Cambium Networks has announced the launch of commercial access to the FCC's Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) with the opening up of up 150 MHz of spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band to bring reliable high-speed broadband to the unconnected and under-connected.
Cambium Networks' end-to-end outdoor fixed wireless broadband solution is centered on the PMP 450m platform incorporating cnMedusa Massive Multiuser MIMO (MU-MIMO) technology, providing industry-leading subscriber density and spectral efficiency. The CBRS Spectrum Access System (SAS) services are provided by Cambium Networks' cnMaestro cloud-based management system, providing network operators a complete end-to-end CBRS solution from a single partner.
The commercial release of Cambium Network's CBRS service follows almost four years of regulatory work and advanced development, including over six months of successful field trials with subscribers receiving CBRS broadband services from network operators.
With this announcement, Cambium Networks is also providing a simple solution to a problem that all operators are facing using the FCC's 3.65 GHz band today. Most of the licenses that allowed operation in this band will expire in April 2020, requiring operators to make a change. Cambium Networks is a leading supplier of 3.65 GHz fixed wireless broadband equipment in the U.S. today. Operators who have deployed this equipment can upgrade to the full capabilities of CBRS with a simple over-the-air upgrade. The upgrade will be available to network operators at no cost from Cambium Networks, protecting the network operators' capital investments and eliminating the need for expensive truck rolls to upgrade infrastructure equipment.
Any operator that has exhausted their 5 GHz spectrum yet still has unserved customers can now reach these audiences with Cambium Networks' new CBRS solutions. For private network operators in the local government, rail, oil and gas, electric utilities and similar markets the additional spectrum, coupled with the protected nature of the SAS-controlled channel assignments, makes CBRS an ideal solution for mission-critical wireless networking applications.
The SVP of Product Management, Cambium Networks, Scott Imhoff stated that Cambium Networks, FCC, Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA), and the broader CBRS ecosystem have worked diligently for years to make CBRS a reality. The innovative spectrum sharing architecture, a first on a global basis, further democratizes broadband access, particularly in underserved rural communities.
