Dell’Oro Group’s Open RAN Advanced Research Report tracks the evolution of Open RAN as the market transitions toward standardized interfaces, cloud-native architectures, and more flexible RAN deployments. As operator strategies mature, Open Fronthaul, Cloud RAN, Virtualized RAN, and multi-vendor RAN are emerging as distinct technology trends, each with its own adoption drivers and long-term trajectory.
While near-term adoption has progressed more gradually than originally anticipated, Dell’Oro Group’s long-term outlook for Open RAN remains favorable. Open Fronthaul continues to gain momentum as leading RAN suppliers incorporate open interfaces across broader product portfolios, making Open RAN increasingly a story about interface standardization rather than supplier diversification.
The research examines the long-term opportunities for Open Fronthaul, Cloud RAN, and Virtualized RAN, including how deployment economics, silicon innovation, operator strategies, and regional differences are shaping adoption. It also tracks multi-vendor RAN, which is expected to remain a more specialized segment of the market.
As incumbent suppliers expand support for Open Fronthaul, Open RAN market shares are expected to increasingly reflect the broader RAN market rather than only early Open RAN deployments. This reinforces an important distinction: wider adoption of open interfaces does not necessarily translate into greater supplier diversity.
Understanding these shifts helps operators, suppliers, and other RAN ecosystem participants assess technology opportunities, deployment strategies, and how Open RAN could reshape vendor positioning and competitive dynamics.
Five-year outlook for Open RAN, Cloud RAN, Virtualized RAN, and Proprietary/Purpose-built RAN
Single-vendor and multi-vendor deployments
Baseband and Radio
Cloud RAN and Purpose-built RAN
Regional forecasts and server requirements
North America, Europe, Middle East & Africa, Asia Pacific, and CALA
Quarterly vendor market share for Open RAN and Virtualized RAN
