Stefan Pongratz joined Dell’Oro Group in 2010 and is responsible for the firm’s Mobile RAN market and Telecom Capex research programs. While at the firm, Mr. Pongratz has expanded the RAN research and authored multiple Advanced Research Reports to ensure the program is evolving to address new RAN technologies and opportunities including 5G, 6G, AI RAN, Open RAN, Massive MIMO, mmWave, IoT, private wireless, small cells, and CBRS. He built the Telecom Capex coverage detailing revenues and investments of over 50 carriers worldwide.
Prior to joining Dell’Oro Group, Mr. Pongratz was with Anritsu Company for 10 years, where he was most recently a Senior Product Manager responsible for portable spectrum analyzers and cable and antenna analyzers used to verify base station quality. During his tenure at Anritsu, Mr. Pongratz also held positions in engineering and manufacturing management.
Mr. Pongratz research and analysis have been cited with the suppliers and publications including Barron’s, Bloomberg, Fierce Wireless, EE Times, Financial Times, Lightreading, Nikkei, Pipeline Magazine, RCR Wireless, and the Wall Street Journal. He has hosted webinars and speaks at industry conferences, including Brooklyn 5G Summit, OFC, Mobile World Congress, Small Cell World, RAN USA, RAN World, and the Telecom Industry Association.
Mr. Pongratz graduated cum laude with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of California Irvine. He also holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Santa Clara University, and an M.B.A. from the University of California, Davis.
Accomplishments
Mr. Pongratz’s research insights are notable for distinguishing between hype and reality. During the peak of the LTE hype cycle, he was among the few telecom analysts who predicted that the shift from 3G to 4G would not grow the overall mobile infrastructure market. For six years, Mr. Pongratz consistently issued negative 5-year CAGR projections for the overall RAN market. During the C-RAN and small cell hype cycles, he correctly predicted that the shifts from D-RAN to C-RAN and macro to the small cell would take significantly longer than expected.
I love wireless technologies and numbers - and the Dell’Oro DNA motivates me to dig deep and express the underlying technology analysis with numbers.
Press Releases
- Worldwide Telecom Capex to Decline at a 2 percent CAGR, According to Dell’Oro Group
- Private Wireless Stronger Than Expected in 2024, According to Dell’Oro Group
- RAN Down $9 Billion, According to Dell’Oro Group
Articles
Blogs
- Worldwide Telecom Equipment Down 11 Percent in 2024
- MWC 2025: RAN, Open RAN, and AI RAN Highlights
- What to Expect from RAN in 2025
Videos
- Capacity TV: AI’s impact on RAN
- Dell’Oro Group talks 5G Advanced and operator differentiation
- Private5G: When Will Private Wireless Take Off?
Webinars
In the News
- Why China is so far ahead on private wireless, and other interesting 5G tidbits
- Ericsson was saved by Börje Ekholm – now his future looks in doubt
- Tariffs are sure to hurt more for smaller RAN vendors
