MC EXCLUSIVE Rakuten Symphony plans 5G pilot with BSNL, eyes deploying Indian-made telecom gear in Japan: Co-Chief Executive Officer of Rakuten Mobile

Rakuten Symphony

Japanese telecom major Rakuten Symphony is set to conduct a 5G proof of concept (PoC) with state-run BSNL as part of its deepening collaboration with Indian technology partners. The company, which has partnered with Tejas Networks for radio and core hardware, stated that it is also evaluating several Indian vendors for potential deployment in Japan, once they meet the country’s stringent quality standards — marking a significant vote of confidence in India’s growing telecom manufacturing and R&D ecosystem.

Rakuten Symphony, a subsidiary Rakuten Group, houses the group’s telecom and networking technologies and IPs.

Watch Full Interview: Rakuten Symphony’s 5G Pilot with BSNL & Plans to Export Telecom Gear to Japan

“We’re working with Tejas and have also met with BSNL. We’re planning to do a 5G PoC with BSNL soon,” said Sharad Sriwastawa, Co-Chief Executive Officer of Rakuten Mobile and President of Rakuten Symphony, in an interaction with Moneycontrol on the sidelines of India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2025.

Sriwastawa called India’s move to develop an indigenous 4G and 5G stack under the government’s Make in India vision “absolutely the right move.” He said the 4G stack being built by Tejas Networks, TCS, and C-DOT for BSNL is already strong and provides a solid foundation for domestic telecom innovation.

Rakuten Symphony, which provides software and network solutions globally, has been expanding its partnerships in India across R&D, cloud, and open radio access network (Open RAN) technologies. As part of its alliance with Tejas Networks, the two companies are jointly demonstrating a live 5G setup at IMC, comprising a 32TR radio unit (RU) and a core network from Tejas, integrated with Rakuten Symphony’s distributed unit (DU) and central unit (CU) software.

“We’ve already made multiple live calls using that setup,” Sriwastawa said, adding that the partnership combines Indian hardware innovation with Rakuten’s proven software stack.

Rakuten Symphony currently has around 3,000 employees in India working across Indore, Bengaluru, and other locations — focused on R&D, OSS, automation, and cloud technologies. Another 2,000 employees under Rakuten India support group-wide technology functions.

Sriwastawa said the company is actively evaluating more Indian vendors for global deployment opportunities. “In Rakuten Mobile, we’ve deployed products from more than 14 RU vendors, but none so far are from India. We’re conducting trials, and once all quality checks are completed — since Japan is extremely quality-conscious — we hope to deploy Indian products in our Japan network as well,” he noted.

Rakuten’s Open RAN-based network in Japan is widely recognized as one of the world’s most advanced. The company operates about 400,000 cells and 100,000 macro sites, and has won multiple awards from OpenSignal and Ookla for network performance. Building on that experience, Rakuten Symphony has taken its Open RAN solutions global — powering Europe’s first Open RAN network in Germany with 1&1, which now serves over 25 million subscribers, and expanding into new markets such as Kuwait, Bangladesh, Kenya, and Ukraine.

Sriwastawa believes India’s role in the global telecom ecosystem will only grow stronger. “India lagged in 4G, caught up with the world in 5G, and will likely be ahead in 6G, given the pace of advancement and the thriving startup culture,” he said. “There’s no shortage of talent or skills here. Even global players are using Indian teams to develop new technologies, so there’s no reason Indian companies themselves can’t lead the charge.”

He added that Rakuten Symphony’s engagement with India is expanding beyond RAN into cloud solutions. The company recently signed an agreement with Polystack, an Indian firm building a ruggedized “cloud-in-a-box” solution for defence services. Under the collaboration, Rakuten will provide the software while the hardware will be manufactured in India.

“I’m very excited about IMC. This is my first time attending, and I see a lot of talent, skill, and energy here,” Sriwastawa said. “Hopefully in the next couple of years, the 4G stack or the 5G partnership we’re building with Tejas can go global — not just with Tejas, but also with TCS and other Indian players.”