Two sides of the same fence: fixed and mobile experts on FWA
Telecoms industry leaders from our 2023 Glotel Awards winners and judging panel share their insights on the emergence of fixed wireless access.
With fixed wireless access (FWA) growing fast in the field of telecoms, there are new opportunities – and challenges – for mobile and fixed broadband operators to prepare for.
Find out how the industry leaders from our 2023 Glotel Awards winners and the Glotels judging panel expect FWA could impact the telecoms industry in the future.
In the rapidly changing telecoms landscape FWA is increasingly taking centre stage. The industry recognises FWA's potential to bridge the digital divide and transform both consumer and enterprise services.
FWA projects featured prominently in the 2023 Glotel Awards, reflects Scott Bicheno, Glotel Awards judge and Editorial Director of Telecoms.com. “Last year it was interesting to observe entries involving fixed wireless access across a number of categories, which stands to reason since it’s a wireless technology designed to provide a broadband-like service,” Bicheno says.
“FWA offers an efficient and flexible solution for delivering high-speed internet, especially in areas where traditional fixed networks are not feasible or cost effective”, says Henda Zayane from Nokia. At the 2023 Glotel Awards, Nokia won the Fixed Network Evolution category for its project with stc, which aims to revolutionise fixed network service quality.
FWA plays a critical role in bridging the digital divide and accelerating the adoption of internet services in underserved areas. This in turn creates new opportunities for innovation and economic growth, reaching new pockets of consumers in an otherwise saturated market such as that of broadband services. FWA also allows individuals and businesses in underserved and unserved areas to use IoT devices and services, improving areas such as education, healthcare, and financial services.
At last year’s Glotel Awards, Capgemini and Blueplanet won the 5G Innovation of the Year award for their joint project “Multi-vendor Disaggregated 5G Network Slicing Solution”. According to Shamik Mishra, CTO Connectivity, Capgemini Engineering, “the rise of FWA is a key component of the convergence (of fixed and mobile networks), offering a cost-effective and flexible alternative to traditional fixed-line broadband.”
Since FWA does not need the same infrastructure as fibre networks, the investment needed to start a fixed wireless network is lower, making it cheaper and more scalable for operators. FWA is in fact the first scalable, revenue positive 5G use case for carriers. It offers a solution to network interference and connectivity problems and as such could become a vital element of another emerging trend for the industry – smart cities.
From an operator's perspective, FWA presents a compelling proposition ending a decade long trend where operators try to navigate both fixed and mobile networks. "Telecoms operators are increasingly interested in FWA due to its potential to expand market reach, reduce infrastructure costs, and meet the growing demand for seamless connectivity across diverse environments," says Mishra.
This interest from operators signals a potential shift in the telecoms landscape: integrating FWA into existing network infrastructures can create more robust, flexible, and far-reaching connectivity solutions that meet the varied and evolving needs of consumers and businesses alike. Therefore, as FWA technology matures and becomes more widely adopted, we may see a redefinition of what constitutes 'fixed' and 'mobile' networks.
Whilst there are still variables to be solved with FWA (such as geographical terrain and infrastructure, network traffic limits, and interference), it offers a refreshing perspective into the development of the telecoms landscape. As Bicheno puts it, “the whole industry has been painfully aware of how difficult it has been to get returns on 5G investments, especially when it comes to new revenue streams. FWA has been a distinct light on the horizon in that respect and it’s been great to see the technology gain commercial traction, something I expect to be reflected once more in this year’s Glotel Awards entries.”