Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket
https://www.focus.de/immobilien/kaufen/...n-koennte_id_163871176.html
20 OCTOBER 2022
https://www.research-live.com/article/feature/...ch_sector/id/5104492
Bei Rakuten übersieht er, dass in der Anlaufphase Verluste auflaufen müssen, wenn man die Investitionen, die ursprünglich für sieben oder acht Jahre vorgesehen waren, in zwei oder drei Jahren durchzieht. Wesentlicher Grund dafür war, das eigene Modell - wie ja bei 1&1 geschehen - vermarkten zu können.
Bei 1&1 übersieht der Autor bei dem Vergleich mit Rakuten, meines Erachtens unverzeihlich, dass 1&1 die Kunden schon hat, die sich Rakuten erst erobern muss - insofern sind seine Ausführungen nur zum In-die-Tonne-Kloppen.
Wir haben vielmehr jetzt statt einem Oligopol mit drei Konkurrenten eines mit vier Konkurrenten - aber keinen extremen Verdrängungswettbewerb, bei dem ein Konkurrent mit Kostenunterbietungen aus dem Markt gedrängt werden soll. In solchen Märkten dominiert der Marketingwettbewerb, der allerdings sehr viel längerfristiger angelegt ist als ein Preiskrieg - und genau auf dem Marketingsektor hat Rakuten mit seinem Ecosystem und seinen niedrigen Marketingkosten eindeutig die Nase vorn.
By the numbers, Pongratz posited that operators globally spend around $300 billion annually in capital outlay, a third of which goes toward network equipment. If you take out that $100 billion, there’s approximately an even split between RAN and mobile core network spend and then all other equipment. Of the RAN investment, his research suggests that Open RAN spend was less than 1 percent of the total in 2019 and has grown to between 3 percent and 5 percent this year.
The biggest Open RAN deployments are regionally concentrated with notable investment from Rakuten Mobile in Japan and Dish in the U.S. which are both building greenfield networks. But over the next decade, expect significant momentum in Europe given long-term commitments from operators, including Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica and Vodafone.
https://www.rcrwireless.com/20220802/open_ran/...ing-outlook%ef%bf%bc
Most of Rakuten Mobile’s capex is not necessarily being driven by 5G deployment
Rakuten Mobile’s CEO, Tareq Amin, is still insisting that undercutting competitors is a long-term strategy because of the cost structure of the network – see below. These figures have been much debated – and doubted – across the telecoms industry, but Amin is sticking to his guns and says they will be proved right as capex nosedives next year, as the infrastructure nears completion.
When asked about 5G roll out at the press briefing today, Amin said, “We have now deployed 12,000 base stations in 5G [up from about 4,000 in February]. Rakuten Mobile only deploys 32T/32R massive MIMO but because of the architecture of our Open RAN, our cost structure is dramatically lower than you would see had you had to purchase this product through a traditional vendor.
“Most of my capex is not necessarily being driven by 5G deployment. Unlike any other mobile operators, Rakuten software is owned by Rakuten Symphony [set up to sell tech and consulting to other operators], meaning the radio software. The cloud is owned by Rakuten Symphony and [so is] the entire orchestration. So the only capex we have to spend is on the massive MIMO hardware.
https://www.mobileeurope.co.uk/...ues-rise-64-5-but-subscribers-fall/
October 24, 2022
By Chris Forrester
NSR highlights AST SpaceMobile and lists the potential:
· Retail Partnerships: Agreements with Vodafone, Rakuten Mobile, AT&T, Orange, and others.
· Recent Developments: Successful launch of test-satellite BlueWalker 3 with a 64 square meter phased-array antenna.
· Coverage and Throughput: By virtue of a large phased-array antenna, AST expects to be able to offer tens of Mbps of capacity per illuminated area and potentially higher via focused beamforming technology. The large antenna system may allow AST to close the link with look angles as low as 20 degrees.
NSR adds: “AST’s initial shell will be equatorial, covering around 50 countries in low latitude regions, including countries in Africa where Vodafone operates (subject to regulatory approval). Based on NCAT3 calculations, the first equatorial shell will reach a maximum coverage of 12 degrees North/South [of the Equator] where 1.7 billion people reside. 61 percent of such population is rural. Continuous service will be available between approximately 7 degrees of latitude N/S since a minimum of one satellite must be visible on average. Once AST fully deploys the three shells listed, service will become available on a continuous basis between 60 degrees of latitude, effectively covering 88 percent of the landmass and reaching over 99 percent of the world population.”
https://advanced-television.com/2022/10/24/...vity-nearly-mainstream/
October 24, 2022
By Chris Forrester
NSR highlights AST SpaceMobile and lists the potential:
· Retail Partnerships: Agreements with Vodafone, Rakuten Mobile, AT&T, Orange, and others.
· Recent Developments: Successful launch of test-satellite BlueWalker 3 with a 64 square meter phased-array antenna.
· Coverage and Throughput: By virtue of a large phased-array antenna, AST expects to be able to offer tens of Mbps of capacity per illuminated area and potentially higher via focused beamforming technology. The large antenna system may allow AST to close the link with look angles as low as 20 degrees.
NSR adds: “AST’s initial shell will be equatorial, covering around 50 countries in low latitude regions, including countries in Africa where Vodafone operates (subject to regulatory approval). Based on NCAT3 calculations, the first equatorial shell will reach a maximum coverage of 12 degrees North/South [of the Equator] where 1.7 billion people reside. 61 percent of such population is rural. Continuous service will be available between approximately 7 degrees of latitude N/S since a minimum of one satellite must be visible on average. Once AST fully deploys the three shells listed, service will become available on a continuous basis between 60 degrees of latitude, effectively covering 88 percent of the landmass and reaching over 99 percent of the world population.”
https://advanced-television.com/2022/10/24/...vity-nearly-mainstream/
Q2/22 FinTech Results Summary of Rakuten
(JPY bn)
Q2/22 Revenue YoY Operating Income YoY
Card 72.5 +5.5% 12.6 +17.1%
Bank 28.2 +9.1% 9.8 +31.0%
Securities 23.5 +14.0% 4.1 +20.7%
Insurance 25.0 -6.9% 2.7 +19.3%
Payment 11.9 +21.9% -1.8 -1.2
Others 1.7 +19.9% -1.0 -0.2
FinTech Total 162.7 +6.3% 26.5 +17.4
https://static.seekingalpha.com/uploads/...ons/390/86390/original.pdf
Mizuho Securities to buy 20% of Rakuten Securities for $550 million
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/...ities-550-million-2993831
Rakuten Securities had in Q2/2022 an operating income of 4.1 billion JPY = about 16.4 billion JPY on a yearly base or $ 110 million. 20% of $ 110 million = $ 22 million – the results is, that Mizuho paid with $ 550 millon the 25-fold of the operating income of Rakuten Securiteis.
Total Fintech Operating Income of Rakuten in Q2/2022 was 26.5 billion JPY = 106 billion JPY on a yearly base = $ 710 million.
If this $ 710 million were valued with the 25-fold like by the sale of 20% of Rakuten Securites to Mizuho Securities, the value of the Raktuen Fintech-Segment would be $ 17.75 billion.
25.10.2022
„1&1, das ein besonders modernes sogenanntes Open-Ran-Netz baut, hat sich indes mit Rakuten aus Japan verbündet. 1&1-Gründer Ralph Dommermuth betont gern, dass er ein Netz ohne chinesische Technik baut, was ihm etwa in Berlin Wohlwollen für seine Pläne einbrachte.
Mit einem Open-Ran-Netz sind Mobilfunknetzbetreiber weniger abhängig als bisher von einzelnen Herstellern. Mehr Aufgaben als bislang werden von Soft- statt Hardware erledigt. So steigen Leistung und Flexibilität.“
https://www.handelsblatt.com/technik/it-internet/...wei/28754730.html
Japan healthcare start-up Ubie closes $43m Series C
Justin Niessner
07 October 2022
Japanese healthcare technology start-up Ubie has closed its Series C round on JPY6.3bn (USD 43.2m) with the latest tranche featuring PE-owned pharmacy chain operator Sogo Medical.
Rakuten Capital, AAIC Investment, and Japan Impact Investment also participated in the JPY 2.8bn tranche. It extends JPY 3.5bn round earlier this year.
https://www.avcj.com/avcj/news/3027939/...ubie-closes-usd43m-series-c
JEPLAN, Inc. (CEO & Co-Founder: Masaki Takao; "JEPLAN") announces that it has completed a total of approximately 2.44 billion yen in Series D financing.
The following are new shareholders in this series: Baillie Gifford Shin Nippon plc; GOLDWIN PLAY EARTH FUND; MPOWER PARTNERS FUND L.P.; Rakuten Capital; Shizuoka Capital Company Limited; Shizuoka Capital No.8 Investment Limited Partnership; The Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company, Limited; and Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd.
JEPLAN Group will continue to collaborate with domestic and international partners and unite the efforts of the entire group to realize its vision to "put everything back into circulation."
https://www.jeplan.co.jp/en/2022/09/07/10932/
By Sue MarekOct 25, 2022 10:03am
Rakuten Wireless will use Movandi’s smart repeater with its BeamXR open-RAN technology to expand the company’s coverage and capacity of its 5G millimeter wave (mmWAve) network in Japan. The operator said earlier this year that it is planning to launch 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) service in December using a combination of mmWave and sub-6 GHz spectrum.
Movandi CEO and co-founder Maryam Rofougaran said that Rakuten is very aggressively pushing 5G and has already deployed thousands of mmWave sites. She added that Movandi’s BeamXR technology is able to solve many of the challenges of mmWave spectrum such as extending coverage while still maintaining low latency and also overcoming some of the spectrum’s line-of-sight issues.
One big advantage of using Movandi’s BeamXR is that by extending mmWave coverage operators don’t need to deploy as many towers, which allows them to reduce their labor and constructions costs and speed deployment because they don’t need as many permits. “We’ve been trying to bring the price of the technology down to the level of Wi-Fi,” Rofougaran said.
https://www.fiercewireless.com/tech/...ing-movandi-5g-mmwave-coverage
October 25, 2022
Movandi, a leader in 5G RF and millimeter-wave (mmWave) technologies, announced its partnership with Rakuten Mobile to expand 5G outdoor and indoor mmWave network coverage and capacity in Japan.
“Rakuten Mobile is partnering with Movandi, a disruptive innovator. We’ve been much impressed with their core 5G mmWave technology that enables us to extend and deploy our 5G network in Japan cost effectively,” said Tareq Amin, CEO at Rakuten Mobile.
5G mmWave allows Rakuten Mobile to use the large amount of spectrum resources available in higher bands, enabling them to deliver the world’s fastest multi-gigabit cellular speeds and low latency connectivity.
https://www.telecomlead.com/telecom-equipment/...d-5g-network-107216/
Movandi’s proprietary mmWave RF chipsets, phased-array antenna and software technology will allow Rakuten Mobile’s 5G mmWave signals to provide coverage beyond the reach of other mmWave approaches while potentially reducing the cost of infrastructure by more than half.
“Rakuten Mobile is thrilled to partner with Movandi, a disruptive innovator. We’ve been much impressed with their core 5G mmWave technology that enables us to extend and deploy our 5G network in Japan cost effectively,” said Tareq Amin, CEO at Rakuten Mobile.
https://www.bakersfield.com/ap/news/...4e-5208-a9e8-c96bdb7bd78e.html
Asia Pacific (APAC) region to record the highest growing region in the 5G services market
October 25, 2022 10:00 ET | Source: MarketsandMarkets Research Pvt. Ltd.
The global 5G Services Market size to grow from USD 53.0 billion in 2020 to USD 249.2 billion by 2026, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 29.4% during the forecast period. The presence of various key players and several network infrastructure providers from the telecom ecosystem has led to competitive and diverse market. The increasing business demand for enhancing network efficiency, high speed, and virtualization of network security is expected to make the 5G a dominant market.
Companies covered: AT&T (US), China Mobile (China), SK Telecom (South Korea), Verizon (US), BT Group (UK), Deutsche Telekom (Germany), T-Mobile (US), China Telecom (China), Orange S.A (France), Vodafone (UK), China Unicom (China), Telstra (Australia), Telefonica (Spain), KT (South Korea), Rogers (Canada), Bell Canada (Canada), Etisalat( UAE), STC (KSA), LG U+ ( South Korea), NTT Docomo (Japan), KDDI (Japan), Telus (Canada), Swisscom (Switzerland), DISH (US), Reliance Jio (India), Rakuten (Japan), MTN ( South Africa), Airtel (India), and Telenor Group (Norway)
https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2022/...etsandMarkets.html
October 25, 2022
Industry-first “definitive guide” on Open RAN Security is based on standards development experience and real-world learnings from running the world’s largest cloud-native, fully virtualized commercial Open RAN network in Rakuten Mobile.
It comprises strategies and principles that form a foundation for successfully securing Open RAN networks anywhere.
Open RAN and cloud native networks are as secure and trustworthy as any other open cloud-based operation in any other industry, including the latest 5G non-Open RAN networks.
TOKYO, OCTOBER 25, 2022 – In the wake of a sustained industry dialogue questioning the security of Open RAN networks, Rakuten Symphony today published “A Definitive Guide to Open RAN Security.” The nearly 8,000-word guide details the potential planes of attack and recommended strategies to mitigate risk from a total software system, configuration and operational perspective. It is based on Rakuten Mobile’s successful, secure Open RAN implementation in Japan, which is the largest such deployment in the world. The information, strategies and principles shared in this first-of-its kind guide can form the foundation for secure Open RAN networks anywhere.
“Is Open RAN secure? It depends on who you ask and that is a major problem,” says Tareq Amin, CEO of Rakuten Mobile and Rakuten Symphony. “Rather than endlessly debate misinformation meant to spread doubt about the security of next-gen networks, we are openly sharing a definitive guide any mobile operator can adopt as the foundation of a successful security strategy for Open RAN. As these new networks are deployed en masse by new and incumbent operators alike, we want to move the industry past a conversation focused on ‘if’ to a more helpful one focused on ‘how’.”
“The Definitive Guide to Open RAN Security” acknowledges that while risk remains a persistent presence and always will, management, not avoidance, represents the best path forward. It also cedes that Open RAN security isn’t as simple as relying on interoperability standards. Rakuten Symphony instead advocates for an approach that evaluates industry best practices, collaboration and innovation, and sets the best security and privacy strategies based on individual regulatory and market context.
Security requirements unique to Open RAN telecom assets are reviewed, including new infrastructure, network functions, interfaces and critical data. Open RAN network vulnerabilities and how they can be exploited by attackers are covered in detail before presenting nine security principles that form the basis for Rakuten Symphony’s proposed approach. The guide then expands into greater detail specific to establishing a secure cloud-native platform for Open RAN network functions, trust between Open RAN network functions, secure management of Open RAN networks and container security.
“3GPP and the O-RAN Alliance provide base blueprints and design principles for securing telco-specific functions and interfaces through security controls which must be implemented by vendors and operators to reach a high level of hacking resistance, in particular for the IT and cloud systems underpinning modern networks,” said Nagendra Bykampadi, Head of Security Architecture and Standards, Assurance & Operations at Rakuten Symphony, Co-chair of O-RAN Alliance Security Work Group (WG11) and main author of the guide. “When implementing these controls, vendors and operators can borrow knowledge and experience from related cloud-powered industries, and we are sharing what we know today to help contribute to the global security of new networks.”
For more information and to download “The Definitive Guide to Open RAN Security,” visit: https://symphony.rakuten.com/security.
https://symphony.rakuten.com/newsroom/...e-guide-to-open-ran-security
Oct 26, 2022
Rakuten Symphony and CIQ are jointly driving the return to true open community principles enabling edge cloud to be deployed supporting very large radio network deployments with an economic model that works at that scale.
Rakuten Symphony and CIQ announce the support of open-source Rocky Linux to deliver real-time high-performance operating system for Distributed Unit (DU) radio processing software.
Real-time Rocky Linux OS is validated on the Rakuten Mobile network in Japan and is available through Rakuten Symphony commercial deliveries.
https://www.telecomtv.com/content/open-ran/...ssor-rocky-linux-45783/
Asian operator announces what it calls industry-first guide on open radio access network, aiming to show that such infrastructures and cloud-native networks are as secure and trustworthy as any other open cloud-based operation in any other industry
By Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly
Published: 25 Oct 2022 15:45
https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252526487/...to-Open-RAN-Security
By Keith Dyer 26 October 2022
Rakuten Mobile CEO set to announce adoption of upcoming next gen Intel CPU platform that has "integrated acceleration". But its loyalty is also about the software.
But he sees an upcoming solution from Intel as providing a more elegant solution. Intel has announced that it is working on a next gen chip that it regards as akin to inline acceleration, in that it integrates acceleration in the CPU.
In February 2022, Intel said its upcoming next-generation Intel Xeon Scalable processor, Sapphire Rapids, includes support for RAN-specific signal processing and will deliver up to “two times capacity gains” for vRAN and support advanced capabilities like high-cell density for 64T64R Massive MIMO.
In addition, Intel also highlighted the fact that the Sapphire Rapids family will be built out with new chips with integrated acceleration that are optimised for vRAN workloads.
Amin and Rakuten Mobile are on board.
“We and Intel have agreed that we’re going to do an analyst day, on the 17th of November, we’re going to invite the entire analyst to share the future roadmap of a CPU accelerated product that is on the roadmap,” he said.
So this is the Sapphire Rapids product? “Exactly so. Except this time, on the 17th of November, I am forcing Intel to publicly tell the world about this innovation.”
What Amin wants to see is a solution that builds acceleration as building blocks into the CPU.
”So what I envision is the CPUs must get reduced, not increased.
https://the-mobile-network.com/2022/10/...th-intel-for-vran-platform/
Adrian Volenik
October 12, 2022
The digital banking space is constantly changing and rapidly moving forward. We strived to research the latest data on independent challenger banks across the globe to find which ones are the most prominent in the space.
The list was based on valuations, total funds raised, and the number of customers these neobanks have.
8. Rakuten (JAP)
Founded in 2000
Based in Tokyo, Japan
CEO Hiroyuki Nagai
$11.7 billion valuation
$2.3 billion raised (last round at ¥242B in March 2021)
Retail and business
12+ million customers
Rakuten is the largest digital bank in Japan by the number of accounts, having recently surpassed 12 million accounts.
The fintech behemoth opened its digital banking component in 2001, and the Japanese people quickly identified it for its 24/7 banking.
Today, more than ever, people are making their Rakuten bank account their main bank account, which is why the company is offering more and better services.
Its banking app got a facelift and has integrated instant payment service from Rakuten Bank accounts.
There are many other reasons for choosing Rakuten Bank:
You can deposit and withdraw cash at convenience stores,
Have free ATM withdrawals up to seven times per month,
Get cashback rewards and mortgages, and
Have access to Forex trading.
https://topmobilebanks.com/blog/biggest-digital-banks-2021/
Tokyo, September 26, 2022 - Rakuten Bank, Ltd. today announced that it has surpassed 13 million customer accounts as of September 22, 2022.
https://global.rakuten.com/corp/news/update/2022/0926_03.html