wireless network infrastructure investments from 2017 till 2030. The forecasts cover 11 individual submarkets and 6 regions.

The report comes with an associated Excel datasheet suite covering quantitative data from all numeric forecasts presented in the report.

Topics Covered
The report covers the following topics:
– Up-to-date coverage of market dynamics allowing wireless network infrastructure vendors to analyze opportunities and challenges of selling to mobile operators in different regional markets
– Analysis of demand and supply of wireless network infrastructure including forecasts of investment trends, technology requirements and deployment strategies for antenna, RAN, mobile core, backhaul and fronthaul deployments
– Review of mobile operator CapEx commitments, subscriptions, traffic projections and service revenue, by technology and region
– Market outlook for key technologies including LTE-Advanced Pro, VoLTE, LTE Broadcast, Cloud RAN, unlicensed and shared access small cells, and 5G NR
– Industry roadmap and value chain
– Profiles and strategies of over 550 ecosystem players including wireless network infrastructure vendors and enabling technology providers
– Vendor market share for macrocell RAN, small cells, C-RAN, DAS, carrier Wi-Fi, mobile core, backhaul and fronthaul
– Market analysis and forecasts from 2017 till 2030

Forecast Segmentation

Market forecasts are provided for each of the following submarkets and their subcategories:

Standalone Macrocell RAN

Air Interface Technology Segmentation

– 2G & 3G
– LTE FDD
– TD-LTE
– WiMAX
– 5G NR (New Radio)

Mobile Core
Technology Segmentation

– 3G Packet Core
– HLR (Home Location Register)
– MSS (Mobile Switching Subsystem)
– LTE EPC (Evolved Packet Core)
– WiMAX Mobile Core
– 5G NextGen Core

Macrocell Backhaul
Technology Segmentation

– Ethernet
– Microwave & Millimeter Wave
– Satellite
– WDM (Wavelength Division Multiplexing)
– PON (Passive Optical Network)
– Others

Small Cells
Air Interface Technology Segmentation

– 2G & 3G
– LTE
– 5G NR

Deployment Model Segmentation

– Indoor
– Outdoor

RAN Architecture Segmentation

– Standalone
– C-RAN

Use Case Segmentation

– Residential
– Enterprise
– Urban
– Rural & Suburban

Cell Size Segmentation

– Femtocells
– Picocells
– Microcells

Small Cell Backhaul
Technology Segmentation

– DSL
– Ethernet
– Microwave
– Millimeter Wave
– Satellite
– Fiber & Others

Carrier Wi-Fi
Submarket Segmentation

– Access Points
– Access Point Controllers

Integration Approach Segmentation

– Standalone Wi-Fi Hotspots
– Managed Wi-Fi Offload

C-RAN
Air Interface Technology Segmentation

– 3G & LTE
– 5G NR

Deployment Model Segmentation

– Indoor
– Outdoor

Cell Size Segmentation

– Small Cells
– Macrocells

Submarket Segmentation

– BBUs (Baseband Units)
– RRHs (Remote Radio Heads)

C-RAN Fronthaul

Technology Segmentation

– Dedicated Fiber
– WDM (Wavelength Division Multiplexing)
– OTN (Optical Transport Network)
– PON (Passive Optical Network)
– Ethernet
– Microwave
– Millimeter Wave
– G.Fast & Others

DAS
Deployment Model Segmentation

– Indoor
– Outdoor

Regional Markets

– Asia Pacific
– Eastern Europe
– Latin & Central America
– Middle East & Africa
– North America
– Western Europe

Key Questions Answered

The report provides answers to the following key questions:
– How big is the 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G wireless network infrastructure opportunity?
– What trends, challenges and barriers are influencing its growth?
– How is the ecosystem evolving by segment and region?
– Which submarkets will see the highest percentage of growth?
– What will the market size be in 2020 and at what rate will it grow?
– How will the market shape for small cell, C-RAN, carrier Wi-Fi and DAS deployments?
– How much service revenue will be generated by mobile operator networks?
– When will 2G and 3G infrastructure spending diminish?
– What is the outlook for LTE and 5G infrastructure investments?
– What are the future prospects of millimeter wave technology for backhaul, fronthaul and RAN deployments?
– Who are the key vendors in the market, what is their market share and what are their strategies?
– What strategies should wireless network infrastructure vendors and mobile operators adopt to remain competitive?

Key Findings

The report has the following key findings:
– Despite a rapid and persistent decline in standalone macrocell RAN infrastructure spending, SNS Research estimates that the wireless network infrastructure market will grow at a CAGR of 2% between 2017 and 2020.
– Driven by investments in HetNet infrastructure and 5G NR rollouts – beginning in 2019, the market is expected to be worth $56 Billion in annual spending by 2020, up from $53 Billion in 2017.

– By the end of 2020, C-RAN, small cells, DAS and carrier Wi-Fi, together with their fronthaul and backhaul segments, will account for more than 45% of all wireless network infrastructure spending.

– With LTE availability increasing worldwide and ongoing upgrades to deliver multi-hundred Megabit and Gigabit-grade services, we estimate that LTE, LTE-Advanced and LTE-Advanced Pro networks will generate more than $950 Billion in annual service revenue by 2020.
– New market players are beginning to emerge as mobile operators accelerate their transition to virtualized network infrastructure. For example, Mavenir Systems’ merger with C-RAN specialist Ranzure Networks and its subsequent acquisition of Brocade’s virtualized mobile core business, has positioned the company as an end-to-end provider of 5G-ready mobile network solutions.

Small Cell 5G Network Market Overview of Key Strategies with Size & Share Analysis and Forecast 2019-2030

The post Wireless Network Infrastructure Market Research Report: 2017 – 2030 first appeared on CRI Report.

In 2016, global 2G, 3G and 4G wireless infrastructure revenues stood at nearly $56 Billion. SNS Research estimates that the market will shrink by 4% in 2017, primarily due to a decline in standalone macrocell RAN infrastructure spending. However, driven by investments in HetNet infrastructure and 5G NR (New Radio) rollouts – beginning in 2019, the market is expected to swing back to positive growth at an estimated CAGR of 2% between 2017 and 2020.

By 2020, 5G networks will account for nearly 5% of all spending on wireless network infrastructure. With significant investments expected in 5G NR, NextGen (Next Generation) core and transport (fronthaul/backhaul) networking infrastructure – between 2020 and 2025, this figure will further increase to more than 40% by the end of 2025.

Spanning over 1,500 pages, “The 2G, 3G, 4G & 5G Wireless Network Infrastructure Market: 2017 – 2030 – with an Evaluation of Wi-Fi and WiMAX” report package encompasses two comprehensive reports covering both the conventional 2G, 3G, 4G & 5G wireless network infrastructure market as well as the emerging HetNet submarket:

Report 1 – The Wireless Network Infrastructure Ecosystem: 2017 – 2030 – Macrocell RAN, Small Cells, C-RAN, RRH, DAS, Carrier Wi-Fi, Mobile Core, Backhaul & Fronthaul

Report 2 – The HetNet Ecosystem (Small Cells, Carrier Wi-Fi, C-RAN & DAS): 2017 – 2030 – Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts

This report package provides an in-depth assessment of the 2G, 3G, 4G & 5G wireless network infrastructure market and also explores the HetNet submarket. Besides analyzing the key market drivers, challenges, regional CapEx commitments and vendor strategies, the report package also presents revenue and unit shipment forecasts for the wireless network infrastructure, macrocell, mobile core, small cell, Wi-Fi offload, DAS, C-RAN and the mobile transport submarkets from 2017 to 2030 at a regional as well as a global scale.

The report package comes with an associated Excel datasheet suite covering quantitative data from all numeric forecasts presented in the report package.

Topics Covered:
The report package covers the following topics:
– 2G (GSM and CDMA) technology and market trends
– 3G (W-CDMA/HSPA, TD-SCDMA and CDMA-2000) technology and market trends
– 4G (LTE, LTE-Advanced, LTE-Advanced Pro and WiMAX) technology and market trends
– 5G (IMT-2020) technology and market trends
– Mobile core technology and market trends
– Mobile transport (backhaul and fronthaul) technology and market trends
– HetNet (carrier Wi-Fi, small cell, C-RAN and DAS) technology and market trends
– Analysis of key trends such as NFV, Cloud RAN, enterprise RAN, millimeter wave radio access, unlicensed and shared access small cells, neutral hosting, VoLTE, LTE Broadcast and network slicing
– Market drivers for wireless network infrastructure investments
– Challenges and barriers to the market
– Profiles and strategies of over 550 wireless network infrastructure vendors
– Global and regional market analysis and forecasts
– SWOT analysis of the wireless network infrastructure market

Key Questions Answered:
The report package provides answers to the following key questions:
– How is the 2G, 3G, 4G & 5G wireless network infrastructure market evolving by segment and region?
– What will the market size be in 2017 and at what rate will it grow?
– What trends, challenges and barriers are influencing its growth?
– How will the market shape for small cell, C-RAN, carrier Wi-Fi and DAS deployments?
– How big is the opportunity for Cloud RAN deployments?
– How will Wi-Fi fit into future network architectures for access and offload?
– Who are the key vendors in the market, what is their market share and what are their strategies?
– What strategies should wireless network infrastructure vendors and mobile operators adopt to remain competitive?
– Which 2G, 3G, 4G & 5G technology constitutes the highest percentage of spending and how will this evolve overtime?
– How will LTE, LTE-Advanced and LTE-Advanced Pro deployments proceed, and how long will 2G/3G technologies coexist with LTE?
– When will WiMAX infrastructure spending diminish?
– What is the global and regional outlook for RAN and mobile core submarkets?
– What is the opportunity for mobile transport networking gear, and what new backhaul/fronthaul solutions are evolving?

The post The 2G, 3G, 4G & 5G Wireless Network Infrastructure Market: 2017 – 2030 first appeared on CRI Report.