AT&T advanced a sweeping open RAN strategy, taking a place on the board of the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) which the group branded a ringing endorsement of its global outlook.
Rob Soni, VP of RAN technology with AT&T (pictured), is tasked with representing the US operator on the TIP board. The executive currently oversees the operator’s infrastructure strategy, certification of related hardware and software, and its broader contribution to global standards.
Soni noted the position will advance a goal to carry 70 per cent of its total network traffic on “open-capable platforms by late 2026”, an objective the operator set in December 2023 when it announced Ericsson as a lead vendor in an initiative also involving Corning, Dell Technologies and Intel, among others.
“As a global mobile operator, we see TIP as a critical part of realising our strategic intent of leading industrialisation of open and disaggregated solutions”, Soni said.
The executive counts spells with VMware, Nokia Bell Labs and Alcatel-Lucent among his past companies, roles which covered cloud RAN and 5G along with previous mobile technology generations.
Yago Tenorio, TIP chair and network architecture director with Vodafone Group, branded AT&T a “trailblazer of open and disaggregated technologies”.
The TIP leader added Soni’s appointment “reflects the global profile” of the group and tipped the move to boost its work by tapping the executive’s extensive experience.
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