FCC needs to move on PALs, but CBRS ramping to commercialization
Shared access of the 3.5 GHz Citizens Broadband Radio Service band provides a number of opportunities: carriers can add capacity and offload data traffic, neutral hosts get another tool in the proverbial toolbox and enterprises can implement private LTE to secure their own connectivity. While federal regulators still need to sort out licensure of priority access licenses for the band, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission is boosting the CBRS ecosystem with equipment certification.
The most recent FCC certification for 3.5 GHz went to network infrastructure vendor Ericsson. Specifically, Ericsson’s indoor and outdoor CBRS small cells got the OK from the FCC. Earlier this month ARRIS company Ruckus Wireless received FCC certification for its compatible access points.
In addition to the previously mentioned use cases, Ericsson also called out how shared spectrum can open up the wireless market to cable companies, and also be used for fixed wireless access.
Paul Challoner of Ericsson North America said in a statement, “This certification marks a significant milestone in our CBRS journey. To meet the needs of mobile subscribers today and into the future, new spectrum offerings like CBRS will be needed to deliver the required coverage and capacity.”
Challoner hits on an important point. If the concept of sharing spectrum can work at scale, it’s a clear signal to regulators that the same paradigm can be more broadly applied to spectrum that’s under utilized by incumbents.
Research firm Dell’Oro predicts CBRS-related radio access network investments to hit approximately $1 billion by 2022.
