Greenfields often present low hanging fruit, and that is particularly true for Open RAN, where one or two operators, such as Japan’s Rakuten, have already made it work, while others burdened by legacy are struggling, or have put it on the back burner for now. Such discussions arose at the recent Open RAN Global Forum, alongside energy efficiency issues discussed in a separate article this week. Open RAN is a microcosm of 5G, in being deployed first while standards and best practices were still evolving. This has led inevitably to some disillusionment after the early flush of enthusiasm, but at least the field is now entering a more mature era, where key issues have been clarified and are being addressed,…