Release 18 Favors Native RAN Positioning

This risk is really about who gets to own positioning inside the radio network, and incumbents are moving fast to make it part of the base network purchase. Release 18 pushes location deeper into standardized 5G workflows, which makes it easier for Ericsson and Nokia to tell carriers that precise positioning can come from the same RAN and core they already buy, operate, and support, instead of from a separate vendor that adds another integration, contract, and operational dependency.1 2 3 4 5

• Ericsson has already productized this logic. Its 5G Advanced location services are built into 5G standalone networks, positioned as a native carrier capability for enterprise and mission critical use cases, and explicitly marketed as not requiring overlay infrastructure or device side add ons.2 3
• Nokia sells private wireless as a bundled stack of RAN, core, edge, and industrial applications across factories, ports, mines, and utilities. In that buying motion, location can be folded into a much larger procurement, which lets Nokia win on convenience and contract leverage even if a specialist offers better raw accuracy.4 5 6
• The standard itself matters because it lowers the psychological and technical cost of saying yes to native features. 3GPP Release 18 formalized expanded NR positioning work, and vendors are already demonstrating commercial grade accuracy over standardized 5G network functions, which narrows the wedge for standalone providers.1 3 7

The next phase of competition will hinge less on whether positioning works at all, and more on whether a specialist can prove a large enough accuracy, coverage, or deployment advantage to justify being added beside the incumbent RAN vendor. As Release 18 features move into production networks, standalone players will need to win the hardest sites, not the easiest ones.2 3 4 7