After many years of regulatory, standardization and technical implementation activities, the United States’ dynamic, three-tiered, hierarchical framework for coordinated shared use of 150 MHz of spectrum in the 3.5 GHz CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) band is experiencing a renewed wave of enthusiasm. This reinvigoration of interest follows a recent relaxation of rules and guidelines – collectively referred to as CBRS 2.0 – which extends uninterrupted commercial operations in the CBRS band from 78% to 97% of the country’s total landmass, among other refinements. Complementing these initiatives are new FCC (Federal Communications Commission) proposals aimed at fostering innovation and continued growth of CBRS networks through additional changes to the spectrum sharing framework, ranging from higher transmit power levels to interference protection for critical private network users in indoor facilities.
Although the shared spectrum arrangement is access technology neutral, the 3GPP cellular wireless ecosystem is at the forefront of CBRS adoption, with close to half of the more than 400,000 active CBSDs (Citizens Broadband Radio Service Devices) based on LTE and 5G NR air interface technologies. The rest of the market comprises fixed wireless broadband networks built using non-3GPP equipment supplied by the likes of Cambium Networks and Tarana Wireless.
LTE-based CBRS deployments encompass hundreds of networks – operating in both GAA (General Authorized Access) and PAL (Priority Access License) spectrum tiers – to support use cases as diverse as mobile network densification, FWA (Fixed Wireless Access) in rural communities, MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) offload and private cellular networks in support of IIoT (Industrial IoT), distance learning and smart city initiatives. Additionally, there has been a surge in the adoption of CBRS small cells as a cost-effective alternative to DAS (Distributed Antenna Systems) for delivering neutral host public cellular coverage in carpeted enterprise spaces, public venues, hospitals, hotels, higher education campuses and schools. Some examples of LTE-based CBRS networks supporting neutral host connectivity to one or more national mobile operators include Meta’s corporate offices, City of Hope Hospital, Stanford Health Care, Sound Hotel, Gale South Beach Hotel, Nobu Hotel, Arizona State University, Cal Poly, University of Virginia, Duke University and Parkside Elementary School.
Also well underway are commercial rollouts of 5G NR network equipment operating in the CBRS band, which are laying the foundation for advanced application scenarios with more demanding performance requirements in terms of throughput, latency, reliability, availability and connection density – for example, Industry 4.0 applications such as connected production machinery, mobile robotics, AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles) and AR (Augmented Reality)-assisted troubleshooting. 5G NR-based CBRS network installations range from private 5G projects at the manufacturing and logistics facilities of Tesla, Toyota Material Handling, BMW Group, John Deere, LG Electronics and Walmart to Comcast’s and Charter’s ongoing 5G RAN (Radio Access Network) buildouts based on strand-mounted CBRS radios.
SNS Telecom & IT’s “LTE & 5G NR-Based CBRS Networks: 2024 – 2030” report predicts that annual investments in LTE and 5G NR-based CBRS RAN, mobile core and transport network infrastructure will grow at a CAGR of approximately 15% between 2024 and 2027 to surpass $1.3 Billion by the end of 2027. Much of this growth will be driven by private cellular, neutral host and fixed wireless broadband network deployments, followed by a slow but steady expansion of investments in 5G buildouts aimed at improving the economics of cable operators’ MVNO services. Complemented by an ever expanding selection of 3GPP Band 48/n48-compatible terminal equipment, the market size for end user devices is even bigger, with unit shipments of IIoT and FWA devices projected to account for $2.4 Billion in annual sales by 2027. For more information, please visit: https://www.snstelecom.com/cbrs