打破RAN的枷锁：运营商如何加速RAN自主化

Executive Briefing BREAKING THE RANCUFFS:HOW OPERATORS CANACCELERATE RAN AUTONOMY RAN autonomy will not deliver impact unless technical progress and valuecreation advancein parallel.Ourdual-axis frameworkwillhelp operatorstoassess where they are today, identify constraints across the lifecycle andthe investments most likely to scale. Foreword Methodology This report presents insights from a recent research programme, where wecombinedextensiveanalysis of existing network autonomy benchmarks with in-depth interviews with four senior RANdecision-makers across North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia Pacific. The objective was toidentify where current industry frameworks fall short and where operators see the most pressinggaps.Building on these insights, we developed a dual-axis framework that captures not only thedegree of network autonomy achieved, but also how effectively that autonomy translates into tangiblecommercial value. Editorial independence This report has been prepared by independent consulting and research firm STL Partners and wascommissioned byAmdocs. STL Partners maintains strict editorial independence. Mentions or allusions to companies or productsin this document areintended as illustrations of market evolution and are not included asendorsements or product/service recommendations. A message from our sponsor Amdocs helps the world’s leading communications and media companies deliver exceptionalcustomer experiences through reliable, efficient and secure operations at scale. The companyprovides software products and services that embed intelligence into how work runs across business,IT and network domains–delivering measurable outcomes in customer experience, networkperformance, cloud modernisation and revenue growth. With more than 40 years of experienceoperating mission-critical systems globally, Amdocsprocesses billions of transactions each dayandits technology is relied on worldwide. Amdocs is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market (NASDAQ:DOX) and reported revenue of $4.53 billion in fiscal 2025. . Executive Summary Telecom operators are under sustained pressurefrom investors owing to stagnant revenues,increasing commoditisation of connectivity and rising network cost and complexity. The RAN remainsthe largest and most expensive network asset, making it a central lever for both efficiency anddifferentiation. As a result, automation–and ultimately autonomy–has become a strategic priority.Many operators have set autonomy targets alignedto the TM Forum Autonomous Networksframework, which has helped establish ashared language and accelerate activity, particularly withinnetwork operations. However, progress against technical autonomy targets has not consistently translated into materialbusiness impact. In practice, autonomy initiatives often struggle to scale,theyremain concentratedin isolated operational domains and are difficult to connect to commercial outcomes. This hasresulted in fragmented execution, uneven maturity across the RAN lifecycle and persistent challengesin justifying investment beyond incremental efficiency gains. Addressing this requires a more holistic view of RAN autonomy–one that captures not only howautonomous the network is becoming, but also how that autonomy translates into value. A dual-axisframework provides this perspective(seeFigure1). •The technicalaxisreflects technical autonomy maturity across the full RAN lifecycle, describinghow responsibility progressively shifts from humans to machines as data quality, orchestration,governance and trust improve. This extends existing autonomy models beyond networkoperations to include planning, design, deployment, optimisation and assurance. •Thecommercialaxisreflects RAN value creation maturity, describing how the role of the RANevolves from a cost centre to a source of differentiation, and ultimately to a platform formonetisable services and outcome-based offerings. When combined, these axes define a set of distinct states that operators can realistically occupy.These states help explain why operators with similar technology stacks can experience differentoutcomes from autonomy initiatives, depending on how well technical capability and commercialambition are aligned. The framework supports objective assessment of current position, highlightswhere misalignment is constraining progress and helps prioritise autonomy investments that aremost likely to deliver scalable impact. Experience across operators shows that sustained progress depends on advancing technicalcapabilityand value creation in parallel,supported by shared accountability,lifecycle-widecoordination and clear ownership of outcomes. Operators that move fastertend to prioritiseautonomy use cases with explicit value pathways, establish stronger cross-functional governance andinvest early in orchestration and actuation foundations that allow autonomy to scale beyond pilots. To accelerate RAN autonomy andensure material return on investmen