The telecom industry has buzzed about small cell technology for years, but as the race toward 5G and ultra-dense metros speeds up, small cell is just now becoming a viable part of heterogeneous network deployments.
Take Cleveland, for example. In that market, Verizon Communications has dropped around 60 small cells in both high-traffic tourist destinations and suburban areas.
This is part of an overall $500 million small cell investment strategy from Verizon. Industry experts project that competitor Sprint is poised to spend a similar amount on small cell.
AT&T has also reported an aggressive move into small cell. Of the four major U.S. carriers, T-Mobile US is the only one that hasn’t publicized its small cell plans.
Research firm Mobile Experts on March 30 released an annual market report that suggests small cell shipments will surge this year.
One part of the equation is spectrum. Small cells can get more capacity out of existing spectrum.
Verizon Communications’ CTO Tony Melone said recently: “Small cell deployments will be an increasingly cost-effective way to add capacity while at the same time improving cell edge performance and thus further increasing the value of the spectrum we hold.”
Vendors have also broadened product offerings from not just small cell devices, but also site acquisition, power and backhaul solutions and provisioning of installers and integrates.
Also, big businesses – hotels, hospitals, colleges, etc. – have shown an increased willingness to pony up costs for more robust coverage and capacity.
Analyst Joe Madden of Mobile Experts said owners “are getting desperate for mobile coverage, and are willing to pay for their own infrastructure.”
Also on the spectrum front, carriers are looking to move operations into higher frequencies, a major part of proposed 5G cellular standards.
“One of the things that everyone agrees on is that at some point in time we will need more spectrum, and the only place where we can find it is in the very high frequencies,” said Lauri Oksanen, head of research and technology at Nokia Networks.
