Software upgrade provides easy transition for Cambium customers;
CBRS fixed wireless delivers fast broadband for rural, suburban and enterprise needs
ROLLING MEADOWS, lL., July 28, 2020 – Cambium Networks (NASDAQ: CMBM) a leading global provider of wireless networking solutions, today announced that it is driving fast market adoption of Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) spectrum to connect communities across the United States. Fixed wireless connectivity currently represents the primary use case for CBRS. Cambium has established a significant lead in adoption of CBRS fixed wireless, with approximately 20,000 CBRS devices now deployed by over 150 service provider customers.
The deployments already in place are helping drive faster and more accessible broadband to meet rural, suburban, local government, and enterprise needs across the US. CBRS, utilizing 3,550-3,700 MHz spectrum, has a wide variety of uses, from helping enterprises and governments create private networks to augmenting mobile operators’ networks with additional fixed wireless access and mid-band spectrum.
Since announcing its CBRS services in February 2020, Cambium has helped customers get well ahead of the October 17, 2020 expiration date for most current licenses managed under the FCC’s Part 90 rules. Operators who do not migrate ahead of the deadline will be forced to cease operation or rush a migration to CBRS. Thanks to Cambium’s software-defined radio design and unmatched combination of vision, services, and real-world experience with CBRS, the transition to the new band is either complete or well underway for its customers via a relatively simple software upgrade. The ability to migrate to CBRS with an over-the-air-upgrade is especially attractive to the approximately 125,000 Cambium Networks’ Part 90 devices, also known as “3.65”, deployed prior to the advent of CBRS.
“The longevity of Cambium equipment is impressive,” said Eric Ozrelic, CEO of Webformix. “Having equipment that is CBRS certified is a great advantage as I’m able to easily transition my network to the new frequency bands. By supporting 10 MHz channels, Cambium’s PMP 450m gives the best bang for the buck for those of us who are limited in channel width, enabling us to support more subscribers and deliver outstanding performance with room to grow.”
Cambium had been working on CBRS long before its February service announcement, partnering with the FCC, WISPA (the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association), WinnForum, the CBRS Alliance, and the broader CBRS ecosystem to establish a vision for bringing the Service to life for its customers.
“Cambium Networks got way out in front of CBRS, which in turn helped us do the same,” said Mark Radabaugh, President and Founder of Amplex Internet. “With the added network strain brought about by COVID-19, working with Cambium, which had the vision and foresight to act quickly, means we are primed to serve our customers during COVID and after COVID. The October Part 90 deadline is not an issue for us – or for our customers.”
“CBRS spectrum is a precious resource, and effectively exercising it requires long-term planning and vision,” Cambium Networks CEO Atul Bhatnagar said. “That was the first step in our approach to CBRS. Second was providing services, which we announced in February. Now, with approximately 20,000 devices already deployed, we already have established unmatched experience in CBRS. Having that combination of vision, services and experience makes it very clear to us that operators must act now, both to take advantage of CBRS opportunities already in play and to avoid missing the opportunity before the deadline.”
Operators already working with Cambium on CBRS have benefited by:
- Applying fixed wireless to provide additional capacity to rural and suburban broadband access, the largest current use case by Cambium customers deploying CBRS devices.
- Utilizing Cambium’s purpose-built software defined radio system, which services the CBRS frequency band and works with two of the major SAS administrators – Federated Wireless and Google.
- Access to spectrally efficient, high-capacity radios that employ Multi-User MIMO technology to best utilize available spectrum
About Cambium Networks
Cambium Networks empowers millions of people globally with wireless connectivity. Its products are used by commercial and government network operators as well as broadband service providers to connect people, places and things. With a single network architecture spanning fixed wireless and Wi-Fi, centrally managed via the cloud, Cambium enables operators to achieve maximum performance with minimal spectrum and low overhead. Cambium empowers a growing ecosystem of partners who design and deliver gigabit wireless solutions that just work.
Media Contact:
Dave Reddy
Big Valley Marketing for Cambium
+1 (650) 868-4659
dreddy@bigvalley.co