Specialist in network lifecycle automation promises operators more efficient 5G network planning using crowdsourced data.

Ken Wieland, contributing editor

November 9, 2021

2 Min Read
Infovista plays to the crowd with AI-based 5G RAN planning

Operators are increasingly turning to AI and machine-learning to help optimize network planning and lower costs. Today's announcement from Infovista, a specialist in network lifecycle automation, is another example of this trend but with a 5G crowdsourcing twist.

What Infovista says it has been able to do is to integrate "direct access" of crowdsourced user data into Planet 7.5, which it describes as the "world's first AI-powered planning and optimization solution."

The idea is that by automatically integrating processed data on how subscribers are using and experiencing operators' services into the Planet platform, network engineers can derive "actionable insights" from a detailed picture of traffic demand and network KPIs "based on 9 billion data points collected daily worldwide."

Figure 1:

According to Infovista, the geolocated data – visualized as "easy-to-use" heat maps – enables operators to make "focused and informed network planning and tuning decisions” based on info gleaned from more than 250 million mobile devices "continuously delivering multiple voice and data related measurements."

The crowdsourced data, adds Infovista, is "automatically collected" from more than 10,000 diverse Android apps running background diagnosis processes "wherever and whenever" customers use their smartphones.

Upbeat on benefits (but not yet quantifiable)

"Designing 5G networks is more complex than with previous technologies and we see the usage patterns of mobile subscribers are much more dynamic and less predictable," said Régis Lerbour, a RAN engineering expert from Infovista.

"This new direct crowdsourcing capability provides up-to-date, granular data from real users on both an operator's own network and others in their country to help efficiently plan the evolution of existing 3G/4G networks and deliver profitable high quality 5G networks."

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Infovista claims operators are in line for four "key benefits" when using crowdsourcing data for 5G: efficiency improvement; operating cost reduction; improved user experience; and increased profits. It does not venture to quantify those benefits, at least not yet, as far as Light Reading can determine.

Access and integration of crowdsourced data within Planet is now available to mobile network operators as a subscription-based service.

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— Ken Wieland, contributing editor, special to Light Reading

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About the Author(s)

Ken Wieland

contributing editor

Ken Wieland has been a telecoms journalist and editor for more than 15 years. That includes an eight-year stint as editor of Telecommunications magazine (international edition), three years as editor of Asian Communications, and nearly two years at Informa Telecoms & Media, specialising in mobile broadband. As a freelance telecoms writer Ken has written various industry reports for The Economist Group.

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