VIAVI Solutions has announced that it has joined the strategic board of OpenAirInterface (OAI) Software Alliance (OSA). VIAVI participation adds a test equipment provider to OSA board and opens a new chapter in the relationship that OSA maintains with open radio access network (O-RAN) ALLIANCE and O-RAN stakeholders. This also marks a significant milestone in advancing open-source initiatives within the telecommunications industry.
OAI networks has recently assumed a key role in the path towards multivendor O-RAN solutions by providing its open-central unit (O-CU) and open-distributed unit (O-DU) software for interoperability with O-RAN radio units (O-RUs) from industrial partners. This role, visible in O-RAN plugfests and other reference design showcases, is expected to significantly advance through this engagement with VIAVI, as a professional testing company’s software can be constantly leveraged to improve the quality of the OAI open-source components.
OSA welcomes VIAVI as a valuable contributor to its mission of fostering innovation and collaboration in developing next-generation wireless technologies.
With VIAVI’s support, OAI aims to accelerate the development and adoption of open-source solutions for 5G networks, driving greater agility, scalability, and cost-effectiveness in deploying wireless infrastructure worldwide.
Commenting on the announcement, Dr Ian Wong, director, radio frequency (RF) and wireless architecture, VIAVI Soltuions, and co-chair, test and integration focus group, O-RAN ALLIANCE, said, “VIAVI is excited to partner with OSA in advancing the state-of-the-art open-source software for 5G/O-RAN/6G networks. As a leader in test and optimisation of 5G/O-RAN/6G networks, we strongly believe in the power of open source software in democratising research and development (R&D) of next-generation wireless networks, enabling rapid innovation through experimentation and exploration, and have found in OSA the ideal partner in taking this to the next level, especially in the era of artificial intelligence (AI)/ machine learning (ML), disaggregation, and openness in 6G.”
Meanwhile, Raymond Knopp, president, OSA, said, “OSA believes that the maturity of OAI CU/DU stack and other software like OAI FlexRIC will benefit greatly from continuous testing with the highest quality third-party test equipment from VIAVI. End-to-end wireless blueprints deployed in O-RAN labs need both open-source components and quality testing gear to serve the 5G/6G needs of research and industry communities. This is where our partnership with VIAVI is both timely and invaluable.”
