A fast-growing Japanese variant is now spreading nationwide. Cases have been observed in other parts of the world alongside local mutations. In the US, one strain bears similar characteristics to the main Japanese variant. In Europe, there is fear and uncertainty that foreign versions could become dominant. It sounds like coronavirus with a subtly different backstory, but it sums up today's international market for open RAN. The telco industry is enthralled by the concept. Its complaint is that today's all-powerful suppliers are not compatible, forcing the operator of a mobile site to be faithful to one system and squeezing out the technology specialists. Open RAN interoperability could be a leg-up for smaller firms that diversifies the market. The risk is that it becomes a proliferation of incompatible systems.