Rakuten Mobile's 5G (Sub6) Traffic in Tokyo Grows 130%, Active Users Increase 50%, and Network Speed Double

Tokyo, June 27, 2024 - Rakuten Mobile, Japan’s newest and most modern mobile network, today announced that it has increased its 5G (Sub6) base station traffic capacity approximately 130% per network cell, increased the number of unique 5G users by approximately 50%, and doubled its average network speed^*1 in Tokyo, compared with its previous results for the region^*2, by taking measures to increase the capacity of its 5G (Sub6) base stations.

The network performance improvement is partly due to the easing of measures preventing interference between mobile wireless networks and satellite communications in shared bandwidth frequencies. Rakuten Mobile is now able to increase the radio transmission output power of its existing 5G base stations across the Kanto region^*3 and aims to gradually expand its 5G network coverage area across the region by up to 60% by the end of 2024, compared to January 2024. In addition, Rakuten Mobile is enhancing the speed and stability of its 5G network by upgrading the software for 5G (Sub6) base stations nationwide by the end of June 2024, as well as enabling smoother transitions between 4G and 5G network connections through the optimization of base station parameters.

Rakuten Mobile has built a nationwide fully virtualized, cloud-native mobile network based on Open RAN standards, deploying a total of 17,210 5G outdoor base stations as of the end of May 2024^*4. The company has succeeded in extending beamforming in massive MIMO by upgrading the software for Rakuten Symphony’s Distributed Unit (DU) and Centralized Unit (CU) wireless access devices used in its 5G base stations. The DUs and CUs developed by Rakuten Symphony are fully compatible with virtualization, allowing for quick upgrades to the base station software running on the virtualized platform.

Rakuten Mobile is also rolling out improvement measures across the Nagoya and Osaka regions. In the Nagoya region^*5, 5G traffic capacity has grown approximately 30% and the number of users by roughly 10%, while in the Osaka region^*6, 5G traffic capacity has grown approximately 70%, the number of users by roughly 40%, and the average network speed^*7 has increased approximately 60%^*8. Rakuten Mobile expects to further improve the quality of its nationwide network by continuing to roll out these measures across other regions in Japan.

As part of its ongoing commitment to provide best-in-class mobile connectivity services, Rakuten Mobile has continued to enhance the quality of its network through the expansion of mobile service coverage areas and the improvement and optimization of its network. In recognition of these efforts, Rakuten Mobile has been named by Opensignal, global provider of network experience and market performance insights, as Japan’s mobile network leader in the Games Experience, 5G Upload Speed, 5G Download Speed, Upload Speed Experience and Voice App Experience categories, and joint leader in the Live Video Experience and Video Experience categories in its April 2024 Report^*9*10.

Rakuten Mobile will continue to enhance its nationwide mobile network quality so that more consumers can have access to and enjoy Rakuten Group’s ecosystem of more than 70 services.

Notes
*1 and *7 Comparison of 5G (Sub6) at general effective speeds (as of June 20, 2024).
*2 Compared to before the completion of the software upgrade for Tokyo base stations.
*3 Tochigi, Gunma, Ibaraki, Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa and Yamanashi Prefectures
*4 Only for outdoor Sub6 macro base stations
*5 Refers to the Tokai region: Gifu, Shizuoka, Aichi and Mie Prefectures
*6 Refers to the Kinki region: Shiga, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara and Wakayama Prefectures
*8 In areas where software upgrades for 5G (Sub6) base stations have been completed
*9 Related press release: Rakuten Mobile Leads Japanese Competitors in Mobile Game Experience and Fastest 5G Speed Categories (April 25, 2024)
https://corp.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/english/news/press/2024/0425_01/
*10 Information based on Opensignal's Japan Mobile Network Experience Report, published in April 2024, using data from December 1, 2023 to February 28, 2024. The full report is available on the Opensignal website:
https://www.opensignal.com/reports/2024/04/japan/mobile-network-experience

*Product names and service names published in this press release are generally trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Trademarks such as ^TM and ® may be omitted when trademarks are listed in this press release.