ORAN Is Real and Already Happening: Boost CTO
The decision to construct its network using open radio access network technology has allowed EchoStar to adapt quickly as it builds out its Boost Mobile network, Boost Chief Technology Officer Eben Albertyn said Wednesday. ORAN has kept Boost from being overcharged for network components, he said: “We were not going to be price-gouged and have a gun held to our head,” he said during a keynote at a Competitive Carriers Association conference in Denver.
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Boost offers “pure 5G” on its standalone network, Albertyn added. That allows the carrier to offer services to business and government customers “and solve very real problems for them” that can’t be easily addressed using non-standalone 5G. AI “has been really kind to us.” Because the network is cloud-based, AI can be quickly incorporated, affecting “how we optimize the network, how we build the network, but also how we service our customers."
Albertyn said a common misconception is that adopting AI is difficult. “It’s easier now than it ever was to have actual use cases” and “do something practical” with AI, he said. AI depends on quality data, he said. “You are going to get absolutely nowhere … if you don’t have consistent, good, high-quality data.” If data isn’t clean, you could potentially pollute your AI model “forever,” he added.
Another fallacy is that ORAN is difficult to implement, Albertyn said. AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon have been optimizing their networks for decades and in 18 months Boost has been able to “beat them on quality in the biggest city in the world, in New York City.” ORAN “is real,” he said. “It’s a very mature technology, and it really does do well.”
CCA CEO and President Tim Donovan said at the opening of the program that Congress’ decision last year to fully fund the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program was a big win for the group (see 2504140039). Passage took “a lot of work” from members, the FCC and congressional staff, he said.
“Reliable, affordable broadband and cellular service is critical in Montana, especially in our rural communities,” Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., said in taped remarks. “After months of fighting, our rural providers will finally start receiving the funds they need to remove Chinese equipment,” Daines said.