Taiwan Province's Digi Times recently published an analytical article pointing out that the United States is launching a comprehensive strategic action aimed at permanently defeating Huawei, which is regarded as a duel in the global telecommunications field. The article points out that behind this battle is the competition between the United States and China, and both sides are eager to control the global telecommunications architecture, which is the core of all mobile communication infrastructure, including the Internet. The article also pointed out that the United States attacked Huawei's position in the global telecommunications market on the grounds of "threatening national security", but this view is untenable, and the reasons behind it are self-evident.
In fact, this plan of the United States began to be actively deployed and promoted as early as around 2020. The United States tried to challenge Huawei's dominant position in the global telecommunications market by promoting O-RAN technology, and this intention is obvious. As a new technology architecture, O-RAN aims to improve the flexibility, scalability and security of telecommunication networks, thus reducing the dependence on Huawei and other suppliers.
So, what is the progress of O-RAN now? After several years, the promotion of O-RAN is not smooth. The main reason is that Chinese telecom equipment manufacturers represented by Huawei and ZTE have obvious advantages in technology and cost. However, the United States doesn’t give up this plan. In February this year, it was reported that the US government decided to invest 42 million US dollars to further develop the 5G Open RAN (O-RAN) standard, and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) used the funds to establish the Dallas O-RAN Test Center to prove the feasibility of the standard. Companies such as Verizon and AT&T have formed the Open RAN Deployment Compatibility and Commercialization Acceleration Alliance (ACCoRD) to promote the commercialization of this standard. The Washington Post reported that US President Biden has called on the leaders of India, the Philippines and Saudi Arabia to adopt O-RAN.
Figure1: Can the United States really defeat Huawei with O-RAN?
However, it is not easy to completely defeat Huawei, and many challenges need to be overcome.
First of all, Huawei has strong technical strength and global market share in the field of telecom equipment. Its long-term investment and research and development in 5G and other communication technologies have enabled it to occupy a leading position in the industry and have a huge customer base and influence. In addition, Huawei has established a sound supply chain and service network around the world, providing it with a strong competitive advantage.
Secondly, although O-RAN technology has the potential to change the pattern of telecom industry, it is still in the early stage of development and faces many technical and standard challenges. In order to completely replace the traditional RAN architecture in a short time, it will take time and a lot of investment. In addition, the promotion of O-RAN technology needs the support and recognition of governments and operators all over the world, which is also a long and complicated process.
Finally, geopolitical factors will also affect the US plan to challenge Huawei through O-RAN. As tensions between the United States and China continue to heat up, some countries may consider political factors to decide whether to choose to adopt technologies such as Huawei or O-RAN. Therefore, it is very difficult for the United States to completely defeat Huawei through O-RAN technology.
Even if O-RAN is finally accepted by the industry, it will definitely defeat Huawei? This is not necessarily the case. "Open source" or "Isolate system"? This topic has a long history, but there is no so-called correct answer. Open source is good, and so do isolate system. Just like Apple's OS is a closed system, because its strong technical strength is the base, they can gather the strength of one family in its closed system and maximize the user experience. Even if Android is open source and attracts many big companies to participate in it, it cannot defeat Apple's OS, and finally form a long-term confrontation situation. So, will O-RAN and traditional RAN end like this in the future? What’s your opinion? Welcome to leave a message for discussion.
