Dhaka & Tokyo, 19 September 2025 – Rakuten Symphony and Bangladesh-based mobile network operator Grameenphone, a Telenor Group Company, have announced that they will collaborate on a pilot project to build an Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN) comprising 4G and 5G Non-Standalone (NSA) sites within the country.
The pilot project will position Grameenphone - who currently boasts over 86 million mobile network subscribers - as one of the first mobile operators in South Asia to deploy Open RAN and will serve as a precursor to a nationwide Open RAN deployment in Bangladesh.
Rakuten Symphony will supply the Centralized Unit (CU) and Distributed Unit (DU) infrastructure, the 4G/5G Radio Units, along with its OSS solutions. Rakuten Symphony will engage its partners to support the project and provide necessary expertise throughout the pilot phase.
Sharad Sriwastawa, President, Rakuten Symphony said, “Our collaboration with Grameenphone, one of South Asia’s inaugural Open RAN deployments, is a testament to our vision for the future of telecommunications. Rakuten Symphony is committed to supporting Grameenphone to fully realize the advantages of Open RAN, including greater operational flexibility, optimized network capabilities, and accelerated network innovation.”
Jai Prakash, Chief Technology Officer, Grameenphone, said, "We are excited to partner with Rakuten Symphony to pioneer Open RAN technology in Bangladesh. In line with Telenor’s strategy, this pilot marks a significant step in our journey toward building a more agile, efficient, and future-ready network infrastructure. By embracing Open RAN, we aim to unlock new possibilities for innovation and deliver enhanced connectivity experiences to our millions of subscribers. This collaboration reflects our commitment to digital transformation and reinforces our position as a technology leader in the region."
Rakuten Symphony, through its collaboration with Rakuten Mobile who applies achievements obtained from key research and development projects subsidized by the NEDO (New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization) program*1, remains committed to leading Open RAN innovation, and the development of automated network quality assurance systems and edge cloud capabilities for next-generation communication networks of the future.
Read more here about Rakuten Symphony and Rakuten Mobile’s participation in government sponsored research and development initiatives to explore modernization of mobile networks and diversification of supply chain vendor ecosystems.
Notes:
*1 “Research and Development Project of the Enhanced Infrastructures for Post-5G Information and Communication Systems (JPNP20017)”, subsidized by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). https://corp.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/english/news/press/2023/0703_02/
About Grameenphone Ltd.
Grameenphone, part of the Telenor Group, is a leading telecommunications service provider in Bangladesh with over 86 million subscribers. With a mission to empower societies and minimize the digital divide since its inception in 1997, Grameenphone has built the largest cellular network in the country, covering over 99 percent of the country's population. It is committed to making things possible with the power of connectivity, further enhancing customers' digital lifestyle, while constantly innovating to be a future-fit, customer-centric technology service provider. Grameenphone is listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE).
For more information about Grameenphone and our services, please visit our
Website: www.grameenphone.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/grameenphone
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/grameenphone-ltd/about/
YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/grameenphone
Instagram: www.instagram.com/grameenphone/
X: https://twitter.com/Grameenphone
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@grameenphone?lang=en
About Rakuten Symphony
Rakuten Symphony is reimagining telecom, changing supply chain norms and disrupting outmoded thinking that threatens the industry’s pursuit of rapid innovation and growth. Based on proven modern infrastructure practices, its open interface platforms make it possible to launch and operate advanced mobile services in a fraction of the time and cost of conventional approaches, with no compromise to network quality or security. Rakuten Symphony has operations in Japan, the United States, Singapore, India, Europe and the Middle East Africa region.
For more information, visit: https://symphony.rakuten.com
