iGR report projects that five year 2016 U.S. DAS capex will exceed $19 billion while U.S. DAS capex and opex spending will exceed $23 billion
(Video) Iain Gillott, founder and president of iGR Research, shares his recently released 2016 U.S. DAS forecast along with predictions for IMT 2020 5G and CPRI with Jeff Mucci from RCR Wireless News
2016 DAS capex forecast will be driven by commercial buildings and multi-dwelling units (MDU) as stadium, hospitality and convention venues near the end of a multi-year DAS upgrade cycle. Declining total cost of deploying DAS due to technology advances coupled with continued carrier delays with securing small cell network right-of-ways will fuel smaller building and venue DAS deployments.
More specifically, overall cost of deploying DAS in smaller commercial office buildings and MDUs is decreasing because carriers are plugging fiber fed, digital remote radio units (Distributed Radio Systems – DRS) directly into a centralized DAS array, thus eliminating the need for power attenuation boards to power down, then power up high power radio signals. In addition, carriers and neutral host providers will be leveraging existing DAS building headends along with base station hotels to centrally serve multiple buildings. Using a centralized approach, however, will require significant fiber assets.
Gillott referred to the use of DRS technology in tandem with small cell deployments as a top down versus a femto cell centric “bottom up” approach to providing capacity in-building.
When asked about the role of CPRI in future DAS and small cell deployments, Gillott predicted that CPRI will continue to evolve as an option of efficiently serving both indoor-wireless systems and small cell remote radio units off of centralized base base units.
With respect to small cell network’s impact on DAS deployment forecast, Gillott mentioned that non-technical obstacles continue to hold up mass small cell network deployments. These non-technical challenges, which include securing right of ways and easements, will continue to drive carriers toward in-building DAS systems, where carrier or neutral host provider may already have a building owner or manager relationship.
The new market study can be purchased and downloaded directly from iGR’s website (https://igr-inc.com), providing immediate access to a digital copy of the research. Alternatively, contact Iain Gillott at (512) 263-5682 or email for additional details on this report, as well as information on the Wireless & Mobile Landscape and Small Cell, DAS & Het-Nets advisory and subscription services.
