Samsung's Virtualized Radio Access Network (vRAN) platform now supports 2G connectivity, addressing one of the company's biggest pain points in telecommunications equipment.
The Korean electronics giant sees 5G and the move to cloud-native software infrastructure as a major opportunity to enter a market traditionally dominated by Ericsson, Huawei and Nokia.
At the core of Samsung's presentation, unlike other carriers, it focuses its resources on 4G, 5G and 6G rather than legacy technologies, and can offer an end-to-end proposition that combines chipsets, spokes and cores.
Samsung 2G networks
But while 3G is losing importance, 2G remains essential for many operators for emergency service calls, is used for some massive IoT applications, and offers the widest platform for international roaming.
Samsung hopes that by adding support for "yesterday's innovation", its products will appeal to operators who still rely on 2G but still want to modernize their networks. Virtualization means that 2G, 4G, and 5G can be supported from a single platform, simplifying infrastructure and saving physical space.
"2G virtualization will be an effective way for operators and enterprises looking to take advantage of this legacy technology, allowing operators to maintain 2G with greater efficiency in deployment and management," said Kiho Cho, Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer of Samsung Networks products. “It is also an optimal choice for markets that are not ready for 4G or 5G, but still want to modernize their networks and future-proof their technology investments.
"Legacy 2G network solutions are often outdated and take up too much physical space, with less operational efficiency. By replacing traditional hardware-based 2G network equipment with a software-centric approach, operators can benefit from site simplification , centralized administration, deployment efficiency and savings.
“Virtualization also helps ensure a smooth migration to more advanced network technologies. When the time comes for traffic to move away from 2G, operators can phase it out, making room and allocating resources to new technologies. This can be easily done with a vRAN architecture, which can turn 2G on or off at any time and use freed-up server capacity for 4G and 5G traffic, rather than having to physically remove hardware infrastructure from cell sites.