Network Infrastructure Fundamentals

As most states finalize their broadband expansion plans, a few are standing out for their speed, strategy, and scope In sum – what to know: States push ahead – Louisiana, Texas, Hawaii, Mississippi, and Nevada are turning BEAD plans into …

3GPP has established two basic 5G NTN architecture approaches: Transparent and Regenerative According to Rohde & Schwarz’s Wireless unit Technology Manager Reiner Stuhlfauth, the integration of non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) and terrestrial 5G networks is an architectural “paradigm shift.” In a …

3GPP Release 18, or 5G-Advanced, includes critical NTN updates Capabilities around the integration of 5G and non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) were first enabled with 3GPP Release 17; but it’s really Release 18, or 5G-Advanced (5G-A), that includes the serious stuff — …

Non-terrestrial networks, or NTNs, will be a native component in 6G networks, according to 6G-NTN project member Dorin Panaitopol For those behind Europe’s 6G-NTN project, non-terrestrial networks, or NTNs, are the only way to achieve ubiquitous coverage, project member Dorin …

Non-terrestrial networks (NTN) are being integrated into 5G standards and, according to standards body ATIS, “maximize the inherent value of 5G networks by solving coverage problems and difficult use-cases that ground-based infrastructure alone cannot address.” While NTN are often assumed …

As data traffic and demand continues to surge, mobile network operators are prioritizing network densification, which will increase the capacity of their networks, helping them deliver the consistent, reliable and speedy service that 5G has promised. Densification will involve new …

When it comes to small cell densification in the U.S., markets can be segmented by their current stage of deployment Mobile wireless data traffic in the U.S. hit another record high in 2020, topping 42 trillion MBs, which represents a …

Sport complexes, concert halls and other enclosed venues are promising scenarios for a small cell deployment Small cells can be deployed indoors or outdoors and in licensed, shared or unlicensed spectrum, making them a versatile coverage and capacity solution. However, …

CommScope director of engineering: ‘When densification [of small cells] increases […] so does the amount of power’ In the U.S., operators are expected to deploy five to 10 times more small cells than macro cells, and CTIA has forecasted that …

Analog Devices: ‘There have been a lot of different uses of the term small cell’ Despite the current emphasis on small cells operating in higher 5G frequencies, this infrastructure is not actually limited, or defined, by frequency. In fact, 4G …

In a crowdsourcing model, the carrier actively solicits interest in broadband service among communities Established as a wireless company in 1988 under the name Cellular South, C Spire primarily provides broadband service throughout most of Mississippi and parts of Tennessee …

C Spire’s technology strategy lead: ‘No one does rural broadband particularly well’ In a two-year research project of the Rural Broadband Consortium, C Spire led a group of companies that included Nokia, Microsoft, Facebook and others to explore the challenges …

C Spire’s Chief Information Security Officer: ‘Security needs to be aware of where the business is going’ For a long time, increasing network availability and speed has dominated the rural broadband conversation; those aspects continue to be part of the …

Does the federal government finally have one broadband map to rule them all? Not quite, but it is getting closer. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration recently released a new, public broadband mapping tool that for the first time, overlays …

The coronavirus pandemic has led to an intensified focus on broadband availability, as people around the world turned to online services to stay connected, work and learn. Terry Young, who is director of service provider and 5G product marketing for …

One of the biggest barriers to closing the digital divide has long been cost – it simply costs so much to put in the infrastructure that the return on investment takes too long or is simply non-existent, network operators have …

Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Midco is a regional service provider that serves about 400,000 customers in five states. The company is a joint venture of Comcast and Midcontinent Media and provides cable, internet (including gigabit speeds) and telephone services in …