@inproceedings{ author = {A. Maeder and M. Lalam and A. De Domenico and E. Pateromichelakis and D. W\"{u}bben and J. Bartelt and R. Fritzsche and P. Rost}, year = {2014}, month = {Jun}, title = {Towards a Flexible Functional Split for Cloud-RAN Networks}, URL = {http://eucnc.eu/}, address={Bologna, Italy}, abstract={Very dense deployments of small cells are one of the key enablers to tackle the ever-growing demand on mobile bandwidth. In such deployments, centralization of RAN functions on cloud resources is envisioned to overcome severe inter-cell interference and to keep costs acceptable. However, RAN backhaul constraints need to be considered when designing the functional split between RAN front-ends and centralized equipment. In this paper we analyze constraints and outline applications of flexible RAN centralization.}, booktitle={European Conference on Networks and Communications} }