Germany’s new entrant operator, Drillisch 1&1, has finally switched on part of its new 5G mobile network, at least to support fixed wireless access (FWA). This is an important milestone not just for the operator itself, but for the Open RAN community, for which it is a European poster child, and for Rakuten Symphony, which is providing the network platform and integration. A series of delays last year was casting a shadow over the Symphony-led dream of pre-integrated open networks that are relatively easy and quick to deploy, compared to traditional models – though 1&1 largely blamed other factors such as slow implementation of infrastructure deals by towercos such as Vantage. Owned by German ISP United Internet, 1&1 is Europe’s…