What’s up with… AI-RAN Alliance, satellite shenanigans, telco DDOS attacks

• SoftBank’s Alex Choi appointed chair of AI-RAN Alliance
• Tension builds in the satellite-to-smartphone sector
• Telcos take the brunt of DDOS attacks

Highly-respected telco executive Alex Jinsung Choi (pictured above) has been appointed as the chair of The AI-RAN Alliance, the industry body that was launched earlier this year – see AI-RAN Alliance launches at #MWC24. Until recently, Choi was senior VP of group technology at Deutsche Telekom and chairman of another industry group, the O-RAN Alliance. Now, though, Choi is principal fellow of the Research Institute of Advanced Technology at Japanese giant SoftBank, one of the founding members of the AI-RAN Alliance: The other founding members were Amazon Web Services (AWS), Arm, DeepSig Ericsson, Microsoft, Nokia, Northeastern University, Nvidia, Samsung Electronics, and T-Mobile US. (Deutsche Telekom’s group CTO, Abdu Mudesir, was named as the new chair of the O-RAN Alliance.) Commenting on his appointment, Choi, who is a member of TelecomTV’s DSP Leaders Council, said: “The AI-RAN Alliance is set to transform telecommunications through AI-RAN advancements, increased efficiency, and new economic opportunities. As Chair, I’m excited to lead this AI-RAN initiative, working with industry leaders to enhance mobile networks, reduce power consumption, and modernise infrastructure with 5G and 6G with AI/ML. Our goal is to drive societal progress through AI-RAN, transitioning from traditional to next-generation communications infrastructure.” The basic premise behind the alliance is that current RAN architectures are incredibly inefficient, and with operators revamping their networks, becoming more cloud-oriented and desperately seeking the benefit from the automation and efficiencies that smart AI deployments could deliver, the industry now has the chance to develop blueprints for future RAN architectures that will enable mobile network operators to get a greater potential return on their investments and open up new revenue opportunities as well. The alliance has three main areas of focus: AI for RAN (the use of AI tools to improve the performance and efficiency of radio access networks);  AI and RAN (the integration of AI and RAN processes on the same underlying infrastructure, so that the resources are constantly being used even if there is no mobile customer activity on the network, though with RAN processes prioritised when there is network activity); and AI on RAN (the development and deployment of AI-enabled applications at the edge of the network that can be delivered over 5G connections). According to the alliance, Choi will corral the “collective expertise of its members to advance research and innovation” in those three focus areas. “Network operators in the alliance will spearhead the testing and implementation of these technologies, developed through the collaborative efforts of member companies and universities,” the group added in its announcement about Choi’s appointment, which also included comments from the alliance’s founder members. John Saw, CYO at T-Mobile US, noted: “We are thrilled to have Alex Choi as Chair of the AI-RAN Alliance. AI is advancing at an unprecedented rate and with our 5G network advantage we have a unique opportunity to harness this momentum. By developing solutions that make the most of both RAN and AI on GPUs [graphics processing units] — and working alongside Choi and the top industry leaders within the Alliance — we believe there is potential for change that will revolutionise the industry.” 

Tension is building in the satellite-to-smartphone sector ahead of the planned launch of commercial services by T-Mobile US and Starlink, the low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite unit of Elon Musk’s SpaceX (Space Exploration). As ever, there is a race between rivals to be the ‘first’ to launch an innovative service, even if (as in this case) it will be limited in its capabilities and consumer demand is untested, and T-Mobile US’s main domestic rivals, AT&T and Verizon, are doing all they can to put a spanner in the works of the imminent launch. Since they announced their joint plans in August 2022, T-Mobile and SpaceX have been preparing their respective systems and testing services and in May this year boasted (via a post on Musk’s X) of a video call between regular mobile devices that had been provisioned using Starlink connectivity, adding that a commercial launch was set for later in 2024. AT&T and Verizon also have satellite-to-smartphone services aspirations and both have forged partnerships with specialist LEO satellite operator AST SpaceMobile, but the latter’s satellites are yet to be launched (more on that below). So while they wait for their partner to get its satellites into orbit, AT&T and Verizon are trying to convince US regulator the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that the high power levels of the planned “coverage from space” services being prepped by SpaceX and T-Mobile US would cause interference with regular terrestrial cellular services and should be halted. Both telcos submitted petitions with the FCC on 12 August – AT&T’s is here and Verizon’s here. T-Mobile US and SpaceX expected the move: Also on 12 August the partners sent a letter to the FCC, noting that they are “excited to launch commercial direct-to-cellular service to realise the Chairwoman [Jessica Rosenworcel]’s signature vision of a Single Network Future that closes mobile ‘dead zones’ for American consumers everywhere. Since the Commission granted SpaceX authority to launch and test its direct-to-cellular payloads last December, SpaceX has successfully launched over 100 direct-to-cellular capable satellites in space. Together, T-Mobile and SpaceX have made significant progress testing the early network, demonstrating the robust capabilities of the system.” In that letter, T-Mobile US stated that its proposed services would “not cause harmful interference to adjacent-band terrestrial operations, including T-Mobile’s own adjacent-band operations,” and also took a swipe at AT&T and Verizon. With the “commercial launch fast approaching,” T-Mobile US and SpaceX “expressed an expectation that competitors would continue to make misleading claims and draconian demands to further delay Commission action and limit service to American consumers. Indeed, each time that SpaceX has demonstrated that it would not cause harmful interference to other operators – often based on those parties’ own claimed assumptions – those competitors have moved the goalposts or have claimed their analysis should not have been trusted in the first place. These operators’ shapeshifting arguments and demands should be seen for what they are: last-minute attempts to block a more advanced supplemental coverage partnership and syphon sensitive information to aid their own competing efforts. The Commission must not allow competitive gamesmanship to stand in the way of lifesaving service for American consumers.” The gloves are off!         

So what of AST SpaceMobile? As we’ve noted previously, the launch date for the launch of its initial satellites, dubbed Bluebirds, was pushed back several times but now appears to be imminent following the announcement in late July that its first five LEOs were ready for action. In its latest business update, the company, which is backed by the likes of Vodafone, Rakuten Mobile and Google as well as AT&T and Verizon, noted that its Bluebirds are now at their launch site and set to go into orbit during the first half of September. As you’d expect, the company’s CEO, Abel Avellan, is excited, but appears to have swallowed a hyperbole pill. “We stand at a pivotal moment for AST SpaceMobile… The arrival of our first five commercial satellites at the launch site marks the culmination of years of relentless innovation and perseverance… The upcoming orbital launch is a significant step toward fulfilling our mission to eliminate dead zones and empower communities worldwide with space-based cellular broadband connectivity," he gushed. Goodness knows what he’ll have to say once the satellites are actually in space and operational!         

The frequency of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks grew by 106% from the second half of 2023 to the first half of 2024, according to the latest DDOS Insights Report from International network operator Zayo Group. In addition, the average DDoS attack now lasts 45 minutes, an 18% increase from the same period a year ago, “costing unprotected organisations approximately $270,000 per attack at an average rate of $6,000 per minute,” according to Zayo, which also noted that the telecom operator sector is still the most targeted, bearing the brunt of 57% of all DDOS attacks. “As we predicted last year, DDoS attacks in the age of AI have become more persistent and frequent across all industries, and our latest report confirms this heightened level as the new norm. What’s worse, if this trend continues, we expect attacks could increase another 24% by the end of the year,” stated Max Clauson, senior VP of Network Connectivity at Zayo. “The only way to fight back is to add protection to your tech stack. When your business is protected, attackers have no other option but to move on to find an easier target.” Read more. 

Brightspeed, the US broadband service provider that acquired access network assets in 20 states in the mid-south and east in 2022 from Lumen (formerly Centurylink) for $7.5bn, has reached a deal with lenders to eliminate $1.1bn of debt through amendments to its existing loan and credit facilities and receive $3.7bn in fresh funding from its lenders and its majority shareholder, Apollo Global Management, reports Bloomberg. The operator, which plans to use its new capital to build out fibre access network infrastructure in 17 states, says the new financing allows it to pursue additional funding of up to $4.7bn from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program. “This landmark announcement builds on our strong momentum and provides the capital to advance our aggressive, multi-year plan to build a fibre network in communities that lack quality, high-speed connectivity options,” stated Brightspeed CEO Tom Maguire. “We have successfully brought fibre connectivity to 1.4 million homes and businesses and have upsized our build plan with an expanded goal of reaching more than four million locations with our state-of-the-art fibre network,” he added.    

Japan’s SoftBank and South Korea’s SK Networks and LG Electronics are among the companies to have joined the $130m Alpha Intelligence Fund, which aims to make quick and “sizeable” investments in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and quantum computing startups, according to Nikkei Asia. Internet service provider SK Broadband is investing $30m into the fund, reported Business Korea.     

- The staff, TelecomTV