RDK has joined the Wireless Broadband Alliance to collaborate on home Wi-Fi and IoT initiatives for broadband operators.
RDK Management (RDK) today announced that it has joined the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) and that the two organizations’ members plan to collaborate on industry-wide initiatives such as Operator Managed Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi 7, and IoT. RDK and WBA share many common members across broadband operators and technology companies that are committed to deploying RDK for Broadband (RDK-B).
RDK is an open-source software solution deployed on more than 100 million devices that standardizes core functions used in broadband, video, and IoT devices. With RDK, device provisioning, data diagnostics, reporting, and telemetry are consistent across all RDK software profiles, enabling service providers to manage video, broadband and cameras/IoT devices in a uniform way. For broadband, RDK-B provides carrier-grade core functionalities including device management, IoT gateway services, telemetry, Wi-Fi services, Ethernet access, IPv6 transitioning and more that works across all major network access technologies including DOCSIS, GPON, DSL, and Fixed Wireless Access. By packaging and open sourcing all these functions in a single standard software stack, service providers can develop, deploy, and manage a consistent set of broadband services across SoCs and OEMs for use across their networks and geographic footprints.
The Wireless Broadband Alliance is a global industry body dedicated to improving Wi-Fi standards and services. WBA undertakes programs and activities to address business and technical challenges, while exploring opportunities for its member companies. These initiatives encompass standards development, industry guidelines, trials, certification, and advocacy. A recent example of such work, of particular relevance to the RDK community, is the WBA’s working group and recent technical paper, “Operator Managed Wi-Fi: Reference Architecture and Requirements”, which outlines a new operator-managed Wi-Fi (OMWi) reference architecture. The proposed framework combines multiple available standards to streamline Wi-Fi data collection, Wi-Fi management, configuration, and optimization of home networks, simplifying the analysis and decision-making process for carriers.