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Amdocs State
of the RAN 2016
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016 2

Table of Contents

Summary 3
Global stats 4
RAN under attack as data grows at more than 100% every year 4
VoLTE call drops can be 4-5 times higher than 2G/3G 5
Wi-Fi doesnt offload - enough. As low as 5% 6
Music and sport events create their own mobile ecosystems 7
International roamers hit by 25% poorer experience 8
75% of network traffic in cities is in-building 9
80% of network problems only impact subscribers 20% of the time 10
Operators struggle with 2.2 cellular technologies and 1.3 NEPs per technology 11
80% of voice call drops and 50% of data throughput issues originate in the RAN 12
Regional Variations 13
Amdocs Solution for Software Powered Networks 14
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016 3

Summary VoLTE is creating opportunities and headaches. VoLTE will

allow operators to accelerate the shift to LTE increasing
At the heart of your customers network experiences
available capacity and providing a platform for the jump
is the radio access network (RAN). Amdocs 2016 State of
into 5G. VoLTE presents a business opportunity with new
the RAN report shows how unquenchable data demands,
options for monetization. However in the short term it
now driven by mobile apps, video and more powerful
generates significant risk around the core voice service as
smartphones, continue to shape users mobile expectations
KPIs fall below those of existing offerings.
and operators responses.

A major concern is the limitation of network centric

Though there are significant regional variations, we see a
processes for planning, management and optimization
consistent global pattern emerging:
when challenged with responding to huge variations in
subscriber behavior and demand.
Mobile data consumption continues to rise at an incredible
rate with Wi-Fi networks due to different usage patterns not
All of this accelerates the move to the adoption of 5G-like
taking the strain. Operators are under significant pressure
approaches to managing and optimizing networks.
to deliver more and more capacity despite already
Operators are responding by pushing for more agile networks
substantial investment.
able to dynamically match available network capacity to
network demand. There is a marked shift by operators to
The drag of legacy networks and the addition of LTE have
focus less on the network as a whole but rather on how
increased the operational burden. We see operators looking
to address each subscriber segments differing network
to retire legacy networks but challenged with the need
needs and consumption patterns.
to shift traffic at the same time as delivering a consistent
quality of experience (QoE).
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016 4

Global stats

RAN under attack as data

grows more than

100%
every year

DATA

DATA DATA
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DATA

DATA
DATA DATA

DATA
DATA
DATA

DATA
DATA

DATA

DATA
DATA
RAN

ANALYSIS
The volume of mobile data traffic across cellular networks
is growing across the world at 60 to 120% year-on-year
for almost every operator globally. The challenge is that any
breathing room gained from LTE build-outs is short-lived.
As soon as any new capacity is delivered, it is consumed.
This trend is the de facto driving force of operator businesses
as they struggle to deal with this seemingly never-subsiding
capacity crunch. While increasing smartphone penetration
is the foundation on which the capacity crunch is built, it is
the level of OTT activity which is the defining factor in the
level of mobile data growth.
ACTION
Most operators are running to stand still and cannot see
a way out beyond constantly building and provisioning
more capacity. This is not sustainable if CAPEX is to remain
manageable. Operators need to find a better way to adapt,
beyond just feeding the beast of data demand. This means
looking at improving the utilization of existing resources and
increasing offload.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
drops can be
VoLTE call
4-5 times higher than 2G/3G
2G/3G
ANALYSIS
Post initial deployment call drops with VoLTE can be up
to four to five times higher than with 2G/3G. The maturity
of VoLTE is not where it needs to be yet. Yet VoLTE is an
important and strategic service for operators, offering the
promise of turning off 2G and 3G services, with all the OPEX
expenditure which could be released. It also offers the
potential, not yet realized, of differentiating through higher
quality voice services. But currently the dropped call rate is
a competitive risk. VoLTE QoE is impacted by the difficulty in
measuring VoLTE mean opinion score (MOS), as well as the
actions needed to diagnose issues such as collecting and
correlating end-to-end network insights and acting across
network silos. For engineers used to circuit switched voice,
there is a step change in the level of effort required and
this needs to be factored in from day one.
5
ACTION
While the penetration of VoLTE is still relatively low, operators
do need to take concrete steps to ensure the best quality
VoLTE service possible. This requires aggressive tuning of
the LTE network to make it VoLTE-ready. It also requires
changes in troubleshooting processes to resolve teething
problems more rapidly. In deployments, it can take over
6 months to bring VoLTE call drops to within 20% of 2G/3G.
It is evidently possible to dramatically reduce the dropped
call rate. Yet failure to act will quickly impact the Quality of
Experience of voice a previously stable service and slow
down the transition to all-LTE networks, which will hit both
the top and bottom line.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016 6

Wi-Fi doesnt
offload - enough
As low as

5% RAN
Wi-Fi

ANALYSIS ACTION
Wi-Fi data traffic from a mobile device is not traffic True Wi-Fi offload, where traffic which would absolutely have
that would otherwise have been carried by the cellular been borne by the mobile network is pushed through a Wi-Fi
network. In areas where Wi-Fi at home, offices and network, is still relatively nascent. Operators need to model
cafes is ubiquitous, subscribers have learned to the different usage patterns on Wi-Fi versus cellular and
differentiate their usage of Wi-Fi and mobile data. manage and optimize each accordingly. In the meantime, a
In Wi-Fi areas, whether at home or in hotspots, subscribers more sober assessment of Wi-Fis impact needs to occur in
exhibit the same behavior of increased streaming and parallel with investigation of more automated Wi-Fi offload
downloading which is less prevalent in mobile data-only technologies.
areas. Wi-Fi is treated as an addition, not an alternative
by subscribers. As little as 5 to 15% of Wi-Fi traffic through
mobile devices could accurately be described as Wi-Fi
offload - meaning traffic which would otherwise have been
destined for the mobile network. Even smartphone operating
systems enforce this differentiation through default settings
which favor data-heavy activities (such as updates) in Wi-Fi
coverage.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
Music and sport events
create their own
mobile
ecosystems
ANALYSIS
Large-scale music and sports events create their own mobile
ecosystem before, during and after their short lives. While
every event may seem unique, there are a lot of parallels
across events. At events, SMS is surprisingly popular, as
70% of attendees send at least one text message during
the event. Interestingly, there is a finite appetite for data-
sharing at any single event, no matter what the duration.
A four-hour event can often result in a similar level of data
usage as a two-hour event, at around 35Mb per person. It is
only international roamers that buck that trend, as they will
upload 50% more data than non-roamers, as they save and
share the moment with people in their home country.
Another interesting trend we have seen, as a result of a
homogenous international roaming demographic is that Apple
devices can dominate with up to 95% of traffic originating
from iPhones, especially at high profile international events.
One final element of the event ecosystem to bear in mind
is that the cells around the event location carry 50%
more traffic than those within the stadium, suggesting a
network-level impact from micro-coordination with fellow
event-goers and even social media-based boasting to the
people left at home.
7
ACTION
As operators aim to improve their subscribers network
experience, special events will cause short-term strain on
the network. However, when trying to address this, the
event venue cannot be seen as an island. Fans journeys
to and from the venue will impact network capacity (and
their resulting perception of network quality) more than
their time in the stadium. Also in planning short-term
network allocation, the duration of the event needs to be
factored in. As the amount of data shared across a two-hour
or a four-hour event will be the same, clearly the amount
of data usage you need to be prepared for, per hour, can
be dramatically different. Commercially too, there is an
opportunity not to be missed. As the density of data-hungry
international roamers will be bigger here than most other
locations, roaming revenues, both those run by operators
or the venues themselves, which could otherwise go to rival
networks are up for grabs.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
International roamers hit by
25% poorer
experience
R R
ANALYSIS
Despite the fact that international roamers can be much
more valuable to an operator than a corresponding locally-
based subscriber, their network experience in key usage
locations can be 25% worse than home subscribers. While
operators may be concerned with improving the experience
for, say, 90% of their subscribers, they may be missing the
commercial picture associated with specific demographics,
such as roamers. So if operators want profitable international
roamers on their network, they need to look at their distinct
usage patterns. Roamers will not exhibit the same usage
patterns as locals. For instance, naturally there will be
very few in-office requirements and greater density around
tourist locations.
8
R R
ACTION
Segmentation by subscriber type is the starting point for
greater clarity and better margins. By focusing on most
people, operators can overlook profitable segments which
could churn to rival networks. International roamers are
one obvious segment that has distinct needs, combined
with a high potential for profitability. While traffic statistics
are useful, they are not nearly as important to the operators
bottom line as traffic statistics by subscriber profiles.
When profitable segments have been identified, extra
network-optimization attention needs to be applied to those
segments to secure the long-term health of the operator
business.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
75%
of network traffic in
cities is in-building
ANALYSIS
A staggering 75% of network traffic in cities now originates
indoors. Even with the years-old trend of younger
generations spurning landlines in favor of mobile
devices, this has ramped up surprisingly quickly, despite
younger demographics being savvier about switching
to Wi-Fi indoors rather than using their mobile data
allowance. In some instances, particularly for data traffic,
operators have been a victim of their own success.
When faced with patchy Wi-Fi in their home or work
location, many subscribers will switch to their
sometimes-faster LTE connection. The major issue with
the dominance of in-building traffic is that in times of
network congestion, indoor coverage suffers first with up
to 25% more network issues experienced compared to
outdoor users.
9
ACTION
The dominance of in-building traffic in cities is a trend that is
unlikely to change, which enforces a number of imperatives
for mobile operators. Firstly, operators will have to better
understand and visualize the real-world patterns of demand,
coverage and congestion, so that they can effectively
target network optimization efforts to the problem areas.
Secondly, operators will be forced to try out or increase
the rollout speed of in-building technologies. And thirdly,
over time, the macro networks themselves will have to be
densified to allow better penetration of mobile signals.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
80%
of network problems
only impact subscribers
20%
of the time
ANALYSIS
The vast majority of capacity problems are only a problem in
some places, some of the time; for example, during urban
rush hours when commuters are checking their phone
while waiting for a train or at busy shopping periods on
the weekends in shopping malls. However, the patterns of
usage in different times and locations are as unique as a
fingerprint. Even locations just 50 meters away from each
other have vastly different usage and demand patterns.
Overall, if operators only look at the high tide of data usage,
they will see a consistent worst-case scenario.
10
ACTION
Operators need to find more dynamic ways of matching
capacity to usage patterns without relying solely on expensive
massive over-allocation of capacity. That means finding
better approaches that include dynamic reconfiguration of
the network to shift coverage and capacity based on time of
day. This can involve the removal of wasted capacity which
will give operators a clearer view of the return on investment
(ROI) of their data network build-out. Operators can also
push for behavioral changes with their subscribers by
incentivizing time-shifting of their consumption behaviors.
As fixed line operators managed to years ago with lower-
cost evening and weekend calls, mobile operators could
potentially act similarly by dis-incentivizing mobile video
during peak hours.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016 11

Operators struggle with

2.2
cellular
technologies 4G 3G
and

1.3
NEPs per technology 2G

ANALYSIS
Operators are managing, on average, 2.2 cellular
technologies, such as 2G, 3G and 4G, with an average
of 1.3 vendors for each of those technologies. Operator
networks have reached a peak in complexity as they manage
legacy networks while extending their 4G LTE networks.
This network complexity has put network operations
through intense growing pains as they re-tool, re-train and
re-allocate existing engineering staff, and learn new best
practices on the fly.
ACTION
The pain of managing multiple access technologies can
only subside in one of two ways; firstly, through a software
automation layer that makes it easier to manage multiple
technologies and vendors and secondly, by switching off
one or more existing cellular technologies. This second way
requires a concerted effort of pushing voice and data traffic
to LTE in preparation, something we are seeing among a
number of operators in developed markets. Ultimately, prior
to the arrival of 5G, we expect most operators will try to shut
down at least one cellular technology to consolidate their
human and technical resources, as well as consolidate the
number of vendors they manage.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016 12

80%
of voice call drops and

50%
of data throughput issues
originate in the RAN

ANALYSIS
Although these statistics are the same as last year, they
are still highly significant. The RAN remains the biggest
influencer of subscriber experience consistently across all
mobile operators worldwide; 80% of voice call drops are
due to mobility issues and 50% of data session interruptions
are triggered by capacity issues.
The RAN is the direct bridge between a mobile operator and its
subscribers, and theres no question that any issues within the
RAN will ultimately affect customer experience unless its
immediately addressed. A single dropped session can mean
the difference between unhappy customers and churn. The
optimal way to address this is to understand and analyze
subscriber behavior and how it affects the RAN in order
to minimize, or ideally eliminate, coverage issues before
subscribers are impacted.
ACTION
Operators always have scope for improving the RAN,
while accepting that it will never be perfect. Network
optimization techniques can consistently deliver up to 25%
improvements in capacity. The more that operators can
focus upon RAN optimization, the bigger the impact will
be for the network and its subscribers. Whether operators
are manually programming where radio resources should
be allocated during certain times of the day, or have the
process automated, the results are similar: a reduction in
the total cost of ownership (TCO) of the network, increased
QoE, and more efficient use of limited radio resources.

Though the industry-wide statistics remain the same, they

mask a great deal of variance, with some operators able to
achieve as low as 60% of dropped calls caused by the
RAN. This shows significant room for improvement for the
majority of operators.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
Regional Variations
North America
With LTE rollouts completed nationwide and voice over LTE
(VoLTE) implemented in over 70% of the networks, North
America is one of the leading regions for newer technology
deployments and services.
Service quality is becoming more important than network
quality. New opportunities and new challenges are arising
with VoLTE deployments. VoLTE enables the shift to richer
call experiences, but as a packet technology it also impacts
the visibility of the customer experience.
Latin America (LATAM)
Despite operators efforts to stop selling GSM phones to
force purchases of subscribers LTE capable handsets, the
high cost of smartphones and their respective service plans
impede its ability to quickly penetrate the region.
Voice traffic on 2G/GSM remains higher than data traffic;
however, data usage is rising as operators push users to
LTE-capable handsets. With 50-60% of traffic still on 2G,
re-farming 2G traffic to 3G/4G is key as the network data
usage increases.
13
Europe
In a region dominated by operator groups there is also
increased group-level pressure to deliver homogenous
experiences for subscribers from one countrys operator
while roaming with a sister-operator in another country.
For operational and spectral efficiencies, operators are
also working to move capacity from old access technologies
(2G and 3G) to 4G LTE. As part of that trend, the necessity
for VoLTE has become widely felt.
APAC
There is significant regional variation with operators at
experiencing widely different levels of per subscriber
demand for data.
Where smartphone penetration is in the relative early stages,
we see some of the highest levels of year on year (YoY)
data growth ever seen this is creating unique capacity
challenges not seen before.
In contrast, some operators have over 90% smartphone
penetration; their focus now is the seamless management
of HetNets to smooth the transition from 2G & 3G network
to LTE and improvement of the customer experience.
Amdocs State of the RAN 2016
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14
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